Join the U-M Travel Program team tomorrow, August 14, from 10 to 11 a.m. for the latest session in the Virtual Supplier Feature series—a quarterly virtual event highlighting preferred travel suppliers. Southwest Airlines is this quarter’s featured supplier. These sessions provide valuable insights into supplier offerings, with representatives on hand to answer questions.

April’s session featured National Car Rental/Enterprise Rent-A-Car and provided attendees an in-depth look at exclusive benefits for U-M travelers. If you missed it, the recording is available here.

U-M’s Travel and Business Hosting Expense SPG was updated with changes that went into effect on July 1.

Policy changes include:

• Extended reimbursement submission deadline from 45 to 60 days
• Reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses now occurs after the trip/event (as of January 1, 2026)
• Requirement for airfare booking

Read more for details about each change and links to helpful resources.

University guests—including students traveling for academic purposes—may book their own airfare and seek reimbursement through the Travel and Business Hosting Expense Report (TBHER).

Alternatively, if a U-M employee books airfare on behalf of a university guest, they must use Collegiate Travel Planners (CTP). U-M employees can book guest travel through CTP in one of two ways. 

Read more for step-by-step guidance on booking via:

• Online booking (Lightning)
• Agent assistance

Before booking travel through CTP, it's essential to ensure your profile is up-to-date. Much of the profile information is pre-populated from the U-M HR system, however, it is important to verify that it is correct.

Verify existing information:

• Full legal name (must match your travel documents)
• Gender
• Date of birth

Add required information:

• Mobile phone number—CTP uses this to contact you while traveling, if necessary.

Learn more about updating HR data and adding details to your profile, including:

• Required information
• Recommended information

With the university’s updated travel policy, SPG 507.10-1, U-M business airfare must be booked through Collegiate Travel Planners (CTP) for all flights booked on or after July 1, 2025. We recognize, however, that there may be rare situations where booking outside of CTP is unavoidable.

When Can You Request an Exception?

Employees may submit the Airfare Booking Exception request form before making any purchase outside of CTP under specific, extenuating circumstances such as:

• The required airline cannot be booked through CTP because it is not made available to travel agencies by the carrier.
• You must make a change to a flight originally booked outside of CTP (such as a flight first purchased before July 1, 2025) that results in an additional out-of-pocket expense.
• You encounter a same-day flight change with an out-of-pocket cost (e.g., needing to switch flights after check-in). While generally allowable, the exception form is required for reimbursement and can be submitted retroactively after travel.

Read more for important notes and resources for using the exception form.

The University of Michigan is committed to ensuring equal access to business travel for all employees. We're pleased to highlight important accommodation options available for employees with disabilities or medical conditions.

Accessibility Challenges with CTP Booking System (Lightning)

Employees who encounter accessibility-related barriers to using the CTP travel booking system may be eligible to book airfare outside the system. To request this exception, contact the Disability Equity Office and select the “Accommodate Login” button.

Employees approved for booking exceptions:

• May book airfare using their preferred method (Note: A U-M PCard or Travel Card is the recommended form of payment)
• Will receive additional guidance on submitting airfare expenses in Emburse Enterprise after exception approval

Learn more about travel accommodations and travel booking accessibility.

Travel is about more than tickets and itineraries—it’s about building lasting relationships with the people who help you reach your destination. To help make your experience seamless, we’ve outlined the correct points of contact for different needs in our Travel Booking: Support and Resources Knowledge Base article.

We're proud to work with dedicated CTP agents who understand U-M travelers and our unique travel program. Their details are included in this flyer to help you put faces to the names and get to know your support team.

When traveling for U-M business, how you book your rental car matters. Our agreement with National Car Rental/Enterprise Rent-A-Car—secured through the Big Ten Purchasing Consortium—offers exclusive benefits, but only when you follow the correct booking process.

To access the U-M discounted rate and included insurance, be sure to book through one of these options:

• The Lightning online booking tool
• A CTP agent via phone, email, or eForm
• The U-M National/Enterprise booking portal

Keep reading for information regarding insurance coverage and upgrade benefits.

CTP has recently implemented a series of enhancements to the Lightning booking tool designed to improve the user experience.

Read more for details about the recent enhancements, which include:

• Updated look for itineraries/invoices
• Airfare search results
• New Roomette rail fares
• Sold out hotel information

Emburse Enterprise has recently implemented a number of improvements that ensure approvers can more efficiently find and review expense details.

New ClientInfo6 field in the third-level detail of CTA transactions

This field will populate in Emburse from the optional Trip Name field in the Reference section on the confirmation page in Lightning. If there is no entry in this field in Lightning, the ClientInfo6 field will not appear at all in the transaction details.

Learn more about additional Emburse enhancements:

• PDF functionality updated based on feedback from focus group session
• Access to Expense Management tool for certain approvers

The Travel Program Team hosts multiple training and Q&A sessions that are open to all employees each month, all of which cover the same core material. We encourage you to attend the session that best fits your schedule. Representatives from CTP and U-M will be available at each session to answer your questions. We look forward to seeing you!

• Virtual Supplier Feature: Southwest Airlines—August 14, 10 to 11 a.m.

Use the Zoom link and passcode below for all sessions.

https://umich.zoom.us/j/96013633019

Passcode: 684564

Dates for additional sessions will be published on the Procurement Services travel webpage as they’re scheduled.

We encourage you to join the U-M Travel Program’s Slack channel, #travel-program, to stay up-to-date on all things related to U-M travel, including program updates, announcements, travel tips, events, and more. 

If you haven’t heard of Slack, we encourage you to check it out! Creating an account is easy and we hope to see you on Slack soon!