R 011437Z AUG 25 MARADMIN 359/25 MSGID/GENADMIN/CMC WASHINGTON DC PR RFF// SUBJ/UPDATED GUIDANCE FOR PROCESSING UNSUBMITTED DEFENSE TRAVEL SYSTEM TRAVEL VOUCHERS AND CLOSING OUTSTANDING TRAVEL ORDERS// REF/A/JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS// REF/B/DODFMR, VOLUME 9// REF/C/FPM, VOLUME 2// REF/D/MCO 4650.39A// REF/E/MCO 7300.21B// REF/F/DON ASN MEMO, DATED 18 NOV 2020// NARR/REF (A) IS THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS (JTR) WHICH PROVIDES TRAVEL POLICY FOR TEMPORARY DUTY TRAVEL (TDY).  REF (B) IS THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT REGULATIONS (DODFMR) VOLUME 9 DOD TRAVEL POLICY.  REF (C) IS THE FINANCE POLICY MANUAL (FPM) VOLUME 2 SERVICE LEVEL TRAVEL PROCEDURES. REF (D) IS THE MARINE CORPS DEFENSE TRAVEL SYSTEM (DTS) ORDER (MCO) 4650.39A WHICH PROVIDES PROGRAM MANAGEMENT POLICY OF THE DTS PROGRAM.  REF (E) IS MARINE CORPS ORDER (MCO) 7300.21B FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES MANUAL.  REF (F) IS THE DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY, ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE NAVY MEMORANDUM WHICH PROVIDES POLICY FOR DTS UNSUBMITTED TRAVEL VOUCHERS.//  POC1//ANGELA HOWARD/DC, P&R-RFF/TEL: COMM (703) 784-9110/EMAIL: [email protected]// POC2//CWO3 GINA CURRY/DC, P&R-RFF/TEL: COMM (703) 432-9811/EMAIL: [email protected]// GENTEXT/REMARKS/1. Purpose.  This MARADMIN provides updated guidance for managing Outstanding Travel Orders (OTOs) that were created using the Defense Travel System (DTS) and outlines specific actions required to comply with reference (f). 2.  Background.  The Marine Corps continues to experience challenges with OTOs, which unnecessarily exposes the Marine Corps to increased risk of findings or failure during financial audits.  The Marine Corps has approximately $21.8 million in OTOs from Fiscal Year (FY) 21 through FY25.  OTOs directly contribute to material weaknesses identified in the Marine Corps’ full financial audit, undermining audit readiness and fiscal accountability.   3.  Action.  Effective upon release of this MARADMIN the following actions are required. 3.a.  DTS Program Management Office (PMO).  The DTS PMO will initiate zero-dollar travel vouchers using an automated process for OTOs 90 days past the authorization trip end date when commands fail to take corrective action within 30 days of the authorization trip end date in accordance with references (b) and (e). 3.a.1.  Logistics Policy & Sustainment Distribution Branch (I&L LPS-D) will initiate zero-dollar vouchers to remove reimbursable expenses and reconcile Centrally Billed Accounts (CBA) expenses at 45 days past the authorization trip end date to reduce delayed CBA payments. 3.b.  Travelers.  Per reference (b), Travelers must submit a travel claim within five working days of completion of travel. DTS will issue daily system generated notifications to the email address listed in the traveler’s DTS profile for all unsubmitted vouchers. Travelers are responsible for ensuring accurate documentation and receipts are attached to support claims. Failure to submit travel vouchers on time will result in delayed reimbursement and potential Government Travel Charge Card (GTCC) delinquency.  Step-by-step instructions for creating vouchers are available in “Defense Travel System Guide 3: Vouchers,”  located on the Defense Travel Management Office (DTMO) website. 3.b.1  Trip Cancellations.  Travelers must cancel their travel authorizations in DTS immediately upon notification that the trip will not be executed.  Trip cancellations resulting in incurred expenses such as lodging cancellation fees or Travel Management Company (TMC) booking fees may be submitted for reimbursement in accordance with references (a) and (d).  Step-by-step instructions for canceling authorizations are available in “Defense Travel System Guide 2: Authorizations,” located on the Defense Travel Management Office (DTMO) website. 3.c.  Non-DTS Entry Agent (NDEA).  When a traveler has not submitted a travel voucher the NDEA is responsible for creating and submitting the zero-travel voucher on the traveler’s behalf. The NDEA will sign the voucher, initiating the routing process for approval. 3.c.1.  General Processing Instructions.  When the traveler has not submitted a voucher for an executed trip, do not cancel the DTS authorization.  A zero-dollar voucher should be created. Erroneously canceling an authorization will remove the traveler’s ability to submit a supplemental reimbursement associated with the Travel Authorization Number (TANUM).  The NDEA will reduce the itinerary to one day, trip duration to 12 hours or less, and zero out expenses when processing vouchers to reconcile OTOs.  Do not delete the expense.  The NDEA will attach a “Memo in Lieu of DD Form 1351-2” for zero-dollar vouchers 3.c.2.  Processing without Reimbursable Expenses.  The NDEA must select the “Submitting a Zero-dollar Voucher” statement option, sign and upload the completed Memo as a substantiating document.  3.c.3.  Processing with Reimbursable Expenses.  The NDEA must upload a signed DD Form 1351-2 from the traveler and complete voucher submission in accordance with references (a) and (d). 3.c.4.  Processing with CBA Expenses.  The NDEA must select the “Reconciling a CBA Transaction” statement option, sign and upload the completed Memo, as a substantiating document.  When processing a zero-dollar voucher that includes both reimbursable and non-reimbursable expenses, only zero out the reimbursable expenses. Do not remove the CBA transaction, as doing so may prevent proper reconciliation of obligated funds. 3.c.5  Comments to Approving Official Section: When completing a zero-dollar travel voucher, in the “Comments to the Approving Official” section in DTS annotate the following statement:  3.c.5.(1). Trip Not Executed.  Annotate “Processing OTO in accordance with MARADMIN (Cite this MARADMIN number).  Traveler did not execute travel.” 3.c.5.(2).  Trip Executed or Cancelled with Expenses.  Annotate “Processing OTO in accordance with MARADMIN (Cite this MARADMIN number).  Traveler did not submit a voucher within 30 days of the authorization trip end date.” 3.c.6.  NDEA Upload Instructions.  The NDEA must attach the Memo in Lieu of Form DD1351-2 using the correct expense label.  Both document types shall be uploaded under the “Add Expense-Documents.”  Select “Travel Voucher (Form) 1351-2.”  Do not upload as “Memo” or “Other.” Failure to do so will prompt the system to generate an “Audit Fail” flag preventing the document from routing.  A copy of the Memo in Lieu of DD1351-2 is located on the RFF DTS SharePoint https://usmc. sharepoint-mil.us/sites/DCPR_RFF_External/DTS. 3.d. Organizational Defense Travel Administrators (ODTA).  In  accordance with reference (d), ODTAs are responsible for monitoring and reconciling the DTS Unsubmitted Voucher Report for their  respective organizations on a weekly basis, including appropriate traveler notifications.  Once an unsubmitted voucher exceeds 30 days from the authorization trip end date, ODTAs must coordinate with the assigned Non-DTS Entry Agent (NDEA) to initiate and submit a zero-dollar voucher.  Additionally, ODTAs shall notify the Finance Defense Travel Administrator (FDTA) if there are any accounting related rejects. 3.e.  Finance Defense Travel Administrator (FDTA).  FDTAs are responsible for facilitating the reconciliation and resolution of unsubmitted travel vouchers in coordination with ODTAs and NDEAs. FDTAs shall review associated transactions to identify accounting rejects, unmatched obligations, or other discrepancies, and ensure prompt corrective actions are initiated.  FDTAs must validate the obligation status within the accounting system and, when necessary, coordinate with their G-8 to resolve any funding or accounting issues.    3.f.  OTO Manual Reconciliation.  Manual de-obligations disrupt the standard DTS-to-accounting system interface and should only be executed on a case-by-case basis.  They should be considered when DTS is unable to successfully interface with DAI, typically due to inaccessible or abandoned documents resulting from systemic failures such as authorizations or vouchers stuck in processing or routing errors.  In these situations, the original trip record is no longer actionable, and DTS cannot process a normal cancellation or  adjustment. 3.f.1.  Inaccessible or Non-Actionable Documents.  Prior to initiating a manual de-obligation, thorough research must be conducted to validate the root cause and confirm that DTS is incapable of resolving the issue through standard functionality. Improper de-obligations may result in inaccurate financial reporting or audit findings.  In certain cases, a new DTS authorization or voucher may need to be created to properly account for obligated funds and accurately reflect the financial transaction.  These scenarios must be processed in accordance with reference (d). 3.g.  Debt Management.  FDTAs must collaborate with the servicing DTS Debt Management Monitor (DMM) to address any actions that result in a debt due to the U.S. Government.  DMMs are responsible for ensuring all required steps for proper debt identification and settlement are completed in accordance with applicable regulations. 3.h.  Reports.  Monitor and reconcile using DTS, DAI OTO and applicable transaction level reports to identify and resolve discrepancies. 3.i.  Approving Officials (AO).  In accordance with the references, the AO must verify the accuracy of the voucher, ensure all required supporting documentation is attached (e.g., receipts, DD Form 1351-2, Memo in Lieu of DD1351-2), and confirm appropriate comments/ justifications are included. 4.  Routing List.  The Defense Travel System (DTS) Program Management Office (PMO) has established a dedicated “Zero Voucher” routing list specifically for processing zero-dollar vouchers.  This routing list is automatically populated across all Marine Corps DTS organizations. 4.a.  Restrictions.  This routing list is restricted to RFF DTS PMO personnel only and is not authorized for general command use. Unauthorized modifications or use may result in improper document routing and processing delays of traveler documents. 4.b.  Routing List Maintenance.  When using the Global Maintenance feature to add routing elements, ODTAs must ensure the “Zero Voucher” routing list is deselected. 5.  Exemptions.  The DTS Program Management Office (PMO) will process zero-dollar vouchers for all OTOs exceeding 90 days from the authorization trip end date, excluding the following categories: 5.a.  Training and Education Command (TECOM) Formal School Training (FSTS) Authorizations.  These records are excluded from automatic processing  5.b.  Authorization with Scheduled Partial Payments or Advances. These records will be referred to the command for research and reconciliation  5.c.  Deceased Traveler Records.  Vouchers for deceased travelers will not be processed in DTS.  All records associated with deceased travelers must be managed outside of DTS in accordance with references (d).  However, before processing deceased claims using reference (d) contact the DTS PMO at: [email protected] for further instructions. 5.d. CBA Reconciliation.  These records are excluded from automatic processing.  I&L LPS-D will action OTOs with CBA expenses exceeding 45 days using a CBA reconciliation routing list.  5.e.  Other Records.  Any DTS records that cannot be zero-vouchered due to system errors, data anomalies, or authorization complications will be returned to the owning command for further research and resolution. 6.  Additional guidance related to this MARADMIN will be included in references (c) and (d) at a later date. 7.  Release authorized by LtGen James H. Adams III, Deputy Commandant, Programs and Resources.//