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Payments to Foreign Visitors: Honoraria vs. Travel Reimbursements
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Summary: Learn about the differences between paying an honorarium for a foreign visitor and reimbursing travel expenses. |
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An honorarium is a payment to a professional, such as a guest speaker, in recognition of a distinguished achievement or special service, such as a lecture, to offset the payee's expenses since custom or propriety precludes setting a fixed price.
Typically an honorarium is paid in lieu of travel expense reimbursement. In some cases, an honorarium includes an allowance for travel expenses, which is different from reimbursement for actual travel expenses.
Reimbursing a travel expense is repaying a traveler for an actual expense which is eligible for reimbursement.
Tax implications are one of the most significant differences between payment of an honorarium and reimbursement of travel expenses for a foreign visitor:
- An honorarium is considered income to the recipient.
- Reimbursement of official business travel expenses is not considered income.
| Honorarium payment |
Travel expense reimbursement |
To pay an honorarium, you must follow the guidelines, which include the following requirements:
- Provide the Social Security number (SSN) or Individual Tax Identification Number (ITIN) of the payee.
- Have any payee whose visa status is B-1, B-2, WB, or WT complete a Certification of Academic Activity form.
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To request reimbursement for a foreign visitor, you must:
See step-by-step instructions for using MyTravel.
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| For more information, see:
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For more information, see:
- UC policy (PDF) (section XI.B.) on travel expense payment for foreign visitors
- UCSD International Center information, including visa information for UCSD departments, regarding visiting scholars
- Internal Revenue Service (IRS) policies on travel expense payment to foreign visitors
- U.S. Department of State visa services
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For questions about honoraria, contact a payment request specialist.
For questions about travel expense reimbursement, see Travel contacts to find someone who can help you.
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Notice: UCSD travel policy, as published in Blink, is decisive. It has been adapted to UCSD's organization, delegation of authority, terminology, chart of accounts, and processing applications. The source for UCSD travel policy is UC Travel Policy and Regulations. |
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