The return to travel is one of the many things the Cal Poly community is looking forward to. With the CSU travel restrictions being officially lifted on June 1, here is what you need to know in order to travel safely while following the guidelines.
To keep the university safe and healthy, the CSU system ordered a travel ban just about a year ago. With the COVID-19 vaccine becoming more widespread and Cal Poly’s plans to bring more students back on campus in the fall, the CSU Business and Finance office announced that those previous travel restrictions will also be lifted. This means that faculty, staff and students can start planning trips with a travel date of June 1 or later. All travelers need to get approval of their trip before they start the planning process.
Keep in mind that as travel opens back up for the CSU system there are a few key differences in requirements between domestic and international travel. For domestic travel, faculty and staff travelers must use Poly Travel using Concur. This online tool integrates travel requests, travel reservations and expense reporting through an automated approval workflow process system. You can access Poly Travel by logging into your Campus Portal, going to “Applications” and selecting Concur Travel. On the other hand, students and group travelers must follow the paper process for domestic travel.
For international travel, faculty and staff individual travelers also have to go through Concur and have their trips scheduled through Poly Travel. Student and group travel must start with International Center and use the paper process. All international travel requests will go through the International Center and will consider CDC warning level and U.S. State Department's Travel Advisory status. If the destination is considered “High Hazard” approval by the Provost will be needed.
Both domestic and international travel will require a signed "Traveler's Acknowledgment of Risk Guidance" that must be submitted with the request. This form is designed to acknowledge the risk of exposure to COVID-19 and references CDC guidance so that Cal Poly travelers are aware of their circumstance before departure.
Keep an eye out for a list of approved international travel destinations that will be released from The Chancellor’s Office in June. Safe travels mustangs!