travel comp expiration

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Overtime, Comp Time, and Credit Hours

This Handbook page provides a brief overview of overtime, comp time, and credit hours.

There are several factors which affect how you could be compensated for working extra hours. One is your salary: if your salary is at - or close to - the maximum GS salary ($183,500 in FY23). Another factor is whether you are an , external, exempt or non-exempt employee .

You should obtain supervisor approval prior to working extra hours. And, your supervisor should understand your specific situation prior to approving overtime.

The guidance below is only a high level overview. You and/or your supervisor can reach out to PeopleOps anytime with questions about your specific situation.

Overtime and Comp Time

Overtime and comp time can be approved by your supervisor no matter what type of work schedule you have.

Overtime is when you are paid for extra hours that you work, whereas comp time is when you receive hours of leave instead of pay. To determine the maximum number of comp time hours that you can accrue per pay period, please use the , external, TTS-only, Bi-weekly Comp Time Cap Calculator .

You should use your accrued comp time before using Annual Leave. However, if the end of the leave year is approaching, your supervisor can approve your Annual Leave requests first if you are in danger of losing Annual Leave because of “ Use or Lose .”

Comp time expires one year (26 pay periods) after it is earned. When you reach the expiration date, what happens depends on whether you are an , external, exempt or non-exempt employee :

• If you are exempt: you will forfeit the leave.
• If you are non-exempt: you will be paid out the hours (at the overtime pay rate that was in effect when you earned the hours).

If you leave GSA, your comp time will follow the parameters above: either forfeited or paid out, depending on your exemption status.

Credit Hours

Note: Credit hours are only available if you are on a flexible work schedule .

You can be approved for credit hours if you want to voluntarily work additional hours to your normal/approved schedule. If you are required to work additional hours, you will receive overtime or comp time.

• You can have up to 24 credit hours accrued, at any given time.
• The hours will rollover from one pay period to the next, and they never expire.
• Credit hours cannot be converted to cash, unless you leave GSA (then they will be paid out).

Credit hours example

You are on a Gliding schedule , and you work 8 hours every day. You are not required to stay late, but if you are in a productive headspace and want to work an extra hour to finish work, you can ask your supervisor about working 1 more hour, therefore receiving 1 credit hour. You will need to request the 1 hour in HR Links, and your supervisor will need to approve it.

Religious comp time

You can request an adjustment to your work schedule for religious observances, instead of taking leave. Document your request to your supervisor, via email, in advance of the time you’ll need to miss, along with the schedule of the time you will work outside of normal hours to compensate.

Note: religious comp time does not follow the salary cap rules that are outlined in the beginning of this document. Anyone can request religious comp time, regardless of their salary and what type of work schedule they are on.

Travel comp time

When you travel in connection to TTS, the time you spend traveling may be regular time, overtime, or travel comp time, depending on when the travel occurs.

You’ll complete overtime and comp time requests after you travel because you may encounter delays. Keep a copy of your travel itinerary to help you remember your trip.

Refer to the , external, TTS-only, Compensation for Government Travel slidedeck to determine the breakdown of your hours. This slidedeck is only open to GSA employees. Please contact your Timekeeper or an HR Specialist at your agency with questions.

Note: travel comp time does not follow the salary cap rules that are outlined in the beginning of this document. Anyone can request travel comp time, regardless of their salary and what type of work schedule they are on.

Entering the overtime, comp time, and/or credit hours you will be working into HRLinks

Entering your hours is a two step process.

Step 1 - Submit a time request in HRLinks

You need to enter your overtime, comp time, or credit hours into HRLinks. To determine the maximum number of comp time hours that you can accrue per pay period, please use the , external, TTS-only, Bi-weekly Comp Time Cap Calculator . Your supervisor will be notified to approve the hours requested.

• Click on the Employee Time Requests tile
• Select Additional Time Requests
• For Overtime , you will need to select a reason you worked overtime.
• Select Additional Time Type
• Enter Start Date and End Date
• Enter Requested Hours
• Enter Comments
• Click Submit

You’ll receive emails after submitting the request, and after it is approved. There is a , external, TTS-only, step-by-step guide to submitting time requests .

Step 2 - Update your timesheet

Currently, HR Links is not connecting Comp/Credit/Overtime hours to your timesheet. This means you will need to manually add the hours you earned to your timesheet on the day(s) when you earned them. You’ll do this after your supervisor has approved the hours in step 1.

There is a , external, TTS-only, step-by-step guide on adding the hours to your timesheet . Reach out to , external, TTS-only, #people-ops if you need assistance.

Using the comp time and/or credit hours you’ve earned

You will submit a leave request , just like you do for other types of leave. When searching in HR Links for the leave type to request, the codes and leave names are:

• 041 - Comp Time Used
• 037 - Credit Hours Used
• 047 - Religious Comp Time Used
• 043 - Travel Comp Time Used

OPM Resources

• , external, Adjustment of Work Schedules for Religious Observances
• , external, Overtime Fact Sheet
• , external, Comp Time Fact Sheet
• , external, Credit Hours Fact Sheet

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Special compensatory time off for travel.

This program allows employees to accrue compensatory time off for time spent by an employee in a travel status away from the employee’s official duty station when such time is not otherwise compensable. The travel must be officially authorized for work purposes and approved by an authorized official. 

An employee as defined in Title 5 U.S.C. 5541(2), who is employed in an “Executive Agency,” as defined in 5 U.S.C. 105, ) is entitled to earn and use compensatory time off for travel regardless of whether the employee is exempt or non-exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Coverage includes employees in Senior Level (SL) and Scientific of Professional (ST) positions, Federal Wage System (or Wage Grade, WG), and commissioned (tenured) Foreign Service Officers (in pay plan FO) and Commissioned Foreign Service Officers (in pay plan FO). 

Senior Executive Service members and intermittent employees (who do not have a scheduled tour of duty for leave purposes) are excluded from coverage.

Effective Dates of Coverage

Final regulations implementing compensatory time off for travel for most employees was effective May 17, 2007. Coverage for WG employees was effective April 27, 2008. Coverage for Foreign Service Officers (in pay plan FO) and Commissioned Foreign Service Officers (in pay plan FO) was effective June 8, 2006. 

Creditable Travel Time 

Time in a travel status includes the time the employee spends traveling between the official duty station and a temporary duty station (or the lodging in the temporary duty station) or between two temporary duty stations (or the lodging in the temporary duty station) and the “usual waiting time” that precedes or interrupts such travel. 

“Usual waiting time” is the time required to arrive at the airport (or other transportation hub) for security checks-ins, etc., prior to a designated departure time. 

Time spent at an intervening airport (or transportation hub) waiting for a connecting flight also is creditable time.

In the Department, “usual waiting time” is 2 hours for domestic travel and up to 4 hours for international travel. 

Non-Creditable Travel Time 

The following do not qualify as creditable time:

• Unusually long or extended waiting periods that occur prior to an employee’s initial departure time or between actual periods of travel if the employee is free to rest, sleep, or otherwise use the time for his/her own purposes;
• Long waiting periods that occur during an employee's regular scheduled working hours; these periods are compensable as part of the employee's regularly scheduled administrative workweek;
• Time spent traveling outside of an employee’s regular working hours to or from a transportation terminal that are within the limits of the employee’s official duty station;
• Time spent traveling in connection with the performance of union representational activities;
• Time spent traveling on a holiday or an “in-lieu-of” holiday; the employee is entitled to his or her rate of basic pay for the holiday hours; and
• Time spent at a temporary duty station between arrival and departure times; and
• Meal times. 

Once an employee arrives at the temporary duty station (i.e., TDY work site, training site, or hotel at the temporary duty station), the employee is no longer considered to be in a travel status. Any time spent at a temporary duty station between arrival and departure is not creditable for earning compensatory time off for travel. 

Offsetting Normal Commuting Time

When an employee travels directly between the home and a temporary duty station that is outside the limits of the employee's official duty station, the employee's normal “home-to-work/work-to-home” commuting time must be deducted from the creditable travel time. 

Normal commuting time must also be deducted from the creditable travel time if the employee is required to travel outside of regular working hours between the home and a transportation hub outside the limits of the employee's official duty station.

Travel between Multiple Time Zones 

When an employee’s travel involves two or more time zones, the time zone from the point of first departure must be used to determine travel status for accruing compensatory time off. For example, if an employee travels from his official duty station in Washington, DC, to a temporary duty station in Boulder, CO, the Washington, DC, time zone must be used to determine hours in a travel status. However, on the return trip to Washington, DC, the time zone from Boulder, CO, must be used to determine hours in a travel status 

Timeframes for Use

An employee must use accrued compensatory time off by the end of the 26th pay period after the pay period during which it was earned and reported on the webTA. 

All compensatory time off for travel must be used in the chronological order in which it was earned; that is, time earned first is used first. 

Forfeiture of Unused Hours

Accumulated compensatory time that is unused by the end of the 26th pay period after the pay period in which it was earned is forfeited. Unused balances are also forfeited when an employee voluntarily transfers to another agency or separates from Federal service. Forfeited hours may not be paid or restored. 

When an employee fails to use accumulated compensatory time balances within the required timeframe due to an exigency of the public service beyond the employee’s control, the time limit for using the hours may be extended for up to an additional 26 pay periods. Additional extensions are not authorized and forfeited hours may not be restored. 

Exceptions to Forfeiture of Unused Hours

Unused compensatory time off for travel must be held in abeyance for an employee who separates, or is placed in a leave without pay (LWOP) status, and later returns:

• To perform service in the uniformed services (see 38 U.S.C. § 4303 and 5 CFR § 353.102) with restoration rights; and 
• Due to an on-the-job injury with entitlement to injury compensation under 5 U.S.C. Chapter 81. 

In these cases, the employee must use all of the compensatory time off for travel held in abeyance by the end of the 26th pay period following the pay period in which he/she returns to duty, or the compensatory time off will be forfeited. 

Biweekly Salary Limitation and Aggregate Limitation on Pay

Compensatory time off for travel is not considered in applying the bi-weekly pay cap under 5 U.S.C. 5547 or the aggregate limitation on pay under 5 U.S.C.507. 

Alternate Mode of Transportation

When an employee is allowed to use an alternate mode of transportation, or travels at a time/route other than what is initially approved by the authorizing official, creditable time for travel status must be estimated. The estimate is based on the amount of time the employee would have had if the mode of transportation or the time/route initially approved by the authorizing official was used. In determining the estimated amount of creditable time for travel that an employee would have had, the employee will be credited with the lesser of the:

• Estimated time in a travel status the employee would have had if the employee had traveled at the initially approved time, or
• Employee's actual time in a travel status at a time other than that initially approved.

Applying for Compensatory Time off for Travel

Employee must officially request the earning of compensatory time prior to the actual travel or within 10 calendar days of termination of the travel. The request may be submitted via the webTA Leave and Premium Pay Request functionality, Commerce Department Form CD-81, “Authorization for Paid Overtime and/or Holiday Work, and for Compensatory Overtime”, electronic mail, or memorandum. The request should estimate the number of hours the employee expects to earn. Upon the employee’s return from travel, the employee must provide a chronological record of travel information including:

• Duration of the normal home-to-work commute;
• Time and place of departure (i.e., the employee’s home or official duty station);
• Actual time spent traveling to and from the transportation terminal if the terminal is outside of the employee’s official duty station;
• Usual waiting time; and
• Time of arrival at and departure from the temporary duty station. 

Earning Limitations 

There is no limit on the amount of compensatory time for travel that may be earned. 

Using Compensatory Time off for Travel 

Compensatory time off for travel is credited and used in 15 minute increments with the compensatory time off for travel earned first being charged first. Additional leave will be charged in corresponding units. Employees must request permission from their supervisor or leave approving official to schedule the use of accrued compensatory time off via the webTA Leave and Premium Pay Request functionality, a SF-71, Application for Leave, or Form OPM-71, Request for Leave or Approved Absence. 

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Questions and answers, what is compensatory time off for travel.

UNCLASSIFIED (U)

compensatory time off for travel

(CT:PER-1131;   05-26-2023) (Office of Origin:  GTM/OTA)

3 FAM 3171  Authorities

(CT:PER-751;   10-30-2014) (State Only) (Applies to Civil Service and Foreign Service Employees)

Authorities are authorized by the following:

·          5 U.S.C. 5550b

·          5 CFR Part 550, subpart N; and

·          The Foreign Service Act of 1980, Section 412, as amended.

3 FAM 3172  Introduction

(CT:PER-869;   08-28-2017) (State Only) (Applies to Civil Service and Foreign Service Employees)

The Federal Workforce Flexibility Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-411, Section 203, October 30, 2004) established a new form of non-monetary compensatory time off for time spent by an employee in a travel status when such time is not otherwise compensable (i.e., when the travel is not during regular duty hours or otherwise considered hours of work).  This provision is codified in 5 U.S.C. 5550b.  Individual offices do not have the discretion to deny an employee compensatory time off for travel if it has been earned and applied in accordance with Department policy.  Compensatory time off for travel is non-monetary and if not used prior to its expiration, never converts to cash.

3 FAM 3173  Eligibility

(CT:PER-992;   05-20-2020) (State Only) (Applies to Civil Service and Foreign Service Employees)

a. Compensatory time off for travel may be earned by:

(1)  An American direct-hire employee as defined in 5 U.S.C. 5541(2);

(2)  Part-time employees may be entitled to compensatory time off for travel if the time in travel status does not qualify as compensable hours of work under 5 U.S.C. 5542(b)(2)(B) and 5 CFR 550.112(g)(2), and meets the other requirements in 5 CFR 550, subpart N;

(3)  Tenured Foreign Service Officers class FS-01 and below under the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended; effective October 23, 2007;

(4)  Wage grade (prevailing rate) employees under the provisions codified in 5 U.S.C. 5550b and 5 CFR 550, subpart N; effective April 27, 2008; and

(5)  Eligibility of locally employed staff depends on local labor law and how the employee was hired.  If the locally employed staff member is appointed under the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended, the employee may be eligible.  If the locally employed staff member is hired under a personal services agreement, local labor law prevails.  The office of Overseas Employment Compensation Management Division (GTM/OE/CM) may be contacted for further information.

b. Compensatory time off for travel may NOT be earned by:

(1)  Members of the Senior Executive Service;

(2)  Members of the Senior Foreign Service;

(3)  Executive Schedule employees; or

(4)  Employees on an intermittent schedule.

3 FAM 3174  Determining Eligible Time in Travel Status

a. To be creditable under this provision, travel must be officially authorized.  The travel must be for work purposes and must be approved by an authorized Department official or under established Department policies.  Examples of eligible travel would be for performing official work at another duty station, attending an official conference, or attending official training.

b. Compensatory time off for travel may only be earned for time in an official travel status away from an employee’s official duty station when such time is not otherwise compensable as regular duty pay or premium compensation.  For Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), exempt employees, compensable refers to periods of time creditable as hours of work for the purpose of determining a specific pay entitlement.  For FLSA non-exempt employees, please see 5 CFR 551.422.

c.  Eligible Time in Official Travel Status includes:

(1)  Time spent traveling between the official duty station and a temporary duty station;

(2)  Time spent traveling between two temporary duty stations;

(3)  The usual waiting time preceding or interrupting such travel.  The usual waiting time for domestic flights may not exceed two hours, and for overseas flights may not exceed three hours.  Extended waiting time is not creditable; or

(4)  Time in travel status ends when the employee arrives at the temporary duty worksite or lodging in the temporary duty station, wherever the employee arrives first.  Time in travel status resumes when an employee departs from the temporary duty worksite or lodging in the temporary duty station, from whichever the employee departs last.

d. Time that is NOT eligible:

(1)  Travel for the purpose of permanent change of station, temporary change of station, home leave, rest and recuperation travel, family visitation travel, regional rest breaks, medical evacuation, emergency visitation travel, and post evacuations are not considered time in official travel status for the purpose of earning comp time off for travel;

(2)  An extended waiting period is not considered time in official travel status and is not creditable.  An example of extended waiting periods include: flight delays or cancelations due to weather issues, mechanical problems, airline administrative problems, etc.;

(3)  Regular duty hours of work; and

(4)  Hours of travel time that are otherwise compensable hours of work under the overtime pay provisions in 5 CFR 550.112(g) or 5 CFR 551.422.

e. Reference 5 CFR 551.422 states for non-exempt employees, time spent traveling must be considered compensable hours of work if:

(1)  The official travel occurs during the employee's regular working hours;

(2)  The employee is required to drive or perform other work as part of the official travel;

(3)  An employee is required to travel as a passenger on a one-day assignment away from the official duty station location; or

(4)  The employee is required to travel as a passenger overnight away from the official duty station location and the official travel occurs on a non-workday during hours that correspond to the employee's regular working hours.

3 FAM 3175  Factors That Influence Compensatory Time Off for Travel

3 FAM 3175.1  Time Zones

When an employee’s travel involves two or more time zones, the time zone from the point of first departure must be used to determine how many hours (elapsed time) the employee actually spent in a travel status for the purpose of accruing compensatory time off for travel.  For example, if an employee departs from Tokyo, going to FSI for training, the employee calculates the trip based on the Tokyo time zone.  Likewise, the return trip is calculated on the Washington, DC time zone since it now is the point of first departure.

3 FAM 3175.2  Modes of Transportation

a. In the case of an employee who is offered one mode of transportation (i.e., flying) and who is permitted to use an alternate mode of transportation (i.e., train or POV), or who travels at a time or by a route other than that selected by the Department, the agency MUST determine the estimated amount of time in a travel status the employee would have had if the employee had used the mode of transportation offered by the Department or traveled at the time or by the route selected by the Department.  For example, if the flight time is two hours but the travel by train takes six hours, the employee is only eligible to request two hours as creditable for comp time off for travel.  The fact that one mode of transportation may save the Department money has no bearing on the amount of comp time off for travel that an employee earns.

b. Employees who take an approved/authorized rest break during their travel that causes the compensatory time off for travel eligibility to change from what would have been available for the most direct route are ONLY authorized to claim the amount of time that would have been earned had the rest break not been taken.

c.  The class of accommodation, such as business class, does not influence whether the time in travel status is compensable.  Allowing an employee to upgrade travel to business class does not eliminate an employee’s eligibility to earn compensatory time off for travel.

3 FAM 3175.3  Meals

It is no longer required that an employee deduct the bona fide meal periods during travel time or waiting time.

3 FAM 3175.4  Change of Administrative Work Week

An agency may NOT adjust the regularly scheduled administrative work week that normally applies to an employee (full-time or part-time) solely for the purpose of including planned travel time that would not otherwise be considered compensable hours of work.  For example, if an employee is required to travel on a Saturday, which is normally a day off, the supervisor cannot change the administrative work week to be Tuesday through Saturday, making Saturday a compensable day and thus making that day ineligible for compensatory time off for travel.

3 FAM 3175.5  Commuting Time

a. Travel outside of regular working hours to or from a transportation terminal (airport, train, etc.) within the limits of the employee’s official duty station is considered equivalent to commuting time and is not creditable travel time.

b. Travel outside of regular working hours between an employee’s home and a temporary duty station or transportation terminal outside the limits of the employees duty station is considered creditable travel time.  However, the Department must deduct the employee’s normal home-to-work/work-to-home commuting time from the creditable travel time.

c.  A mileage radius no greater than 50 miles applies to determine whether an employee's travel is within or outside the limits of the employee's official duty station.  See 5 CFR 550.112(j).

3 FAM 3176  Recording and Use of Compensatory Time off For Travel

(CT:PER-1131;   05-26-2023) (State Only) (Applies to Civil Service and Foreign Service Employees)

a. Fifteen (15) Minute Increments: Compensatory time off for travel is credited and used in increments of 15 minutes.

b. Thirty (30) day Limit for Requesting Credit: The Department requires employees to submit credit requests, in writing, to their supervisor with specific times, justification, and itineraries, within 30 days of completion of eligible official travel.  This request should be accompanied by Form DS-5106, Compensatory Time Off for Travel worksheet.  Requests for compensatory time off for travel that are submitted more than 30 days after the last day of travel will be denied.

c.  Documenting Compensatory Time Off for Travel on Cuff Records and TATEL: The Department’s pay system will not accommodate the specialized compensatory time off for travel category; and, as a result, timekeepers are required to keep paper records of the compensatory time off for travel earned by each individual using a separate ledger ( 3 FAM Exhibit 3176) ;

(1)  Compensatory time off for travel is not recorded in the TATEL system, though comp time off for travel used will be recorded in TATEL;

(2)  Time used should be entered in TATEL as “XA” with a notation “compensatory time off for travel”;

(3)  Timekeepers should keep a copy of the Form DS-7100, Request for Leave or Approved Absence with the paper record of compensatory time off for travel earned and subtract the time used;

(4)  Regulations require that time is charged in a chronological manner, i.e., first-in, first-out; and

(5)  These are official records and must be maintained by each individual office.

d. Time Limit for Using Compensatory Time Off for Travel: Compensatory time off for travel must be used within 26 pay periods from the time the eligible compensatory time off for travel is earned.  Otherwise it is forfeited.  Exceptions may be granted:

(1)  If the employee with unused compensatory time off for travel separates;

(2)  The employee is placed in a leave without pay status to perform service in the uniformed service (as defined in 38 U.S.C. 4303 and 5 CFR 353.102) and later returns to service through the exercise of a re-employment right provided by law, Executive Order, or regulation;

(3)  An on-the-job injury with entitlement to compensation under 5 U.S.C. chapter 81 and later recovers sufficiently to return to work; or

(4)  An exigency of the service beyond the employee’s control and an authorized Department official, has sole discretion, to extend the time limit for using such compensatory time off for travel, not to exceed an additional 26 pay periods.

e. Scheduling and Using Accrued Compensatory Time Off for Travel: Employees must request permission from their supervisor via Form DS-7100 , Request for Leave or Approved Absence , to schedule the use of accrued compensatory time off for travel.  Earned compensatory time off for travel must be charged on a first-in, first-out (chronological) basis.

f.  Use of Compensatory Time Off for Travel While in Official Travel Status: In accordance with 5 CFR 550.1406, employees must request permission to schedule the use of accrued compensatory time off for travel in accordance with agency-established policies and procedures.  Department policy states that employees will not be authorized to use compensatory time off for travel in the same trip in which it is earned.

3 FAM 3177  Transfer Within the Department

Compensatory time off for travel may be transferred to another office within the Department, unless the employee moves to a federal position that is covered by the compensatory time off for travel regulations, pursuant to 5 CFR 550.1407(d).  The losing timekeeper must provide complete copies of the employee's compensatory time for travel to the gaining timekeeper.  This includes a copy of the authorized approval memo, the paper ledger recording time earned and used, and the current balance with the forfeiture dates.

3 FAM 3178  Forfeiture

Compensatory time off for travel is forfeited:

(1)  Except as provided in 3 FAM 3176 (d), if not used by the end of the 26th pay period during which it was earned.  NOTE: The 26 pay periods run from the time travel was completed, not from the time it was credited;

(2)  Upon voluntary transfer to another agency;

(3)  Upon movement to a non-covered position, or if there is a change in employee status, such as intermittent or promotion to SFS/SES; or

(4)  Except as provided in 3 FAM 3176 (d), upon separation from the federal government.

3 FAM 3179  Compensatory Time Off for Travel is NOT Premium Pay

a. Under no circumstances may an individual receive monetary compensation for any unused compensatory time off for travel the employee has earned.

b. Accrued compensatory time off for travel is not considered in applying the premium pay cap limitations established under 5 U.S.C. 5547 and 5 CFR 550.105 through 550.107, or the aggregate limitation on pay established under 5 U.S.C 5307 and 5 CFR 530, subpart B.

3 FAM Exhibit 3176   Compensatory Time Off For Travel Record of Hours Earned and Used

(CT:PER-751;   10-30-2014)

_____________________________

Traveler’s Name

Approver/Supervisor’s Name

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Special compensatory time off for travel.

This program allows employees to accrue compensatory time off for time spent by an employee in a travel status away from the employee’s official duty station when such time is not otherwise compensable. The travel must be officially authorized for work purposes and approved by an authorized official. 

An employee as defined in Title 5 U.S.C. 5541(2), who is employed in an “Executive Agency,” as defined in 5 U.S.C. 105, ) is entitled to earn and use compensatory time off for travel regardless of whether the employee is exempt or non-exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Coverage includes employees in Senior Level (SL) and Scientific of Professional (ST) positions, Federal Wage System (or Wage Grade, WG), and commissioned (tenured) Foreign Service Officers (in pay plan FO) and Commissioned Foreign Service Officers (in pay plan FO). 

Senior Executive Service members and intermittent employees (who do not have a scheduled tour of duty for leave purposes) are excluded from coverage.

Effective Dates of Coverage

Final regulations implementing compensatory time off for travel for most employees was effective May 17, 2007. Coverage for WG employees was effective April 27, 2008. Coverage for Foreign Service Officers (in pay plan FO) and Commissioned Foreign Service Officers (in pay plan FO) was effective June 8, 2006. 

Creditable Travel Time 

Time in a travel status includes the time the employee spends traveling between the official duty station and a temporary duty station (or the lodging in the temporary duty station) or between two temporary duty stations (or the lodging in the temporary duty station) and the “usual waiting time” that precedes or interrupts such travel. 

“Usual waiting time” is the time required to arrive at the airport (or other transportation hub) for security checks-ins, etc., prior to a designated departure time. 

Time spent at an intervening airport (or transportation hub) waiting for a connecting flight also is creditable time.

In the Department, “usual waiting time” is 2 hours for domestic travel and up to 4 hours for international travel. 

Non-Creditable Travel Time 

The following do not qualify as creditable time:

• Unusually long or extended waiting periods that occur prior to an employee’s initial departure time or between actual periods of travel if the employee is free to rest, sleep, or otherwise use the time for his/her own purposes;
• Long waiting periods that occur during an employee's regular scheduled working hours; these periods are compensable as part of the employee's regularly scheduled administrative workweek;
• Time spent traveling outside of an employee’s regular working hours to or from a transportation terminal that are within the limits of the employee’s official duty station;
• Time spent traveling in connection with the performance of union representational activities;
• Time spent traveling on a holiday or an “in-lieu-of” holiday; the employee is entitled to his or her rate of basic pay for the holiday hours; and
• Time spent at a temporary duty station between arrival and departure times; and
• Meal times. 

Once an employee arrives at the temporary duty station (i.e., TDY work site, training site, or hotel at the temporary duty station), the employee is no longer considered to be in a travel status. Any time spent at a temporary duty station between arrival and departure is not creditable for earning compensatory time off for travel. 

Offsetting Normal Commuting Time

When an employee travels directly between the home and a temporary duty station that is outside the limits of the employee's official duty station, the employee's normal “home-to-work/work-to-home” commuting time must be deducted from the creditable travel time. 

Normal commuting time must also be deducted from the creditable travel time if the employee is required to travel outside of regular working hours between the home and a transportation hub outside the limits of the employee's official duty station.

Travel between Multiple Time Zones 

When an employee’s travel involves two or more time zones, the time zone from the point of first departure must be used to determine travel status for accruing compensatory time off. For example, if an employee travels from his official duty station in Washington, DC, to a temporary duty station in Boulder, CO, the Washington, DC, time zone must be used to determine hours in a travel status. However, on the return trip to Washington, DC, the time zone from Boulder, CO, must be used to determine hours in a travel status 

Timeframes for Use

An employee must use accrued compensatory time off by the end of the 26th pay period after the pay period during which it was earned and reported on the webTA. 

All compensatory time off for travel must be used in the chronological order in which it was earned; that is, time earned first is used first. 

Forfeiture of Unused Hours

Accumulated compensatory time that is unused by the end of the 26th pay period after the pay period in which it was earned is forfeited. Unused balances are also forfeited when an employee voluntarily transfers to another agency or separates from Federal service. Forfeited hours may not be paid or restored. 

When an employee fails to use accumulated compensatory time balances within the required timeframe due to an exigency of the public service beyond the employee’s control, the time limit for using the hours may be extended for up to an additional 26 pay periods. Additional extensions are not authorized and forfeited hours may not be restored. 

Exceptions to Forfeiture of Unused Hours

Unused compensatory time off for travel must be held in abeyance for an employee who separates, or is placed in a leave without pay (LWOP) status, and later returns:

• To perform service in the uniformed services (see 38 U.S.C. § 4303 and 5 CFR § 353.102) with restoration rights; and 
• Due to an on-the-job injury with entitlement to injury compensation under 5 U.S.C. Chapter 81. 

In these cases, the employee must use all of the compensatory time off for travel held in abeyance by the end of the 26th pay period following the pay period in which he/she returns to duty, or the compensatory time off will be forfeited. 

Biweekly Salary Limitation and Aggregate Limitation on Pay

Compensatory time off for travel is not considered in applying the bi-weekly pay cap under 5 U.S.C. 5547 or the aggregate limitation on pay under 5 U.S.C.507. 

Alternate Mode of Transportation

When an employee is allowed to use an alternate mode of transportation, or travels at a time/route other than what is initially approved by the authorizing official, creditable time for travel status must be estimated. The estimate is based on the amount of time the employee would have had if the mode of transportation or the time/route initially approved by the authorizing official was used. In determining the estimated amount of creditable time for travel that an employee would have had, the employee will be credited with the lesser of the:

• Estimated time in a travel status the employee would have had if the employee had traveled at the initially approved time, or
• Employee's actual time in a travel status at a time other than that initially approved.

Applying for Compensatory Time off for Travel

Employee must officially request the earning of compensatory time prior to the actual travel or within 10 calendar days of termination of the travel. The request may be submitted via the webTA Leave and Premium Pay Request functionality, Commerce Department Form CD-81, “Authorization for Paid Overtime and/or Holiday Work, and for Compensatory Overtime”, electronic mail, or memorandum. The request should estimate the number of hours the employee expects to earn. Upon the employee’s return from travel, the employee must provide a chronological record of travel information including:

• Duration of the normal home-to-work commute;
• Time and place of departure (i.e., the employee’s home or official duty station);
• Actual time spent traveling to and from the transportation terminal if the terminal is outside of the employee’s official duty station;
• Usual waiting time; and
• Time of arrival at and departure from the temporary duty station. 

Earning Limitations 

There is no limit on the amount of compensatory time for travel that may be earned. 

Using Compensatory Time off for Travel 

Compensatory time off for travel is credited and used in 15 minute increments with the compensatory time off for travel earned first being charged first. Additional leave will be charged in corresponding units. Employees must request permission from their supervisor or leave approving official to schedule the use of accrued compensatory time off via the webTA Leave and Premium Pay Request functionality, a SF-71, Application for Leave, or Form OPM-71, Request for Leave or Approved Absence. 

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More From Forbes

Is travel insurance refundable here’s everything you need to know.

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Sometimes, travel insurance is refundable. Here's when you can get your money back.

Peter Hoagland always checks to see if his travel insurance is refundable. That's because anything can happen between the time you book your vacation and when you leave — and because travel insurance isn't always refundable.

During the pandemic, he discovered that the hard way. He had to cancel a trip and asked for his money back from the insurance company. It refused.

"Since then, I always read the fine print on the policy," he says.

The refundability of travel insurance has always been an open question. Some countries and U.S. states regulate refundability. Travel insurance companies put refundability details in the fine print of the policy. And, as Hoagland found out, there are always exceptions.

Like the pandemic, when refund policies were all over the map. Some insurance companies adhered to their published policies. Others offered a credit that could be reused within a year, which was minimally useful because the pandemic was still happening a year later. Others quietly gave their customers a refund.

Hoagland says he fought for his money. Eventually, he contacted a manager at his travel insurance company.

"That produced a quick result," he says. "I got my money back."

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But let's face it: Getting a refund for travel insurance can be difficult. There are times when insurance is always refundable because it's required by law. There are times when it's sometimes refundable. And there are times when it's almost never refundable. But even then, there may be a way to recover some — or all — of the value of your policy.

Getting a refund for travel insurance can be a challenge

If you have a travel insurance policy and would like to get a refund, it might be easier said than done, say experts.

"While travel insurance is regulated like auto and home insurance, it’s often less standardized," says Stuart Winchester, CEO of Marble, a digital wallet for your insurance. "So first off, it’s important to check the fine print of your specific policy. Don’t assume it’s like the last one you got."

Even when you have something in writing, a refund can require some serious negotiating skills.

"Getting a refund for travel insurance can be complicated and frustrating," says Peter Hamdy, the managing director of a tour operator in Auckland, New Zealand. He's asked for a refund on policies numerous times and says that despite what travel insurance companies may tell you, there are no hard-and-fast rules when it comes to getting a refund on your policy.

"Some situations can warrant a refund," he says. "It depends on your policy."

What does a typical refundability clause look like? For example, the World Explorer Guardian from Insured Nomads notes that it's refundable only during the 10-day review period from the date of delivery or 15 days from the date of delivery if mailed, provided you have not already departed on your trip and you have not incurred any claimable losses during that time. If you depart on your trip before the expiration of the review period, the review period ends and the policy can't be refunded.

"We go a bit further with our World Explorer Travel Medical plans," notes Andrew Jernigan, CEO of Insured Nomads. "If no claims have been filed then we can refund the unused portion of the policy if you cut your trip short.”

When can you get a refund for travel insurance?

Here are the most common cases where travel insurance can be refunded:

• If you cancel during the "free look" period required by the government. Most states require what's called a "free look" period of anywhere from 10 to 14 days. "During this period, travelers can review the purchase and make sure it fits their needs," explains James Nuttall, general manager of Insubuy . "If it does not, they can cancel it for any reason and get a full refund, no questions asked, so long as you haven’t departed yet.
• If you cancel during the travel insurance company grace period. Many insurance companies also have a grace period for refunds (usually, they are the same as the "free look" although some grace periods can be longer). "If you’re outside your grace period, which typically lasts one to two weeks after signing, you’re contractually obliged to pay your premiums," says David Ciccarelli, CEO of the vacation rental site Lake . "Still, it doesn’t hurt to ask your company for a refund or alternative options if you’re outside your grace window. You might not get a yes, but it could lead to some cost savings or better solutions."
• When someone else cancels your trip. "For instance, if your cruise is canceled due to low river tide, you are not at fault and would typically receive a full refund or credit for a future sailing, thus eliminating the need for the travel insurance policy," explains Rhonda Abedsalam vice president of travel insurance for AXA Assistance US.
• If you die. Typically, the policy would be refunded to your next of kin. Generally, you can also ask for a refund if your travel companion dies before your trip.

Remember, it depends on where you buy your insurance

The refundability of your insurance can depend on where you purchased it. Commercial policies bought from a cruise or tour company are generally canceled and refunded if you cancel the trip far enough in advance of your departure date.

"The travel insurance cancellation provisions are generally tied to the cancellation provisions for the cruise or tour," explains Dan Skilken, president of TripInsurance.com . "After you have paid the last deposits on the cruise and are close enough to departure that they will not provide a refund on the cruise, they generally will also not provide a refund on the travel insurance. But if you cancel early enough to get all or most of your deposit back, you will also get your travel insurance premium refunded."

If you’ve purchased retail travel insurance from a third-party provider or comparison website, you can often get a refund if you can show receipts proving that you received a full refund of all trip deposits and have not had any cancellation penalties or taken any travel credits when you canceled your trip.

That's because retail travel insurance is sold for a specific traveler and for a specific trip. If you have proof of a complete refund and have not received travel credits, then you no longer have what's called an "insurable interest" in the trip. The insurance company must cancel and refund your premium in full, says Skilken.

Insider tip: If the insurance company refuses, just tell them you have proof that you no longer have an insurable interest in the trip. You have to have an insurable interest in a trip to own a travel insurance policy.

Your agent may be able to help you get a refund

You may also be able to lean on the agent who sold you the policy. For example, all policies on Squaremouth come with a money-back guarantee.

"The purpose of this benefit is to give travelers extra time to review their policy documentation to be sure it’s the best policy for their coverage needs," says spokeswoman Jenna Hummer. At Squaremouth, the money-back period typically lasts between 10 and 14 days, which is in line with the mandated "free look" period.

However, I have also seen agents negotiate with travel insurance companies for a more generous refund period in case of extenuating circumstances. There's no guarantee that you'll get it, but it's worth asking — and one reason to work with a third party.

Agents can also help you avoid this problem. Susan Sherren, who runs Couture Trips , a travel agency, notes that American Airlines Vacation Packages offers a predeparture protection insurance plan, which allows cancellation for any reason before the outbound departing flight time. Other restrictions apply, she adds.

"More flexibility will often cost you more," she says. "But having the flexibility is a great way to sleep well at night."

Can't get a refund? Look for other kinds of flexibility from your travel insurance company

Even if your travel insurance company says no to a refund, it doesn't necessarily mean you've lost the value of your policy.

"If a travel supplier changes or cancels your trip, you should be able to change your travel insurance policy to match the new dates of your trip or even cover a new trip, sometimes up to two years into the future," says Daniel Durazo, director of external communications at Allianz Partners USA .

Pro tip: Be sure to change the dates of your travel insurance policy before the departure date of your current itinerary. You can do that online or by calling your agent. Once the policy's effective date has passed, making any changes or initiating a refund or credit becomes much more difficult.

Don't forget to do your due diligence

Bottom line: Travel insurance is refundable under certain circumstances. But knowing when can require research.

"It's important for consumers to carefully read their policy upon receipt to understand the specific terms offered by their insurance provider," says Robert Gallagher, president of the US Travel Insurance Association.

The more you know, the likelier you are to get the refund you want when your plans change.

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