Rule No. 1389 of 27 April 2017 on the organisation of official journeys
The Secretary General of the Council of Europe,
HAVING REGARD to Article 42, paragraph 1.a of the Staff Regulations;
HAVING REGARD to the Organisation's Travel Policy, which encompasses the following objectives to be taken into account when organising official journeys by order of priority:
- safety (choice of approved airlines, appropriate insurance cover, compliance with the Organisation’s rules and guidelines in matters of security);
- reliability (passengers should arrive at their destinations in good time for the activities they are to attend);
- convenience (acceptable travel times and waiting time at stopovers etc.);
- budget (direct and indirect costs incurred by the Organisation);
- comfort (class of travel);
CONSIDERING that the rules on the organisation of official journeys undertaken by staff need to be updated;
CONSIDERING that Instruction No. 58 of 4 February 2008 on the organisation of official journeys as amended should be replaced by a rule;
BEARING IN MIND that the same rules apply to specially appointed officials, temporary staff and seconded officials;
CONSIDERING that it is necessary to have a single instrument for these four categories of officials of the Organisation;
HAVING CONSULTED the Staff Committee in accordance with Article 5, paragraph 3 of the Regulations on Staff Participation (Appendix I to the Staff Regulations);
D E C I D E S:
1. The rules governing the organisation of official journeys undertaken by specially appointed officials, staff coming under Article 1 of the Staff Regulations, temporary staff, as defined by the corresponding rules, and the officials referred to in Article 1a of the Regulations for secondments to the Council of Europe (designated in this Rule by the collective term "officials of the Organisation" or "officials") and the defrayal by the Organisation of official-journey expenses are set out hereunder.
2. Articles 4 to 15 only apply to official journeys to attend an activity taking place at least 50 km away from the official's duty station or official journeys to attend an activity within 50 km of the duty station lasting more than eight hours.
Article 2 - Management of budget appropriations for official journeys
The Commitments Officer of each Major Administrative Entity shall be responsible for managing appropriations for official journeys relating to its functioning.
Article 3 - Travel Management Office
1. The Travel Management Office shall contribute to the development of the Organisation's Travel Policy and travel management strategy. It shall monitor their implementation and introduce, to the extent possible, appropriate measures to achieve travel cost containment and savings.
2. The Travel Management Office shall deal with relations with the travel management company and all other related travel partner companies (such as the travel insurance company). This includes management of the related contracts and reporting requirements set out thereunder.
3. The Travel Management Office shall provide information to officials organising official journeys and assist them by liaising, where necessary, with the travel management company and all other related travel partner companies. It is also responsible for the management of the Organisation’s IT Travel Management System (the “Travel Management System”) and the related user support.
1. Official journeys shall be arranged by officials so as to cost as little as possible while taking into account the hierarchy of objectives set out in the Organisation's Travel Policy (safety, reliability, convenience, budget and comfort).
2. Officials shall be authorised to travel by air or by any other means of transport, to be determined by the Commitments Officer in the best interests of the Major Administrative Entity to which they belong (hereafter "the Major Administrative Entity concerned"), taking into account the objectives set out in the Organisation's Travel Policy. The Commitments Officer may decide in the best interests of the Major Administrative Entity concerned that officials undertaking an official journey shall travel as a group.
3. Officials may not be obliged to travel between 11 pm and 7 am, except where no other solution can be found or they do so by personal choice and in the best interests of the Major Administrative Entity concerned.[1]
4. Commitments Officers shall grant officials obliged to undertake their return journey[2] between 11 pm and 7 am compensatory leave equal to one half-day within the half-day following the journey.
5. Officials may be authorised to use a private car to undertake an official journey in accordance with this Rule if they are covered by an appropriate insurance.
6. Mission expenses shall be paid to officials in euros by bank transfer into the bank account into which their remuneration is paid.
1. An official journey shall be subject to approval by the Major Administrative Entity concerned. To this end, an application for a mission order shall be submitted by the official or by an authorised person acting on his/her behalf. All applications for mission orders must be registered in the Travel Management System.
2. Except in duly justified urgent cases, an application for a mission order shall be drawn up not later than two weeks before the official journey is due to commence.
3. So as to make the travel arrangements, the official undertaking the official journey or a person on his/her behalf shall proceed to the booking of the most suitable travel related services via the Travel Management System which is connected to the travel management company. Priority should be given to the online booking of travel and related services.
4. In exceptional, duly justified cases, Commitments Officers shall be authorised to give prior approval to the direct purchase of travel related services by officials themselves or by an authorised person acting on their behalf via the Internet or another travel agency in so far as such purchases are consistent with the objectives of the Organisation's Travel Policy.
5. The application for a mission order shall contain all necessary information concerning the official journey, including the activity, the place where it will be held, the date and time of its beginning and end, the itinerary, the means of transport (staff members wishing to travel in the private car of a colleague also undertaking the official journey shall expressly state so), the place where the official will stay and a contact address and telephone number. It shall also mention the number of the relevant purchase order, mission order number and CCM number. The following shall also be specified where applicable:
a. any difference between the dates and times on which the calculation of the official-journey expenses is to be based and the actual dates and times of the journey;
b. the dates of any annual leave to be taken directly before or after the official journey;
c. any decision by the Commitments Officer prescribing group travel;
d. the nature and the approximate total of any foreseeable exceptional expenditure to be incurred in the interests of the Major Administrative Entity concerned;
e. accommodation expenses exceeding 60% of the total daily subsistence allowances;
f. any request for an advance in accordance with Article 10;
g. any arrangement whereby accommodation and/or meal costs are borne by a third party (for example, a government, other organisation or individual acting in a professional capacity);
h. any Council of Europe property which the official is responsible for transporting;
i. any fare reduction to which the official is personally entitled.
6. If mission orders for several officials are applied for in connection with the same activity, the applications shall be submitted together in the Travel Management System, even where they belong to different Major Administrative Entities.
7. The application for a mission order shall be submitted for approval to the Commitments Officer, who may, at the request of the official undertaking the journey, authorise departures from the provisions of Article 4 in exceptional, duly justified cases.
8. Following the Commitments Officer's approval, the application becomes the mission order proper, authorising the official to travel and to be absent from his/her place of work for the time specified.
9. Without a mission order bearing a valid purchase order number officials shall have no authorisation to purchase any travel related services.
10. Without a mission order bearing a valid purchase order number the Treasurer shall not be authorised to pay any advance or to reimburse official-journey expenses.
11. A formal mission order, bearing the official stamp of the Organisation, may if necessary be issued in the name of the Secretary General in the two official languages of the Organisation and/or the language(s) of the country(ies) to be visited by an official.[3]
Article 6 - Subsistence allowance
1. A daily subsistence allowance shall be payable for official journeys at the rates shown in the scale adopted by the Committee of Ministers.
2. The following rules shall apply to all journeys, whatever the means of transport:
a. Officials undertaking an official journey shall be entitled to a daily subsistence allowance for each 24-hour period covered by the duration of their journey in line with the conditions set out below.
b. The daily subsistence allowance shall not be payable for any period of less than four hours.
c. Where the duration of the official journey is equal to or more than four hours but less than eight hours, the official concerned shall be entitled to a quarter of the daily subsistence allowance. The same shall apply to any period equal to or more than four hours, but less than eight hours, in excess of 24 hours or any multiple of 24 hours.
d. Where the duration of the official journey is equal to or more than eight hours but less than 24 hours and no hotel stay is involved, the official concerned shall be entitled to half the daily subsistence allowance. The same shall apply to any period equal to or more than eight hours, but less than 24 hours, in excess of 24 hours or any multiple of 24 hours.
e. Where the duration of the official journey is equal to or more than four hours but less than 24 hours and a hotel stay is involved, the official concerned shall be entitled to the full amount of the daily subsistence allowance, subject to the limits as indicated at g. below for accommodation costs. The same shall apply to any period equal to or more than four hours, but less than 24 hours, in excess of 24 hours or any multiple of 24 hours.
f. In the case of official journeys covering two or more destinations, the daily subsistence allowance will be calculated in proportion to the time spent in each destination.
g. Accommodation expenses shall be reimbursed on the basis of the actual costs, including breakfast and taxes, up to a maximum of 50% of the daily subsistence allowance.
3. Officials shall produce the original bills (in paper or electronic form), or certified copies, for all accommodation expenses. The bills in question shall have been issued by a person or establishment expressly authorised to provide overnight accommodation by the competent authority(ies). Without such bills, accommodation costs will not be reimbursed.
4. Where officials use their private car in the interests of the Major Administrative Entity, the journey time used as the basis for the calculation of the daily subsistence allowance shall be limited to the result of the number of kilometres divided by 90 and shall not exceed 24 hours.
5. Officials who, for reasons of personal convenience, use a private car or a means of transport other than the usual[4] one shall have no subsistence allowance entitlement for any period in excess of the duration of the same journey by the usual means of transport taken as the basis for refunding travel expenses.
6. If an official is authorised to take leave immediately before or after an official journey (or decides to make a detour), the subsistence allowance shall be calculated as if he/she had made a direct return journey between his/her duty station and the place of the activity. However, if by taking leave (or making a detour) the official becomes entitled to a less expensive fare, the official's subsistence allowance entitlement shall be extended to cover the entire period of his/her absence provided that the overall official journey expenses are reduced as a consequence.
7. The subsistence allowances payable shall be deemed to cover all expenditure liable to be incurred by officials on an official journey, apart from non-incidental travel expenses (see Article 8 below).
However, where accommodation costs (room, breakfast and related taxes) amount to more than 60% of the total subsistence allowances due, the Commitments Officer may grant a refund of all or part of the difference upon production of vouchers and on condition that it is shown that such additional expenditure was justifiable. This additional reimbursement shall not normally exceed 30% of the total subsistence allowance.
The accommodation costs to be taken into consideration for this purpose are those relating to the entire duration of the official journey, irrespective of whether it involved visiting one or several locations.
8. The subsistence allowance shall be reduced in the following cases:
a. Where the Organisation covers the cost of overnight accommodation, accommodation costs will not be reimbursed. The same shall apply where the cost of overnight accommodation is borne by a third party (for example, a government, other organisation or individual acting in a professional capacity).
b. Where the Organisation covers the cost of main meals, the subsistence allowance shall be reduced by 15% for each main meal. The same rule shall apply where the cost of main meals is borne by a third party (for example, government, other organisation or individual acting in a professional capacity).
9. In the case of official journeys lasting more than ninety days, special arrangements concerning the amount of subsistence allowances shall be made by Instruction of the Secretary General.
10. If an official is hospitalised while on an official journey, 20% of the daily allowance shall be payable during his/her stay in hospital.
Article 7 - Travel expenses
1. Travel expenses incurred for official journeys shall be defrayed as follows:
a. Air travel:
Officials shall travel "economy class", at the cheapest and most suitable rate available while taking into account the hierarchy of objectives set out in the Organisation's Travel Policy (safety, reliability, convenience, budget and comfort). Officials shall be authorised to travel "business class" when the journey involves more than seven hours' flying time for a direct flight, or more than fifteen hours for one or more flights with stopovers. They shall also be authorised to travel "business class" for medical reasons duly justified by a doctor's certificate.
The Secretary General, the Deputy Secretary General, the Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the judges and ad hoc judges of the European Court of Human Rights, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights and the Secretary General of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe shall be authorised to travel "business class" in all cases.
Officials may not be obliged to spend Saturday night away from their duty station for the sole purpose of obtaining a cheaper fare based on this criterion. Charges for excess baggage shall be defrayed only where the baggage limit has to be exceeded for official reasons.
b. Rail travel:
Officials shall be authorised to travel first class.
If the journey takes place between 10 pm and 7 am, officials shall be authorised to travel by first-class sleeper.
c. Travel by ship:
Officials may travel first class but shall not be entitled to "luxury class" cabins.
d. Travel by private car:
i. Officials authorised to use their private cars in the interests of the Major Administrative Entity concerned shall be entitled to a kilometric allowance at the rate approved by the Committee of Ministers for official journeys and calculated on the basis of the shortest route they can reasonably be expected to take. If the route taken involves additional expenses (parking, tolls, car-ferry fares, etc.) these may be refundable on production of vouchers.
ii. Officials using their private cars for reasons of personal convenience shall receive a flat-rate reimbursement corresponding to the first-class train fare or the "economy class" air fare, or the fare for the usual means of transport for the route, whichever costs less, also taking into account their daily allowances entitlement. If the aforementioned fares are not known, the reimbursement shall be made on the basis of the kilometric allowance at the rate approved by the Committee of Ministers for the reimbursement of travel expenses to government experts and other persons travelling at the charge of the Council of Europe budgets.
iii. Where officials are authorised to convey other officials on a journey as passengers, they shall receive a supplementary allowance equal to 10% of the amount payable in accordance with paragraphs (i) and (ii) above for the first passenger and 8% for each additional passenger.
iv. An official authorised to travel in a colleague's private car may not claim a refund of travel expenses.
e. Travel by taxi, chauffeured car services, shuttle or hire car:
Such services may be reimbursed only with the express authorisation of the Commitments Officer, which shall be granted only in exceptional cases where travel by public transport is impractical and where the journey is not covered by Article 8 below (incidental travel expenses). If the use of such services involves additional expenses (fuel, insurance, tolls etc.) these may be refundable on production of vouchers.
2. Travel expenses refunded to officials authorised to use, for reasons of personal convenience, a means of transport other than the usual one shall not exceed the travel expenses that would have been refundable if the usual means of transport had been used.
3. If an official undertaking an official journey is authorised to take leave immediately before or after the journey (or decides to make a detour), the Organisation shall defray the cost of travel by the usual means of transport between his/her duty station and the place of the activity. The amount refunded shall in no event exceed the actual expenditure incurred by the official, account being taken of any reduction obtained as a result of a longer stay.
4. If an official on leave is instructed to undertake an official journey, the cost of travel from the place of leave to the place of the activity and back (or between the place of leave, the place of the activity and the duty station if the end of the official journey coincides with the end of the period of leave) shall be borne by the Organisation.
Article 8 - Incidental travel expenses
1. Transit costs when changing means of transport, fares for travel from the duty station or the place of the activity to the local station or airport and fares for use of local transport while the activity is taking place shall be covered by the 20% share of the daily subsistence allowance intended to defray sundry expenses and shall accordingly not be refunded directly.
2. For this type of travel, expenditure incurred for use of a private car shall also be covered by the 20% share of the daily subsistence allowance intended to defray sundry expenses and shall accordingly not be refunded directly. Nonetheless, parking fees may be refunded on production of vouchers.
3. Where incidental travel expenses exceed 20% of the total daily allowances, the Commitments Officer may authorise the refunding of an additional amount on production of vouchers.
4. Individual journeys of more than 30 km one way may be reimbursed on production of vouchers in accordance with Article 7 above.
Article 9 - Exceptional expenditure
1. Entertainment costs incurred during an official journey shall be refunded only if the official concerned has obtained prior authorisation by the Commitments Officer to incur them.
2. The following expenditure may be refunded, upon production of vouchers, where incurred in the interests of the Major Administrative Entity concerned:
a. expenditure in connection with a meeting, such as registration fees, the hiring of premises or services or the conveyance of documents or equipment;
b. long-distance telephone calls, Internet access fees and the cost of sending facsimiles, telegrams or telexes;
c. unforeseen expenditure incurred in cases of absolute necessity.
Article 10 - Advances for official journeys
1. Officials may request an advance of 80% of the expenditure they can expect to incur for an official journey, in accordance with this Rule. However, no such advance shall be granted if the official's total foreseeable expenditure is less than 500 euros.
2. Officials wishing to obtain such an advance shall be credited with the appropriate amount during the ten days preceding the start of the official journey.
Article 11 - Certification of the completion of an official journey and settlement of expenses
1. After completion of an official journey, a refund claim, to which all proofs of payment required under this Rule shall be attached, shall be made out and certified true and correct by the official concerned. An initial check to confirm whether the claim satisfies the requirements of this Rule shall be carried out under the responsibility and authority of the Commitments Officer concerned. Refund claims for Commitments Officers shall be checked by a Cost Centre Manager. The refund claim must reach the Treasurer within fifteen days of the official's return from the official journey with a view to its settlement.
2. In the event that the official’s refund claim is not submitted to the Treasurer within three months of the official’s return, any advance credited to the official under Article 10 may be recovered from the official by the Organisation.
Article 12 - Adjustment of annual leave entitlement as a result of an official journey, working hours and overtime
1. Leave entitlement
a. Officials may apply to take annual leave prior to or after an official journey. An application for approval of such leave must be made via the relevant information management tool to the official’s hierarchical superior and shall be indicated in the Travel Management System.
b. Where officials travelling on an official journey use their private cars for reasons of personal convenience, any period exceeding the length of the journey corresponding to the use of the usual means of transport shall be deducted from the official’s annual leave entitlement.
2. Working hours, Overtime
a. An official on an official journey shall adapt his/her working hours to the needs of the activity.
b. Time spent travelling by an official on an official journey shall not constitute overtime within the meaning of the Regulations on extra duties and night work (Appendix VIII to the Staff Regulations) except if the journey takes place in particularly arduous circumstances.
c. Hours worked from Monday to Friday by an official on an official journey shall not constitute overtime.
d. Hours worked on Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays or non-working days by an official on an official journey shall constitute overtime where they exceed half a day and are in performance of the official's normal professional duties. In such cases the provisions of Articles 6 and 7 of the Regulations on extra duties and night work (Appendix VIII to the Staff Regulations) shall apply.
e. Mere attendance at a colloquy, ceremony or official visit shall not be considered as overtime.
Article 13 - Council of Europe property transported by officials on official journeys
1. The Commitments Officer may authorise an official to transport Council of Europe property by signing a mission order referring to specific objects the official will have responsibility for.
2. Officials shall have a duty of care in respect of objects transported.
3. Officials shall not be held liable for the loss or theft of such objects if it is established that they have taken all necessary precautions and have exercised due care.
4. In the event of theft, the official must produce a copy of the statement made to the police authorities of the place where the theft was reported (or if such a statement could not be made for reasons of force majeure, a statement made to an airport, station or port authority, as dictated by the circumstances).
Article 14 - Official-journey reports
1. A concise report summarising the objectives and results of the journey and any suggestions for further action shall be drawn up following any journey for which a mission order has been issued. Heads of Major Administrative Entities may waive this requirement in respect of official journeys undertaken by their officials to attend meetings organised by the Council of Europe.
2. Where several officials participate in the same journey a single report shall be drawn up under the responsibility of the highest-ranking official.
3. This report shall be submitted by the official, at the latest eight days after completion of the official journey, to the Head of the Major Administrative Entity to which he/she belongs, who shall, where necessary, forward a copy together with his/her observations to the Secretary General.
4. Copies of the report shall be sent by the Head of the Major Administrative Entity concerned to those Major Administrative Entities and officials to whom it is of interest.
5. Heads of Major Administrative Entities shall submit their reports directly to the Secretary General.
Article 15 - Official journeys "without expenses"
1. An official journey “without expenses” is a journey undertaken by an official within the framework of his/her duties and without cost to the Organisation. Applications for such missions shall be registered in the Travel Management System and shall be subject to approval by the Head of the Major Administrative Entity concerned. They shall be duly substantiated and specify by whom the cost is to be borne. The Head of the Major Administrative Entity concerned shall not be entitled to authorise an official journey "without expenses" if the costs to be borne by the organisers can be reasonably estimated to exceed twice the amount the official journey would have cost if organised in accordance with this Rule.
2. All other procedures and rules set forth in Articles 4, 5 and 12 to 14 of this Rule shall apply mutatis mutandis to official journeys "without expenses".
Article 16 - Official journeys lasting less than eight hours to attend activities within 50 km of the duty station
1. Applications for mission orders for an official journey lasting less than eight hours to attend an activity taking place within 50 km of their duty station shall be registered in the Travel Management System and subject to approval by the Commitments Officer concerned.
2. Upon request of the official concerned travelling expenses shall be refundable subject to the following conditions:
a. Travel by bus or rail:
An official who has travelled by bus or rail shall be required to produce his/her ticket.
b. Travel by taxi:
Taxis shall be used only by express order of the Commitments Officer either for reasons of urgency or because travel by public transport (bus or rail) is impractical. The official shall be required to produce a receipt.
c. Private car:
Officials may use their private cars - if they are covered by an appropriate insurance - in the same cases as a taxi. They may transport a colleague who is in the same circumstances. A journey made by private car shall be refundable on the basis of Article 7, paragraph 1 d. of this Rule.
3. Officials undertaking an official journey lasting less than eight hours to attend an activity taking place within 50 km of their duty station shall not be entitled to a daily subsistence allowance.
Article 17 - Insurance
The Organisation shall provide insurance cover regarding the following risks to which officials may be exposed in the course of official journeys:
§ medical care;
§ death;
§ total or partial permanent invalidity;
§ loss or theft of luggage and personal belongings;
§ seriously delayed luggage;
§ cancellation or alteration of the journey;
The insurance covers the period of the official journey, from the departure from the duty station (or any other authorised place of departure) to the return, not including any prolongation of the journey for private reasons.
Article 18 - Entry into force
This Rule shall enter into force on 1 June 2017. It shall repeal Instruction No. 58 of 4 February 2008. All references to Instruction No. 58 contained in other instruments shall be read as making reference to this Rule.
Strasbourg, 27 April 2017
The Secretary General
Thorbjørn JAGLAND
[1] Article 8 of the Regulations on extra duties and night work (Appendix VIII to the Staff Regulations) must be complied with.
[2] For lack of any other solution.
[3] Formal mission orders can be obtained via the Organisation's Intranet site.
[4] For the purpose of this Rule the “usual” means of transport shall signify the most practicable and economic means of transport an official can be reasonably expected to take while having regard to the objectives of the Organisation’s Travel Policy.