Travel Support

Who is eligible for travel support?

  • Funding may be provided for APARC-related meetings and workshops and is subject to the approval of the APARC SSG. The organisers are requested to inform the APARC office as early as possible about any planned meetings so that an appropriate amount may be allocated in the budget planned for the relevant year.
  • Travel support will be provided primarily for early career scientists and scientists from developing and emerging economies.
  • Depending on the budgeted amount (the annual budget is fixed at the APARC SSG meetings), the organisers of the meeting will decide who is eligible for support and to what extent they will be supported.
  • Please note that WCRP makes the final decision regarding the amount of support.  Even if you are potentially eligible for support we cannot guarantee that you will receive full or partial support.

Types of travel expenses supported by APARC/WCRP


Airfare and/or ground travel

The airfare and/or train/bus tickets may be fully or partially covered.

The ticket may be booked through a WMO travel agent, in which case the cost will be paid directly by WCRP.

If the traveler is willing to purchase their own ticket, they must first get approval for their fare from WCRP (based on a WMO-approved rate). The traveler will then have to send the original invoice and boarding passes to WMO after the meeting in order to be reimbursed.

In case the travel has been undertaken by car, the traveler will have to send the original hotel bill to WMO after the meeting in order to be reimbursed.

Ad hoc DSA (daily subsistence allowance)

The actual DSA amount is fixed by WCRP depending on hotel costs at the location of the event. Per diems and terminal transfer costs, if requested, will be paid prior to the event if there are no other expenses involved and if the air/train/bus ticket is booked through the WMO agent.

Participants are eligible for a maximum amount of four such per diems for a three-day- workshop if they stay for the whole duration of the meeting, i.e arriving one day before the meeting and departing the next day after the meeting.

Terminal transfer costs

Airport transfer costs may be covered as well if the air ticket is supported by WCRP. The ad hoc terminal amount is fixed by WCRP depending on the location of the meeting.

Conference fee

To cover some costs for the organisation of the meeting (including e.g. rent for meeting rooms, refreshments during coffee breaks, etc.) the organisers may need to request a conference fee to be paid by the participants of the meeting. This conference fee may also include some meals.

The conference fee can be reimbursed as part of the travel expenses. However, the items included in the conference fee might influence the per diem amount granted. The travel support requests therefore need to specify which meals are included in the conference fee.

Visa expenses

Expenses for visa may also be covered.

Application procedure

  1. The APARC Office will request and gather all required information from the meeting organisers.
  2. The APARC Office will communicate with WCRP about specific rates for the meeting, e.g. per diem and terminal rates, and provide WCRP with a single Excel file with all the required data with reference to the meeting and the participants. According to WMO rules this information needs to be provided at least two months before the meeting.
  3. After the Meeting Form has been approved by WMO, the WCRP representative will contact each participant to be supported, requesting information about itineraries etc. and ask her/him to complete and sign their “Request for Financial Assistance” (RFA) form.
  4. Once the travel requests as a whole have been approved by WMO, the WCRP representative will notify those supported of the amounts to be transferred and some estimate of when this should occur.

Information to be provided

With reference to the planned meeting (provided by organiser):

  • Meeting title
  • Venue (city & country)
  • Days of the meeting
  • Meeting URL
  • Organisers and their contact details
  • Is there any hotel arrangement? If so, what are the expected or special rates?
  • Is there any food or lodging provided or subsidised? If so, please specify.
  • Agenda, if available.
  • How many participants are expected to request travel support (approximately)?

With reference to the participants:

  • Surname, first name
  • Affiliation
  • Role in the meeting and if she/he is an early career researcher
  • Gender
  • Nationality if this is needed for visa purposes
  • Email address
  • City and country of origin
  • Intended dates of travel and the airport of departure and arrival
  • What kind of support should she/he receive?
    • ad hoc DSA = per diem (according to WCRP definition for all daily expenses including hotel, food, beverages, incidentals) and for how many days and/or
    • complete or partial support of airfare/train/bus ticket
    • airport transfers
  • Whether they will book their own ticket and need to have their ticket reimbursed or whether they would like to have their ticket bought through a WMO travel agent (the latter option is preferred  if the ticket costs are to be reimbursed in full).
  • If a visa support letter from the WCRP is required (normally visa support is to be provided through the local meeting host).

Deadlines to be observed

  • All data with reference to the meeting and the participants requesting travel support will have to be submitted to WCRP at least two months before the meeting. The APARC office will gather these data from the meeting organisers and forward them in the form of a single Excel file to the WCRP representative. Please note that the APARC office needs the information from participants at least 2.5 months in advance.
  • Each participant will be contacted by the WCRP representative and asked to fill in and sign a “Request for Financial Assistance” (RFA) Form which will have to be returned within a maximum period of ten days.
  • If the participant has purchased her/his own ticket she/he will receive a travel claim form which she/he will have to return to WMO completed within 30 days of travel together with the original invoice and boarding passes.
  • The travel claim form will be sent to participants who have received payment in advance and have had their flights booked through WCRP. They are required to sign and return it to WCRP by email within 30 days of travel together with scanned copies of their boarding passes as evidence of travel.

Summary (pdf)

APARC/WCRP requirements for travel support.