Management Notice

Number: 09/10; Date: June 9, 2009

I. AUTHORITY

6 FAH-5 H-360, State 081046, State 126645, State 113597

II. APPLICABILITY

With very limited exception for high level visitors, this policy applies to all USG employees traveling to Turkmenistan on TDY orders. It also applies to contractors or grantees sent abroad for temporary duty provided their contract/grant covers ICASS services and the sponsoring agency agrees in advance to pay for ICASS services. 

III. PURPOSE

The purpose of this directive is to prescribe Mission policy and procedures governing assessment of charges for TDY visitors.

IV. SUMMARY

The goal of this policy is to equitably capture and report costs associated with a TDY and to bill the sponsoring agency for this cost. Post will direct charge agencies for services provided to TDYers either through their travel orders or fund cites supplied by the sponsoring agency. However, when a TDYer’s stay exceeds 7 days and services which cannot be direct charged exceed $500, an ICASS TDY invoice will be generated. This policy has the concurrence of Ashgabat’s ICASS Council and will be applied to all TDYers who come to Turkmenistan. 

V. DIRECT CHARGING

Each visitor, regardless of length of stay, must bring or forward fiscal data to pay for direct charges for the visit. Each agency, organization or visiting delegation will be charged for the actual costs attributed to its visit. Direct charge costs include, but are not limited to:

• U.S. citizen and locally employed staff (LE Staff) overtime
• Per diem and miscellaneous travel costs for embassy employees in support of visitor’s field travel
• Commercially-leased vehicle
• Driving services and mileage
• Cell phone rental and related charges
• Airport expediter services and airport transportation
• Office supplies
• Any other cost directly attributable to the visit

Fiscal data must be provided to the FMO – attn: Financial Specialist - by the TDYer’s Control Officer. Control Officers are responsible for ensuring visitors are aware of this policy and comply with it. 

GSO and HR will assure that documentation for charges is forwarded to FMO within 5 working days of TDYer’s departure. FMO will provide a summary of charges to each visitor upon request. 

VI. ICASS CHARGING

TDYers who stay at post for more than seven (7) days and who require ICASS support will be charged for those services in addition to any direct charges outlined above.  A TDY invoice will be prepared based on the ICASS services to which a TDYer subscribes (typical costs are listed below).

TDY ICASS subscribers must include the two mandatory cost centers - Basic Package and CLO – in addition to any other cost center services desired. It is strongly recommended that TDYers also subscribe to Health Services if their agency participates in the Department of State’s medical program through ICASS. TDYers who do not subscribe to Health Services should not be provided access to the post Health Unit. In accordance with MED policy, long-term TDYers (defined as those who are in travel status more than 60 cumulative days per year) must have a medical clearance in order to subscribe to and use this service. 

TDYers with Sponsoring/Funding Agency at Post

The TDY module uses per-capita and transaction-based costs to calculate charges and each charge is handled differently.  Costs for per capita-based services are recovered in the current fiscal year and provide a non-recurring addition to post ICASS funds. Per capita charges for TDYers are assessed beginning on the eighth day of the visit and are accumulated until they exceed $500, at which point they are eligible for inclusion in a TDY invoice. Costs for transaction-based services are tracked for all TDYers, regardless of length of stay, through workload counts, which are included in the following year’s workload counts for the sponsoring agency (beginning from the first day of the TDY).

TDYers with no Sponsoring/Funding Agency at Post

TDYers from an agency not present at post must be prepared to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) and subscription of services agreement for ICASS support services upon arrival. With the granting of country clearance, it is expected that the TDYer’s agency will pay ICASS charges for services, will provide the appropriate agency ICASS billing code, and will authorize the TDYer to sign the ICASS invoice generated by the TDY module.

In cases where travel is urgent, TDYers must bring the required documentation with them to ensure provision of services. Post will not provide any services to a TDYer staying in excess of seven days without provision of this documentation before day eight (8) of the TDY.

An agency’s refusal to provide fiscal data or agreement to fund applicable support services may result in the denial of country clearance.

Your cooperation is appreciated.

Drafted: MGalus/FMO
Cleared: JBayat/MO
APaul/ICASS Council Chair
Approved: PEckstrom/A/DCM

APPENDIX A

TYPICAL TDY MODULE CHARGES (PER TRAVELER) FOR FY 09

COST SCHEDULE FOR DIRECT CHARGING OF TDY VISITORS IN FY 09