30 - JTR Chap. 4 - Morale Manifest

Chapter 4 of the Joint Travel Regulations (JTR), titled “Government Funded Leave,” establishes the comprehensive policies and standard transportation allowances for various official leave programs provided to Service members, civilian employees, and their dependents. The chapter mandates that travelers must use Government transportation when it is reasonably available and explicitly limits reimbursable expenses by prohibiting the payment of per diem or meal tickets during these trips. It provides detailed eligibility criteria and authorized routing rules for Emergency Leave for military personnel, primarily supporting those stationed Outside the Continental United States (OCONUS) who are facing personal emergencies. Furthermore, the regulation outlines Emergency Visitation Travel (EVT) for civilian employees and their dependents residing at foreign duty stations, authorizing critical transportation for severe medical emergencies, eldercare, the death of an immediate family member, unusual personal hardships, or the birth of a new child. Volume 4 also governs vital morale-boosting travel programs, detailing the frequency and approved destinations for Funded Environmental and Morale Leave (FEML) for personnel serving 24-month or longer tours at designated austere locations. Additionally, it outlines Rest and Recuperation (R&R) Leave allowances for personnel assigned to 12-month OCONUS tours or deployed to contingency operations such as Iraq, Afghanistan, or Pakistan. Finally, the chapter defines a Special Leave Transportation Allowance that reimburses eligible unaccompanied military and Coast Guard members stationed in Alaska for roundtrip airfare to their Home of Record or permanent legal residence.