IMPORTANT: Do not make a commitment regarding an honorarium to a foreign national before consulting with the Office of International Programs (OIP). Your department must understand important visa and taxation issues before committing to an honorarium.


The process of paying a foreign national an honorarium and/or travel reimbursement is complicated and involves multiple offices. The university’s ability to pay an honorarium or travel reimbursement to a foreign national is dependent on several important factors, including, but not limited to:

  • The visitor’s visa status
  • Tax treaty benefit eligibility of the visitor
  • Document collection and verification

Please contact the OIP for details about how this will apply to your visitor well in advance of making any promises about honorariums or travel reimbursements. Please provide OIP with the proposed visitor’s:

  • Name,
  • Email address
  • Country of citizenship
  • Proposed visit date(s) and activities
  • Honorarium and/or travel reimbursement amounts

The OIP will assist you with the payment process.

The following sections of this page contain details about paying an honorarium or travel reimbursement to a foreign national for academic activity in the U.S. This information is for reference purposes, you do not need to read all of this information before contacting the OIP.