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Travel

Travel

UNCW employees should prepare to travel on university-related business by following these recommendations and procedures. There are certain responsibilities UNCW employees have when their travel plans are impacted, like contacting the airline or travel agency for cancellations.

Additionally, employees should prepay airfare, registration fees and lodging to prevent employees from using personal payment methods for university business. Please see our Travel Policies for additional information.

Types of Travel

Travel for Employees Employee Travel
Travel for Non-Employees Non-Employee Travel
Travel for Independent Contractors Independent Contractor Travel
Travel for Students Student Travel
Travel for Student Groups Student Group Travel

UPDATES TO THE UNCW Cards

IMPORTANT UPDATES TO THE UNCW Cards (Purchasing and Travel)

With the transition to the new UNCW Card, a revised policy for the UNCW Card Program has been implemented. The use of a UNCW Card is required for all trips with a pre-approval of $10,000 or more. Please refer to Policy 05.160 UNCW Card Program and the Purchasing Website for additional information regarding updates to the UNCW Card Program.

Mileage Rates

Effective Thursday, January 2nd, the Emburse Travel module was updated to reflect the 2025 IRS mileage rate of 70 cents/mile (up from 67 cents/mile). Expense reports created prior to January 2nd will reflect the old rate, and reports created on January 2nd and forward will reflect the new rate.  If you have questions, please contact Debbie Jewell.

Updated Meal and Lodging Per Diem Rates Effective July 1, 2025

OSBM updates its per diem meal rates every two years. The current per diem meal rates for In-State and Out-of-State are listed below. In accordance with OSBM guidance, UNCW is using the US General Services Administration (GSA) lodging per diem of $110. Lodging in excess of this per diem rate will continue to route to the travelers’ supervisor and budget authority for approval.

Please continue to visit the Department of State website for the most current foreign travel per diem rates.

OSBM MEAL PER DIEM 07.01.2025

New Meal Per Diem Rates
In-State Out of State
Breakfast (per diem) $10.60 $10.60
Lunch (per diem) $14.00 $14.00
Dinner (per diem) $24.40 $27.70
Total Meal Per Diem $49.00 $52.30

GSA LODGING PER DIEM 07.01.2025

New Lodging Per Diem Rates
In-State Out of State
Lodging (actual, up to*) $110.00 $110.00
Total Subsistence $159.00 $162.30

*unless exceed amount approved with justification

Visit the Controller's page for Travel Forms
Office of State Budget & Management Travel Policies

UNCW Card Campaign

University employees who travel at least twice a year or spend over $500 per trip are expected to have and use a UNCW card. The use of the UNCW card is a standard business practice designed to ease expense tracking and remove financial liability for individual employees. Enroll in new cardholder training PUR222: UNCW Card via the Finance Training System for an instructor-led course and complete your UNCW Card application.

Some advantages of using a UNCW Card are as follows:

  • Easy to apply for a UNCW Card
  • Convenient training course offered in Skillport
  • Reduction of out-of-pocket expenses for the traveler
  • Separation of personal and business travel expenses
  • Allows you to register and pay online for in-person conferences
  • No more waiting until after the trip ends for card transactions to post to your departmental fund (important at year-end)
  • Other than food, most travel expenses can be charged to the card
  • Reduces risk to travelers for fraudulent activity
  • Minimum monthly card limit of $25,000 (can be increased for student group travel)
  • UNCW is tax-exempt, so lodging establishments should not charge NC sales tax (savings to the department's fund)
  • Card transactions are posted into the Emburse Wallet, making the completion of expense reports easier
  • Travelers can take pictures of receipts while traveling and upload them into Emburse reducing the risk of losing receipts while traveling
  • No personal financial liability - and no waiting for reimbursements until after travel occurs
Important Dates

The deadline for an expense report or direct pay invoice in Emburse is 10:45 on Fridays.

Expense reports must be completed correctly, approved by all parties, and have all the necessary documentation and comments attached by this deadline.

Resources

Emburse Guides

Emburse Resources

Resources

Contact Us

Travel Office

Administrative Annex Building, 2nd Floor
622 N MacMillan Ave.
Wilmington, NC 28403-5660