Import Process Overview

You can use Time & Expense with ESS import processing to import per diem information directly into the schedule whenever the government publishes new per diem information.

On the Per Diem Preprocessor screen, click  Import and use the Import dialog box to import government per diem information.

On the Import dialog box, when you click Import, the utility first checks for the standard file name and displays a warning if the file name does not begin with the expected characters. However, if the file is the correct one, click Import again and the import process continues:

• If you specified a CONUS import file, the utility checks for "CONUSNM" if Type contains Civilian, "CONUSMIL" if Type contains Military, and "CONNOW" if Type contains Both.
• If you specified an OCONUS import file, the utility checks for "OCONUSNM" if Type contains Civilian and "OCONUS" if Type contains Both.

  As it imports the contents of the import file, the utility verifies that the required meal breakdowns exist in your database, and that the seasons specified in the import file are correct. If a location fails these validation checks, the text in that line is red, and the Error/Warning column in the table displays error text. You need to resolve all errors before you can post the contents of the table to the per diem schedule.

  Once the import is complete, the Per Diem Preprocessor utility also compares the locations in the table with those in the actual per diem schedule in Time & Expense with ESS. Any locations in the schedule that do not appear in the imported data are added to the table with blue text and a warning in the Error/Warning column. You need to resolve all warnings before you can post the contents of the table to the per diem schedule. To resolve them, do one of the following for each of these rows:

• If you no longer want the locations to be used on expense reports and authorizations, select the lines, click Terminate Location, and enter a termination date.
• If you do want the locations to remain in the schedule and be valid selections for expense reports and authorizations, select the lines, and click Accept Location Warning .