Financial Support

Financial/Accounting Policy

If ICERM has offered to pay any of your expenses, please note the following:

ICERM travel funding is done on a reimbursement basis. Participants book and pay for their own travel, and are then reimbursed up to the amount indicated in the invitation letter.

Original receipts showing full payment are needed for reimbursement, as well as a completed expense form. Allow 4-6 weeks for reimbursement check to be processed.

Expenses can generally include travel, lodging, and local transportation to and from Providence's T.F. Green Airport, up to the allotted maximum. Those commuting daily by car can be reimbursed for mileage and daily parking up to $250.

ICERM does not reimburse for meals. ICERM does not pay for rental cars. Reimbursement for airline/bus/train ticket change expenses may not be allowed. Please see air travel details for other restrictions.

Please let our staff know if you will be traveling away from ICERM during your visit or if you will be leaving the program early, so that we can adjust your reimbursement and make payment in a timely manner. Requests for reimbursement will not be accepted in excess of 6 months after your expected departure date.

Local Expenses

Workshop Participants (less than 7 days)

For each workshop, ICERM has blocked rooms at a local hotel. Whether you are receiving ICERM funding (you would have received an invitation letter) or are a registered, self-funded participant, we encourage you to use our designated hotel in order for ICERM to retain its special rate. Should our designated hotel be unable to accommodate you, or if you prefer another hotel, we have a list of alternate hotels. Alternate hotel rates may change seasonally and/or without our knowledge. For those with ICERM workshop funding, please note that we will reimburse you at a rate of $123.17 (tax included) per night for a maximum of 6 nights, unless otherwise noted in your invitation letter. Please check our housing information page for further details.

Short and Long Term Program Visitors

If you are a visitor staying for a short term visit (more than a week and less than 30 days) or a long term visit (more than 30 days), then our event staff will assist you in securing housing for the length of your stay. If you are an invited visitor, you will be reimbursed up to the amount agreed upon in your invitation letter toward local housing (lodging receipts are required). If you stay less than the agreed upon days, the amount reimbursed to you will be prorated based on the number of days you were in residence at ICERM. Please check our housing information page for further details.

If you will be away from ICERM for more than two days during your visit, please send e-mail to info@icerm.brown.edu, as this helps us to direct phone calls, take care of mail that may accumulate, etc.

Domestic Air Travel (within the United States)

If ICERM has offered to pay your domestic airfare, we will contribute to your travel expenses between your home institution and Providence RI, including one economy round-trip airfare and/or ground transportation, up to $250 for travel within New England and $600 for travel from elsewhere in the United States (unless stated otherwise in your invitation letter). We suggest you book a ticket at least 21 days in advance of your visit to ensure a reasonable fare. Participants are expected to be present for the duration of the ICERM event — this reflects ICERM's commitment to our funding agencies and to highly interactive events. In particular, any offer of airfare reimbursement assumes the participant will attend at least 1/2 of the event. Fees charged by airlines for bulk-head seats, excess baggage, etc., are not reimbursable.

International Air Travel (including Canada)

If ICERM has offered to pay your international airfare, we will contribute to your travel expenses between your home institution and Providence RI, including one economy round-trip airfare and/or ground transportation, up to $600 for Canadian travelers, and up to $1,200 for those traveling from outside North America (unless stated otherwise in your invitation letter). We suggest you book a ticket at least 21 days in advance of your visit to ensure a reasonable fare. Fees charged by airlines for bulkhead seats, excess baggage, etc., are not reimbursable.

Note: ICERM's funding sources and federal regulations set forth in the Fly American Act require our visitors use U.S. certified airlines ("U.S. flag carriers"). This means that U.S. flag carriers must be used for foreign travel from flight origin (and/or transfer) airport, regardless of the cost. Very few exceptions can be made. If you are not sure how to check whether or not your potential itinerary is with a U.S. Flag carrier, please contact travel@icerm.brown.edu before you purchase the tickets; otherwise, ICERM may not be able to reimburse you for your flight expenses.

To be reimbursed for an international flight, the code of a U.S. flag air carrier must be noted as part of the flight number on the airline ticket, flight coupon (boarding pass), or passenger receipt. Each airline has a two letter alpha code. For example, United Airlines has a code of "UA". On an airline ticket, boarding pass or passenger receipt, this two digit code is designated just to the left of the flight number. Before you purchase your ticket, use the list below to determine if your airline choices will properly display airline codes on the ticket to ascertain whether or not the flight is on a US Flag air carrier. A detailed list of U.S. flag air carriers:

Airtran Airways (FL)
Alaska Airlines (AS)
America West Airlines (HP)
American Airlines (AA)
American Trans Air (TZ)
Continental Airlines (CO)
Delta Airlines (DL)
Frontier Airlines (F9)
Hawaiian Airlines (HA)
Midwest Express (YX)
Northwest Airlines (NW)
Southwest Airlines (WN)
Spirit Airlines (NK)
United Airlines (UA)
US Airways (US)

Please be careful: carriers have adopted the practice of code-sharing (a mechanism by which an U.S. certified carrier leases space on an aircraft of a foreign air carrier, and visa versa). Not all code-sharing flights use U.S. certified carriers. As long as your flight coupon, electronic ticket, boarding pass, or passenger receipt identifies a U.S. Flag air carrier's two-letter designator code and flight number, it shows you as a passenger in a U.S. Flag carrier seat, regardless of the air carrier who owns the aircraft.

As with the domestic travelers, participants are expected to be present for the duration of the ICERM event — this reflects ICERM's commitment to our funding agencies and to highly interactive events. In particular, any offer of airfare reimbursement assumes the participant will attend at least 1/2 of the event.

Automobile Travel/Mileage Reimbursement

Invited guests whose invitations outline specific reimbursement allowances and who choose to drive their personal cars to ICERM will be reimbursed $ 0.565 cents per mile (effective January 1, 2013). Mileage must be shown by conducting an Internet map search from the home insitution to 121 South Main Street, Providence, RI 02903, and printing the results. ICERM will also reimburse for parking. This option is mainly for those living in the New England area, since the cost of a round trip by personal car must be less than or equal to a round trip plane ticket from your home institution. All personal car travel costs (mileage, tolls, parking, etc.) will be reimbursed up to the travel allowance maximum. Please note that on-street and overnight parking is very difficult to find in Providence.

Banking

Several banks are located near ICERM if you wish to set up an account or transact other business.

Bank Name	Address and Phone
Bank of America	100 Westminster Street, Providence, RI 02903 Phone: +1 (401) 228-0128
Sovereign Bank	1 Financial Plaza # 400, Providence, RI 02903 Phone: +1 (401) 752-1900
Bank Rhode Island	1 Turks Head Pl # 102, Providence, RI 02903 Phone: +1 (401) 456-5152
Washington Trust	10 Weybosset St # 100, Providence, RI 02903 Phone: +1 (401) 331-5090
Citizens Bank	63 Westminster Street, Providence, RI 02903 Phone: +1 (401) 456-7010
	120 Waterman Street, Providence, RI 02906 Phome: +1 (401) 456-7050
Webster Bank	100 Westminster Building, Providence, RI 02903 Phone: +1 (401) 273-8298
Check Cashing	Anyone receiving checks from Brown University can cash them at any Citizens Bank.

Other Information for Invited Guests

ICERM will reimburse invited guests for their taxi or airport shuttle to and from Providence/Green International Airport (PVD), but we do not reimburse for rental vehicles.

ICERM and Brown University encourages everyone to use a cell phone, personal phone card, call collect or charge the call to your home phone number for "personal" phone calls.

ICERM is not able to accept payment by credit card for workshop dinners or any other purpose.