New guidelines on travel bills and fund allocation for ministers, state ministers

The Cabinet Division has issued new and stricter guidelines for submitting travel bills and fund allocation for ministers, state ministers and deputy ministers. A total of seven requirements have been made mandatory, including attaching necessary supporting documents with travel bills, adjusting advances within the stipulated time and submitting three sets of bills.

A circular to this effect was issued by the Ministerial Services Branch of the Cabinet Division on September 3.

The circular stated that ministers, state ministers and deputy ministers must submit bills with necessary documents to the concerned ministry or division for reimbursement of actual expenses after completing official travel at home and abroad. For foreign travel, a copy of the summary approved by the head of government must be attached with the bill, while for domestic travel, a copy of the office order issued by the concerned ministry or division is required.

Additionally, for proof of travel expenses, actual tickets for vehicle hire, boarding passes with air tickets for air travel, approved travel itinerary and schedule, and copies of actual paid bills or receipts for accommodation at approved hotels must be submitted. For foreign travel, a statement on the exchange rate of the relevant foreign currency against the taka and relevant vouchers for other expenses have been made mandatory.

The circular clarified that if anyone travels for a period beyond the time mentioned in the original summary approved by the head of government, fresh approval must be obtained. For advance fund allocation, the latest guidelines of the Finance Division must be followed, and adjustment bills must be submitted within one month of completing the travel with the advance. No new allocation for any future travel will be given if the advance bill of a previous travel has not been adjusted.

To facilitate document management and fund release, instructions have been given to submit bills for advance fund allocation well in advance. At the same time, three sets of bills along with the original must be submitted, and all photocopies of the bills must be properly attested.

The circular has already been sent to all senior secretaries, secretaries, private secretaries to ministers and state ministers, private secretary to the Cabinet Secretary, chief accounts officer, deputy director of accounts and concerned ICT officers. Additionally, necessary steps have been taken to upload it on the Cabinet Division's website.