Calculate Pennsylvania’s per diem rate based on GSA guidelines to simplify your business travels.
Welcome to your comprehensive guide on Pennsylvania per diem rates.
Business travel across the Keystone State, from the major metropolitan centers of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh to its diverse rural counties, requires a clear and consistent method for managing expenses. Per diem, a fixed daily allowance for lodging, meals, and incidental expenses, is a common solution used by federal agencies and many private businesses to streamline travel reimbursements.
This guide provides detailed information on the official per diem rates for Pennsylvania, how to calculate your allowance, relevant state laws, and how to automate the entire process for greater efficiency and compliance.
For federal travel purposes, per diem rates in Pennsylvania are set by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA). These rates vary by county to reflect local differences in cost, particularly for lodging. Many private companies in Pennsylvania also adopt these GSA rates as a reliable benchmark for their own travel policies.
Below this section, you will find a table detailing the GSA per diem rates for various locations across Pennsylvania. Key things to understand about these rates are:
To get precise and up-to-date allowance information for your trip, use our Pennsylvania Per Diem Rate Calculator. This tool eliminates guesswork and ensures you're applying the correct rates for your specific travel dates and destination.
While the GSA sets per diem rates for federal travel, the legal landscape for private employers in Pennsylvania is shaped by its own state laws, particularly concerning wage payment and tax regulations.
This is the key statute governing employee pay. The WPCL does not mandate that employers reimburse business expenses or pay a per diem. However, if an employer establishes a policy or enters into an agreement (written or oral) to reimburse expenses, these reimbursements are considered "fringe benefits" or "wage supplements." Under the law, the employer is then legally obligated to pay them. This law provides a strong mechanism for employees to enforce their employer's own travel expense policies.
The WPCL also strictly regulates what an employer can deduct from an employee's paycheck. An employer generally cannot deduct the cost of a business expense from an employee's wages, as these are costs that benefit the employer.
For employees who have work-related expenses that are not reimbursed by their employer, Pennsylvania allows these to be deducted on the state income tax return via PA Schedule UE. However, the state has a very important rule for this: expenses must be claimed based on actual costs with receipts, not estimates. Pennsylvania explicitly prohibits using federal per diem rates as a substitute for actual expenses when filing for this tax deduction.
The approach to per diem and travel expenses in Pennsylvania differs significantly for private sector employees compared to federal employees. Here are the key differences:
Keeping track of the varying per diem rates across Pennsylvania's 67 counties—from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh and everywhere in between—can be a significant administrative challenge. Automating this process ensures accuracy, compliance with your company's policy, and saves countless hours.
Fyle provides an intelligent expense management platform perfectly suited to handle these complexities:
By leveraging Fyle, you can master per diem management for travel in Pennsylvania, ensuring both compliance and a smooth, hassle-free experience for your employees.
The content on this page is for informational use. As legal standards and per diem rates are subject to change, users should verify current details with official GSA or government resources. This information does not serve as financial or legal counsel.
