Yale Travel Management is a resource for the Yale community and their guests traveling on University business. They manage the relationships with Yale's travel suppliers, including World Travel for booking travel. World Travel is a large travel management company based in the US. Their services include online booking with Concur Travel, a designated agent team trained on Yale policies and the Fly America Act for federally sponsored travel, and a team of agents specifically for booking meetings.

World Travel is a large travel management company based in the US that serves as Yale’s preferred travel agency. Their services include online booking with Concur Travel, a designated agent team trained on Yale policies and a team of agents specifically for booking meetings. Professional & Grad Students have profiles in Concur as of September 2024. To activate student profiles, submit requests via the Questions/Feedback form. If you plan to book for someone else, you will also need to request guest access. To start booking on Concur, log in to World Travel.

Travelers can book air, hotel, and car rental through World Travel. All Yale-associated travel discounts with preferred suppliers are in World Travel's platforms. Reference World Travel/Concur resources here.

For group travel (including conference speakers traveling to New Haven): World Travel can book your meeting using live agents or you can book them yourselves with guest access. To set up a meeting with World Travel, complete and submit the online form. In order to classify your group as a meeting, World Travel requires at least 10 travelers. A World Travel representative will contact you to review your requirements for the meeting.

World Travel offers support by phone (833-780-1302 / 484-624-6988) and email (yale@worldtravelinc.com).

Yale Travel Management offers support by the online form: Questions/Feedback form.

Yale outlines university-wide policies for business travel including transportation, accommodations, and other travel expenses including personal travel.

Travelers will need to include screenshots of comparable flights, hotels, and ground transportation options to verify most affordable pricing for dates and times needed for travel when submitting documentation for financial processing. If traveling for a conference or specific event, students will need to include the conference itinerary or event flyer to verify dates of travel. Travelers may travel the day before and return the day after the event.

Travelers (or their designees) are expected to select air travel within the basic least expensive unrestricted accommodations class offered by commercial airlines, consistent with business requirements. Yale does not reimburse for first-class travel under any circumstances.

Travelers (or their designees) are expected to select transportation that is reasonably priced, consistent with business requirements. For example, when complementary shuttle services (e.g., from the airport) are available and practical, travelers are strongly encouraged to use such services.

Generally, the University does not pay for trip cancellation insurance. In certain circumstances, the traveler can seek an exception or purchase a refundable ticket. Justification and approval must be secured in advance of making any purchases.

Reimbursement for personal vehicle use is calculated based on mileage (not gas receipts) to account for vehicle usage, including gasoline. The IRS mileage rate effective July 1, 2026 is 76 cents per mile for business use when using a personal vehicle.

If travelers use their personal vehicle for business travel, documentation of business miles must include the business purpose for the travel and the number of miles driven. Travelers will need to include a screenshot of the driving directions route with mileage clearly labeled when submitting for reimbursement.

Personal vehicle reimbursement is limited to no more than the cost of a comparable trip's air travel within the basic least expensive unrestricted accommodations class offered by commercial airlines, consistent with business requirements. If a personal vehicle is used for business purposes primarily for the traveler’s convenience and results in a higher cost than other modes of transportation, reimbursement will be limited to the lower of the following:
cost of the air travel within the basic least expensive unrestricted accommodations class offered by commercial airlines, consistent with business requirements, between the nearest commercial airport serving the origin and destination cities; or
cost of train fare within the main cabin class (e.g., economy, coach) that is reasonably priced, consistent with business requirements, between the nearest passenger station serving the origin and destination cities.

The traveler will not be reimbursed separately for gas expenses. Travelers will, however, be reimbursed for tolls and reasonable parking fees. Valet parking is not covered and if purchased, is personal to the traveler. Travelers will need to include receipts for documentation when submitting for reimbursement. Student groups may choose to cap the total dollar amount for mileage reimbursement in advance to protect budgets. This information should be conveyed to student drivers in advance of each trip and clearly documented in the student group purchase request form to support financial processing.

When renting a vehicle for University travel, travelers (or their designees) are expected to rent a reasonably priced vehicle (e.g., compact or midsize passenger car). YLS has set up direct billing accounts with Hertz and Enterprise car rental companies. To book car rentals, schedule an in-person PCard appointment to use the YLS car rental accounts for streamlined payments and documentation.

If students pay for the car rental from personal funds, Yale will reimburse the cost of the car rental as well as gas, tolls, and reasonable parking fees. Valet parking is not covered and if purchased, is personal to the traveler. Travelers will need to include receipts for documentation when submitting for reimbursement. Yale does not cover the cost of any purchased roadside assistance package or personal property insurance coverage. Yale does not permit the rental of 12- and 15-passenger vans for University business because of the possibility of serious accidents and injury to passengers. The Office of Risk Management does not extend Yale’s insurance coverage to these vehicles.

Car Insurance
Driver Safety Awareness Training is required for Yale students renting vehicles for Yale-related travel. There is a $13 fee/person. Email osa@yale.edu to request the student group COA to complete the Driver Safety Awareness Training form. The driver is only required to take the course one time during their affiliation with Yale unless, due to an accident, it is determined they should take a refresher course. Once the student has completed and passed the training, they are covered by University insurance.

Yale does not reimburse, or otherwise pay, for the use of Zip cars, taxi service, or rideshare service (e.g., Uber, Lyft, etc.) for travel between University locations. When traveling away from University locations, however, travelers may utilize, and Yale will reimburse for, reasonably priced Zip cars, taxi services, or rideshare services.

The University allows the use of a private sedan or town car service when the cost is reasonable and consistent with business requirements. The request and justification for the use a private car service should be sent to OSA (osa@yale.edu) for approval before booking, and will be allowed based on an analysis of cost and business requirements. For a list of preferred vendors, refer to Private Car Service.

Travelers (or their designees) using train service should book train fare within the main cabin class (e.g., economy, coach) that is reasonably priced, consistent with business requirements. Travelers are permitted, when applicable funding allows, to use business class, but not first class, train service.

Students booking on behalf of an invited guest must book using Amtrak, and submit the receipt to osa@yale.edu after purchase since Amtrak receipts tend to be emailed directly to the traveler. If the guests prefer a MTA Metro-North train, they will need to purchase their own ticket and seek reimbursement, as MTA does not allow booking on someone else's behalf.

Lodging is an appropriate business expense for multi-day travel beyond 50 miles from a regular work location. The University does not pay for lodging related to single-day travel within 50 miles of a regular work location.

Travelers (or their designees) are expected to select a reasonably priced hotel room. The University reimburses actual hotel expenses. Travelers must not use federal per diem rates for lodging.

Travelers are permitted to use Airbnb, VRBO, or other sites to arrange lodging. When using these rental sites, travelers (or their designees) are expected to select an option that is comparable in cost to a reasonably priced hotel room with a single occupancy rate in the same locale.

If the vendor requires a signature on a rental agreement, students must submit the Contract Review form and allow up to 3 weeks to obtain contract signatures since multiple offices need to review the contract.

If students book lodging for a retreat, student leaders should arrive early to walk through the space and document its condition with photos. Before departure, student leaders should complete a second walkthrough and photograph the space again to document its condition at checkout. This documentation helps protect students if the venue assesses additional fees or damage charges after the event.

The Assumption of Risk, Release from Liability and Indemnification (“waiver”) form may be used for domestic or international programs, activities or trips organized and/or run by Yale, by a registered student organization, by a Residential College or by an outside organization for Yale participants. The organizer is responsible for collecting copies of properly completed waivers from all participants and forwarding them to the Office of Enterprise Risk Management (risk.management@yale.edu). Please copy OSA (osa@yale.edu) for awareness.