Meals and Lodging

Office of Financial Services

Meal and Lodging Rates (Comptroller's Website)
For Texas locations not found on the website above, use $107 lodging rate and $59 meals rate for fiscal year 2023-2024.

When arranging a reservation for a Texas hotel, request the state rate as indicated in Meal and Lodging Rates (Comptroller's Website).

NOTE: A state employee may claim less than the maximum meal reimbursement rate for a duty point and use the amount of the reduction to increase the maximum lodging reimbursement rate for the duty point. This is allowable for in-state and out-of-state travel.

Example: Gloria is a state employee who is planning to travel to Florida for a business meeting. The maximum lodging rate for Florida at the time is $100 per day and the maximum meal reimbursement rate is $45 per day. Gloria finds a hotel very close to where her business meeting is being held, but the hotel charges $110 per night. Gloria decides that she would like to reduce her meal reimbursement from $45 to $35 so that she can use the $10 reduction to stay in the convenient hotel.

Meals

• Travel meals are reimbursable up to the daily maximum set forth by the State Comptroller, not to exceed actual expenses. The travel reimbursement rate is NOT a per diem. In general, meal receipts are not required when meals are paid for out of pocket and the employee requests a reimbursement. However, campus departments may require receipts from their department travelers. Itemized receipts ARE required for all University Travel credit card charges including meals.  Please note that an itemized receipt includes each item purchased and is not the same as the summary credit card receipt.

Lodging

• Lodging is reimbursable up to the daily maximum set forth by the comptroller per night and is limited to actual expenses based on receipts. Itemized receipts are required for lodging.

• For in-state travel, a Texas Hotel Exemption Certificate must be provided to the lodging establishment at check-in.

• For employees sharing a room: Each employee must submit individual documentation for reimbursement of his or her share. The lodging establishment will split the bill if the request is made at the time of the room reservation. Rooms must be in each traveler's own name.