Travel deskSeven short guides to the FY 2027 per diem rates

Each guide answers one question about GSA’s rates with tables and charts computed from the FY 2021 to FY 2027 files: what a rate is made of, how the first and last day work, where rates are highest, how seasons and meal tiers differ, and how the rates have moved.

• How a federal per diem rate is built

  Lodging cap plus M&IE: the two parts, the five meal tiers and how far the 295 areas sit above the standard.

• First and last day of travel: the 75% rule

  The breakdown table for all five M&IE tiers, and what the travel-day rule takes off short and long trips.

• The highest per diem destinations in FY 2027

  Key West leads by full-year average, Park City by peak month: the top 20 and what separates them.

• Seasonal per diem rates: when the lodging cap changes

  149 areas change their cap during the year: winter, summer and autumn peaks and the widest swings.

• How per diem rates changed from FY 2021 to FY 2027

  The standard rate year by year, the FY 2026 freeze, and the areas that rose and fell the most.

• Meals and incidentals: the five tiers, state by state

  104 areas at $80, 33 at $92: where each meal tier applies.

• Adding up a per diem trip, day by day

  Four worked examples: a season change, the October 1 fiscal-year change, a step into high season and the standard rate.