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What Happens If There Is No Configured Rate For A Destination?

As an administrator, ensuring comprehensive per diem coverage for all employee travel is key, and ITILITE provides you with the flexibility to configure rates that meet your organization's unique needs. This article clarifies how ITILITE's Per Diem engine handles situations where a specific rate for a destination might not be immediately apparent.

Table of Contents


Understanding Per Diem Rate Selection

ITILITE's Per Diem engine is designed to apply the most appropriate rate based on your specific configurations. When an employee submits a per diem claim, the system diligently searches for an enabled per diem rate that aligns with several criteria, including the destination's location, the employee's group (like department or level), and the effective dates of the travel.

It's important to understand that ITILITE does not automatically generate or assume a per diem rate for destinations where no specific configuration exists. Instead, the system relies entirely on the rates you, as an administrator, have explicitly configured within the platform. This gives you full control over your organization's per diem policies.

If the system cannot find any configured rate that matches the destination, dates, and employee group for a claim, the per diem amount calculation will not be able to return a valid rate or amount. This means the per diem amount will not load or calculate automatically for that specific claim. To ensure seamless per diem processing for all travel scenarios, it's crucial to establish a comprehensive set of rates.


Pro-Tips & Guardrails

NOTE: ITILITE does not automatically invent or assume a per diem rate for destinations that lack a specific configuration. To ensure complete coverage and prevent calculation failures, you must explicitly configure a broad, fallback rate.
PRO-TIP: To create an effective global fallback rate that covers all destinations, configure a Per Diem Rate with no specific locations defined, no restrictive employee-group filters, and a wide or open effective date range. You can also mark this rate as `is_default = 1` for clarity. This broad rate will then be used when no more specific rates match.
PRO-TIP: Leverage the `priority_order` field when configuring your rates. This allows you to set more specific rules (e.g., for certain cities or departments) with a higher priority, while still having a lower-priority broad rate that acts as a reliable fallback for all other scenarios.


Verification & FAQs

When a per diem rate is not found for a claim, the system will indicate this by not displaying an auto-calculated per diem amount, or the calculation may fail to load in the expense claim interface. This signals that a matching rate configuration is missing for the specific travel details provided.

Q: Does ITILITE automatically provide a default per diem rate if I don't configure one?
A: No, ITILITE does not automatically invent or assume a per diem rate. You must explicitly configure a broad, global rate within the Per Diem settings for it to act as a fallback for destinations without specific rates.

Q: How can I ensure there's always a per diem rate for any destination?
A: To ensure comprehensive coverage, configure a broad per diem rate that has no specific location constraints, no restrictive employee-group filters, and a wide or open effective date range. This rate will then apply when no more specific rates are found.

Q: What is the purpose of the 'Default' flag on a per diem rate?
A: The 'Default' flag marks a particular rate configuration as a default among the rates that match the current criteria. It still respects its own configured constraints (like location or employee group) and does not, by itself, create a system-wide fallback for all scenarios.

Q: How does ITILITE decide which rate to apply if multiple rates match a claim?
A: If multiple configured rates match a given destination, dates, and employee group, ITILITE uses the `priority_order` field to determine which rate is applied. This allows you to define a hierarchy for your per diem policies.

Q: Do changes to per diem rates affect past expenses that have already been submitted?
A: No, any changes you make to per diem rate configurations (adding, removing, or modifying rates) only affect future calculations. Existing per diem expenses that have already had a rate and amount calculated will not be retroactively updated unless they are manually edited or recalculated.

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