Airmen should file vouchers promptly Published Jan. 30, 2004 By Capt. Carrie Clear 447th Air Expeditionary Group Public Affairs BAGHDAD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, Iraq (AFPN) -- When returning from a deployment, the first thing a person should do is go to his or her base finance office, said 1st Lt. Mary Ward, budget officer.“Your voucher is used to determine dates for certain entitlements and if you don’t file your voucher in a timely manner, you run the risk of being overpaid,” Lieutenant Ward said. “Be sure to have all receipts handy as they are required for the final voucher.”Staff Sgt. Lura Diaz, finance specialist, said there are some other things to remember when redeploying.He advises people to have copies of all accrual vouchers filed while deployed. This will help when filing a final settlement voucher.“You will need to claim everything from beginning to end,” he said. “Even if your hotel in Baltimore on the way here was filed on an accrual voucher, this will need to be claimed on the final settlement.”If a person filed an accrual voucher while deployed, this should be annotated in the advance block of the DD Form 1351-2, Travel Voucher. This will eliminate the chance of overpayment.Some of the most common reimbursable items are lodging, airfare, automatic teller fees, excess baggage, baggage carts, tips, taxis to hotels or airports, and postage for items mailed home.“If you decide to mail some of your things home (before) leaving, get a receipt and have the post office write the weight on it,” Sergeant Diaz said. “You can’t mail your C bag and if you will need your A bag to in-process don’t mail it, either.”There are also weight limits when mailing things home. Packages and A bags cannot weigh more than 70 pounds each, said Staff Sgt. Richard Mandregan of the Camp Sather post office.People claiming dependents should ensure they claim Family Separation Allowance on a DD form 1561. This entitlement will be included in their mid-month or end-of-month pay following their return.Filing a travel voucher immediately upon return will not only ensure accurate travel pay and entitlements, but also will mean getting paid sooner.