February 21, 2008
The following clarification points were developed in partnership by the employer and bargaining agent representatives of the NJC Government Travel Committee. These should be used to assist users in gaining a better understanding of the application of various new and existing provisions of the Travel Directive.
1. Vehicle Insurance (section 2.2)
Prior to proceeding on travel status, an employee should ascertain his/her insurance needs in any given situation, and discuss these needs with his/her supervisor. Any extra insurance needs will be assumed by the employer.
Employees should always ensure that, when using a vehicle for government travel, the vehicle is adequately insured.
- Some provinces provide insurance for the casual "business" use of a private motor vehicle (i.e. one day per week) - this would not be sufficient if using the vehicle for business-related travel on a regular basis.
- If an employee is driving another person's private motor vehicle while on government travel, s/he may require supplementary business insurance.
- If an employee is carrying other passengers (including other employees) in his/her private motor vehicle (or any vehicle), there may be a requirement for additional insurance.
- If an employee is renting a non-standard vehicle (for example, a pick-up truck or a four-wheel drive all-terrain vehicle (ATV)), there is a requirement to purchase a higher level of insurance.
Other anomalous insurance situations include:
- Designated Travel Card (DTC) rental insurance coverage is no longer valid after a period of 48 consecutive days. Users must be mindful of this and make alternative arrangements.
- If a personal credit card is used for vehicle rental purposes, the employee should verify what level of insurance this card provides. There may be a requirement to obtain additional insurance – such extra insurance needs will be assumed by the employer.
2. Currency Exchange (sections 3.1.4, 3.2.4, 3.3.4, and 3.4.4)
The Committee has already made a number of administrative recommendations with respect to currency exchange. Although, currency exchange provisions were only made available in Module 1 as part of the cyclical review for 2006-2007, the recommendations which have been made are in response to a need to facilitate currency conversion for reimbursement in general.
3. Designated Travel Card (DTC) versus Designated Responsibility Centre Travel Card (DRCTC) (section 1.6)
The DTC and DRCTC are different government corporate travel cards.
The DTC is the government-issued American Express card for individual employees. This card is not mandatory for represented employees.
The DRCTC is the departmental account traditionally used to pay for air and rail travel. The use of the DRCTC may now be expanded to include hotel rooms, vehicle rentals, and other travel expenses where possible, subject to agreement between the employee and manager. The intent is that travellers can now incur fewer direct expenses while travelling, given that the DRCTC can directly pay for travelling expenses.
4. Entry Documents – Additional Business Expenses (sections 3.1.2, 3.2.2, 3.3.2, and 3.4.2)
Various entry documents such as NEXUS, CanPass, Visas, or Passport (Standard – blue, Government – green, Diplomatic – red) may be required for government travel.
The cost of obtaining the appropriate document will be reimbursed by the employer.
5. Workplace Change (section 1.9.3)*
An employee may be required by the employer to change his/her workplace. The employee will however be on travel status for the duration of this change.
The single exception to this rule is as follows:
- The new workplace is within the existing headquarters area of the employee;
- The employee has been given 30 days notice of the change; and
- The duration of the change is at least 30 days.
All of the conditions outlined above must be met for the exception to be valid.
*Note: Workplace change that meets the requirements of relocation is subject to the NJC Integrated Relocation Directive.
6. Incidental Expense Allowance (sections 3.3.7 and 3.4.7)
- An incidental expense allowance will be paid for each day or part day on travel status regardless of arrival/departure times.
- Taxi gratuities are not considered part of the daily incidental expense allowance and may be claimed as part of the reimbursed taxi fare.
- Incidental expense allowances in foreign locations are determined using a formula based on the meal allowances for that location (refer to Appendix D explanatory notes). If no meal allowances are established for a particular location, the incidental expense allowance will be the Canadian incidental expense allowance (as per Appendix C).