The Government Travel Card (GTCC/GOVCC) During a PCS: What It Covers, What It Doesn't

The Government Travel Charge Card — you'll hear it called the GTCC or the GOVCC (same card, the travel charge card) — is one of the most misunderstood pieces of a PCS. Half the fleet thinks it's only for TDY. A lot of people think using it for a move is optional. Under the current DoD rule, both of those are wrong — and getting it wrong can turn into a misuse case. Here's the honest version, sourced to current policy.

This changed recently. An older (2020) version of the regulation made PCS card use "at the discretion of the Component." The current DoD Government Travel Charge Card Regulations (revised May 29, 2026) changed it: PCS use of the card is now mandatory for most members. If you've read an older guide that says "discretionary," it's out of date.

What the card actually is

The GTCC is a DoD contractor-issued charge card for official travel expenses only. It is not a personal credit card, and it's not free government money:

• It's an Individually Billed Account (IBA) under the GSA SmartPay program (DoDI 5154.31, Vol. 4).
• It belongs to you, is non-transferable, and may only be used by you — the cardholder (GTCC Regulations, current revision, Ch. 04).
• You are personally liable for paying the undisputed balance. The government doesn't pay it for you.

Bottom line: it's a government payment tool for official travel. Personal use is prohibited — and the consequences are real (see the bottom of this guide).

Can you use it for a PCS? Yes — and for most people, you have to

Under the current regulation, using the card for PCS travel isn't a choice:

"Use of an IBA for PCS travel is mandatory. Each Component will establish guidance on which expenses will be placed on the IBA, including, for example, allowing the GTCC to be used to pay for Dislocation Allowance (DLA) or Temporary Lodging Allowance (TLA) expenses. Note the IBA may not be used to pay for GSA City Pair Fare flights when personal leave is combined with PCS travel." — DoD GTCC Regulations, current revision, para. 040505

What that means in plain terms:

• PCS card use is required — like it is for TDY — unless you fall under an exemption (below).
• Your Service decides which PCS expenses go on the card. The regulation names DLA and TLA only as examples a Component may route to the card — so the exact list is a Navy/command call. Confirm it with your command GTCC Agency Program Coordinator (APC) and PSD.
• Don't charge a City Pair flight to the card when you've combined personal leave with your PCS move.

Who's exempt from mandatory use

Some people aren't required to use the card, including: anyone with a GTCC application still pending; travelers on invitational orders; new appointees/recruits; and — this one matters for first-termers — members still in initial entry or initial skill training who haven't yet reported to their first permanent duty station. There are others (creditworthiness denials, lost/stolen cards, hospital patients, certain deployment-departure cases, and locations whose infrastructure can't support the card). If you think you're exempt, confirm it with your APC — don't assume.

(If this is your very first move out of training, read Your First PCS Out of Boot Camp too — the entitlement money is the bigger story there.)

PCS status buys you more time to pay

While you're moving, your account can be placed in PCS status, which keeps it open regardless of payment status and gives you more time to clear move charges — up to 120 days, with no more than 60 days from disenrollment. That's a protection, not a pass: you still owe the balance.

Authorized vs. off-limits

The simplest rule: authorized charges are the ones the Joint Travel Regulations allow for that trip. Anything the JTR doesn't authorize is not a card expense.

Generally allowed on official travel: lodging en route and at destination; transportation (air/rail, and a rental car if authorized on your orders); meals/M&IE and miscellaneous non-mileage travel costs; and limited ATM cash for out-of-pocket items you can't charge. On PCS travel specifically, the expenses your Service has designated for the card (the regulation's examples: DLA, TLA).

Off-limits: personal, family, or household purchases (the only exception is expenses your Service has explicitly authorized for the PCS — read that narrowly); letting anyone else use the card; and using the GTCC to pay a government debt (a DFAS delinquent debt, pay.gov, etc.) — the regulation calls that misuse outright. Excessive or early ATM cash is also flagged.

A note on gas: fuel for an authorized rental car is a legitimate transportation charge. POV fuel is different — you're reimbursed for driving your own car by mileage (MALT), not by fuel receipts, so POV gas generally isn't a card expense. If you're driving your own car on a PCS, see Moving Your POV During a PCS. When in doubt on any specific charge, ask your APC/PSD first — an unauthorized charge is misuse.

Split disbursement is mandatory

When you file your travel voucher, split disbursement pays the card company directly from your settlement — and it's required:

"All … personnel (military and civilian) are required to split disburse all undisputed expenses charged to the GTCC as a part of the travel settlement process." — GTCC Regulations, current revision, para. 041007

Your travel system defaults airfare/rail, hotel, and rental car into the split-disbursement amount automatically — but you have to add ATM withdrawals and any meals you charged. Anything not covered by split disbursement is still yours to pay on time. File your voucher promptly on the DD Form 1351-2 and you keep the card balance clean.

Misuse: this is the part that ends careers

Misuse isn't a slap on the wrist:

• For military members, actions run up to non-judicial punishment (Article 15), court-martial, and administrative separation — and misuse can affect access to classified information. DoD policy requires each Service to make a violation punishable under Article 92, UCMJ, at a minimum.
• For DoD civilians, discipline up to and including removal from Federal service.

Common ways people get caught: excessive ATM cash beyond authorized amounts, and personal purchases. The card feels like a convenience. Treat it like the official instrument it is.

The honest bottom line

The current rule is that GTCC use for PCS travel is mandatory — but which specific PCS expenses go on the card is set by the Navy and your command. Before you move:

1. Contact your command GTCC APC. Confirm you're not in an exempt category, and get the list of which PCS expenses your command puts on the card.
2. Confirm with PSD how your PCS entitlements, advances, and settlement interact with the card and split disbursement.
3. Use split disbursement on your voucher, and pay any remaining balance on time. PCS status gives you more time — it doesn't erase what you owe.

When in doubt about a specific charge, confirm before you swipe.

How we sourced this: every rule above is drawn from primary DoD policy — the DoD Government Travel Charge Card Regulations (current revision), DoD Instruction 5154.31, Volume 4, and the Joint Travel Regulations. We don't publish fabricated figures. Regulations and command-specific expense lists change, and the exact list of chargeable PCS expenses is a Navy/command determination — so confirm your own situation with your command GTCC APC and PSD before relying on this. PCS-Move.com is an independent resource and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the DoD or any government agency.