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:
OMB_HQMC_PR_RFF_DTS_GTCC@USMC.MIL//
POC2//CWO3 GINA CURRY/DC, P&R-RFF/TEL: COMM (703) 432-9811/EMAIL:
OMB_HQMC_PR_RFF_DTS_GTCC@USMC.MIL//
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:
OMB_HQMC_PR_RFF_DTS_GTCC@usmc.mil 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.//