For Air Force TDY travel, keep an itemized receipt for every lodging expense, regardless of amount, and receipts for individual expenditures of $75 or more under the general JTR rule. Keep smaller receipts too: they can help reconcile your trip, and some expense categories have specific documentation requirements.
Standard meals and incidental expenses, or M&IE, are different. They generally do not require expense itemization or receipts unless an actual expense allowance has been authorized or approved for some portion of M&IE. Check the rule for the particular expense rather than applying the $75 threshold to every situation. JTR paragraphs 010301 and 020304
This checklist helps you collect records for a routine TDY voucher. It does not establish that every listed cost is authorized or reimbursable.
Required documentation and useful records are not the same
| Expense or record | What to retain | How to treat it |
|---|---|---|
| Lodging | An itemized receipt for each lodging expense | Required regardless of amount under the general lodging receipt rule |
| Other individually claimed expenditures of $75 or more | The applicable receipt and supporting approval when needed | General receipt requirement; verify expense-specific rules |
| Smaller separately claimed expenses | Available receipts and a record of the actual expense | Useful to keep; the threshold is not a universal exemption from documentation |
| Standard M&IE | Information about meal status and relevant changes | Ordinary M&IE does not require meal-by-meal receipts; AEA can change the requirements |
| Travel authorization and amendments | The approved documents and relevant supporting decisions | Keep them with the trip records to explain what was authorized |
| Reservation changes, refunds and cancellations | Confirmations and the related receipts or credits | Keep them to reconcile actual costs and explain changes |
The JTR advises retaining all receipts. It also discourages approving officials from requiring additional receipts except to substantiate doubtful reimbursement claims. The useful-record recommendations here are not a claim that every small purchase requires an uploaded receipt. JTR paragraph 010301-A
Check your hotel receipt before leaving
Ask for an itemized receipt and read it before checkout is complete. As a practical check, compare the stay dates, nightly room charges, taxes, fees, payments and any corrections with what actually happened.
For lodging purchased through an online booking agent, JTR paragraph 020303-A5 specifically addresses documentation showing daily room costs, taxes and applicable miscellaneous fees. It warns that combining taxes and fees instead of itemizing them can prevent reimbursement of those charges. JTR paragraph 020303-A5
A reservation confirmation or a card statement may help you reconcile the trip, but neither should be assumed to satisfy an itemized lodging receipt requirement. If the hotel record is incomplete, request a corrected receipt rather than changing the vendor's document yourself.
Keep transportation records together
Create a transportation folder or category for your trip. Depending on the authorized arrangements, useful records may include:
- The ticket receipt or travel-management-company invoice.
- The final rental-car receipt, if you used an authorized rental.
- Receipts for separately claimed fuel, parking, tolls or transportation fares.
- Baggage receipts and any required supporting authorization.
- Cancellation, refund or change confirmations.
This is a collection checklist, not a list of automatic entitlements. Verify the applicable rule before claiming a cost. In particular, do not mix personal-vehicle mileage with rental-car expense treatment, or treat a personal convenience expense as authorized merely because you saved its receipt.
Do you need receipts for meals on TDY?
Under standard M&IE, you do not normally submit each breakfast, lunch and dinner purchase to determine the allowance. JTR paragraph 020304 states the itemization and receipt exception when an actual expense allowance is authorized or approved for some portion of M&IE. JTR paragraph 020304
That does not remove the need to report circumstances that affect your meal rate. Keep information about meals provided, directed dining arrangements, or changes that need review. A receipt from a restaurant does not by itself establish that a higher meal allowance applies.
What to do if a receipt is missing
First, try to obtain a replacement from the hotel, transportation provider or other vendor. That is often the clearest way to recover the itemized record.
If a receipt is impracticable to obtain or was inadvertently lost or destroyed, JTR paragraph 010301-B requires a lost-receipt statement explaining the circumstances and containing the same information as the missing receipt. Ask your travel support team which form or submission process to use. JTR paragraph 010301-B
Use actual, supportable information. Do not invent amounts, alter a receipt, or assume a lost-receipt statement guarantees reimbursement. Documentation and eligibility remain separate questions.
Use a simple receipt routine during the trip
These organizational habits can make the voucher easier to prepare:
- Save a legible copy when the expense occurs, using an approved storage method.
- Use a filename that identifies the date and expense, such as “2026-11-03 airport parking.”
- Keep the whole receipt readable, including the merchant, amount and itemization.
- Note the official purpose when it may not be obvious later.
- Retain corrections, refunds and credits with the original expense record.
- Keep sensitive documents out of public chats and shared class discussions.
Follow your organization's rules for storing financial and official travel records. The goal is a complete, understandable record, not a collection of screenshots that you cannot match to expenses.
Reconcile the voucher with what actually happened
Before submitting, compare your records with the actual itinerary and charges. Check for duplicate entries, canceled reservations, refunded charges and expenses already paid or reimbursed elsewhere. The JTR prohibits reimbursement more than once for the same allowance or expense. JTR paragraph 010302-A
If you received approval for an unusual expense or a changed arrangement, keep that decision with the supporting records. When you are unsure whether to claim something, ask about the specific expense and circumstances rather than using the existence of a receipt as the deciding factor.
TDY receipt checklist
- Itemized receipts for every lodging expense.
- Receipts for individual expenditures of $75 or more under the applicable rules.
- Any additional expense-specific documentation.
- Smaller receipts retained where available for reconciliation.
- Transportation records matched to the authorized arrangements.
- Meal-status information and any applicable AEA documentation.
- Authorization, amendments and relevant approvals.
- Cancellation, refund and correction records.
- Replacement receipts or truthful lost-receipt statements when needed.
- A final check for duplicates and amounts paid elsewhere.
Prepare with your class before you go
Receipt collection is easier when you think through the trip before departure. Classmates can help surface practical questions about lodging instructions, arrival arrangements and what to clarify with the school.
TDY Spy is being built to connect Air Force members preparing for the same class. The aim is to make it easier to discuss lodging instructions and arrival arrangements before departure. Use the checklist above for your records, and keep receipts and financial details out of class discussions.
Common TDY receipt questions
Do I need a hotel receipt if the room costs less than $75?
Yes. The general JTR rule requires an itemized lodging receipt regardless of the amount.
Can I throw away every receipt under $75?
That is not a good rule to follow. The JTR advises retaining all receipts, lodging is an explicit exception to the threshold, and other expense-specific requirements can apply.
Does a receipt mean the expense will be reimbursed?
No. The receipt documents the expense; authorization, eligibility and applicable limits determine whether and how much it can be reimbursed.