040 DEFINITIONS (Last
updated 07/04/2024)
The following definitions apply to all chapters of these regulations,
unless waived or modified in specific instances. Supplementary definitions which apply to
specific chapters or sections only will be found in the General Provisions of
those chapters and subchapters.
a. "United States" when used in a geographical sense,
means the several States of the United States of America, including Alaska and
Hawaii, and the District of Columbia.
(See also Sections 241.1c and 251.1c.)
b. "Continental United States" means the several States
of the United States of America, excluding Alaska and Hawaii, but including the
District of Columbia.
c. "Government" means the Government of the United
States of America.
d. "Government agency" means: (1) each executive department of the
Government, (2) each independent establishment or agency in the executive
branch of the Government, including each corporation wholly owned (either
directly or through one or more corporations) by the Government, (3) the
General Accounting Office, and (4) the Library of Congress.
e. "Head of agency" means either the head of a
government agency or anyone designated by them to make determinations in their
behalf.
f. "Foreign area" means any area situated outside the
United States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, and the possessions of the United States. With respect to teachers defined in
subsection n, hereof, "foreign area" also includes the Midway
Islands.
g. "Country of assignment" means the country in which
the employee's post is located as listed in the electronic Table of Allowances
(Section 920). (eff. 5/1/05 TL:SR 650)
h. "Post" means the place designated as the official station
of the employee, regardless of whether they are detailed elsewhere or resides
at another place with the authorization or approval of the head of their
agency. (See also Section 061.)
i. "Employee" means an individual employed in the
civilian service of a government agency (including ambassadors, ministers, and
members of the Foreign Service of the United States under the Department of
State) who is:
(1) a citizen of the United States (except under Section 312);
(2) officially stationed in a foreign area, except as otherwise
specifically provided in these regulations;
(3) receiving basic compensation (Section 040k); and
(4) eligible for allowances or differential under subchapter 030,
including the provisions pertaining to local hires (Section 031.12) and
temporary employees (Section 031.4), as determined by relevant agency
authority. (Eff 10/02/05 TL:SR 656)
No sex discrimination is implied or intended through use of pronouns
which may appear in these regulations.
j. "Non-citizen employee" means a civilian who is:
(1) not a citizen of the United States; but is
(2) employed by a government agency; and is
(3) officially stationed in a foreign area.
For purposes of
Section 852 of these regulations, a United States citizen appointed under Section
303 and employed under Section 311 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, is
considered a non-citizen employee.
k. "Basic compensation" means the rate of compensation
fixed:
(1) by statute for the position held by an employee; or
(2) by administrative action pursuant to law; or
(3) administratively in conformity with rates paid by the Government for
work of a comparable level of difficulty and responsibility in the continental
United States, before any deduction is made and without taking into
consideration any additional compensation such as overtime pay, night pay
differential, hazard differential, extra pay for work on holidays, post
differential, and allowances; except that for teachers defined in subsection n,
hereof, basic compensation means the rate of compensation fixed by the military
departments of the Department of Defense for the position held by an individual
(including any appropriate increments for having completed a higher level of
academic preparation) before any deduction is made and exclusive of all
allowances, differentials, or other additional compensation.
l. "Salary" means the basic compensation of an employee
plus, with respect to an employee serving as chief of mission, officer
temporarily in charge of the operations of an agency at a post, or in some
other similar capacity, any additional compensation that they may be authorized
to receive while serving in such capacity, but exclusive of all allowances,
differentials or other additional compensation.
m. "Family” or “family member" means one or more of the
following individuals residing in the same quarters as the employee at their
post, or who would normally reside at the post except for the existence of
circumstances cited in Section 262 warranting the grant of a separate maintenance
allowance, but who does not receive from the Government an allowance similar to
that granted to the employee and who is not deemed to be a dependent or a
member of the family of another employee for the purpose of determining the
amount of a similar allowance: (interim eff. 7/5/2009 TL:SR 711; final eff.
8/30/2009 TL:SR 715)
(1) spouse or domestic partner (the latter as defined by agency
regulations, when the head of agency determines this is in the interest of the
Government), but not both;
(2) children who are unmarried and under 21 years of age or, regardless
of age, are incapable of self-support.
The term shall include, in addition to natural offspring, step and
adopted children and those under legal guardianship of the employee, of the
spouse, or of the domestic partner when such children are expected to be under
such legal guardianship at least until they reach 21 years of age and when
dependent upon and normally residing with the guardian. Any child or children
of a domestic partner of an employee shall be deemed a stepchild of the
employee. The term shall also include U.S. citizen children placed for adoption
if a U.S. court grants temporary guardianship of the child to the employee and
specifically authorizes the employee to reside with the child in the country of
assignment before the adoption is finalized. (For exceptions to the upper age
limit, see Sections 270 and 280 on education allowances and educational
travel.)(eff. 6/14/2015 TL:SR-866);
(3) parents (including step- and legally adoptive parents) of the
employee, of the spouse, or of the domestic partner, when such parents are at
least 51 percent dependent on the employee for support;
(4) sisters and brothers (including step or adoptive sisters, or step or
adoptive brothers) of the employee, of the spouse, or of the domestic partner,
when such sisters and brothers are at least 51 percent dependent on the
employee for support, unmarried and under 21 years of age or, regardless of
age, are incapable of self-support. (See
also Sections 270 and 280 on education.);
(5) when determined by the head of agency to be in the interest of the
Government, a father, mother, brother, sister, son or daughter, regardless of
age or dependency, who acts as the official hostess or equivalent for an
employee who has no spouse or domestic partner residing with them at the post.
n. "Teacher" means an employee who is a teacher as
defined Section 2(2) of the Defense Department Overseas Teachers Pay and
Personnel Practices Act (73 Stat. 213) and regulations issued thereunder by the
Department of Defense. Substitute
teachers are not considered to be teachers for the purpose of these
regulations.
o. "Grant", used as a verb, means to authorize or
approve payment of; "Grant", used as a noun, means
authorization or approval for payment.
p. "Detail" means the temporary assignment or temporary
duty (including temporary duty for consultation) of an employee away from their
post (Section 040h). (See also Section
511c with respect to post hardship differential, Section 651c concerning danger
pay, and Section 811c concerning compensatory time off.) (eff. 5/1/05 TL:SR
650)
q. "Transfer" means a change in an employee's post
(Section 040h) within the same government agency.
r. "Separation" means termination of an employee's
services with a government agency (including termination by resignation,
retirement or death).
s. “Domestic Employee
Teleworking Overseas” (DETO) means an individual employed in the civilian
service of a Government agency (including ambassadors, ministers, and members
of the Foreign Service of the United States) who is assigned to a position in
the United States but performs their duties from a foreign location by
agreement with their employing agency. A DETO’s duty station as listed on the
SF-50 [for locality pay purposes] may reflect the foreign location, but a DETO
is neither assigned, nor detailed, to the foreign work location. (eff. 11/15/15
TL:SR 877)
t. "Combat Zones" means geographic areas designated by
an Executive Order from the President as areas in which the U.S. Armed Forces
are engaging or have engaged in combat; an area designated by Public Law to be
treated as if it were a combat zone; or locations the Department of Defense has
certified for combat zone tax benefits due to their direct support of military
operations. Please see https://www.irs.gov/uac/Combat-Zones for a
complete list of combat zones. (eff. 4/3/2016
TL:SR-887)
*u.
“SF-1190” means Standard Form 1190 entitled "FOREIGN
ALLOWANCES APPLICATION, GRANT AND REPORT (SF-1190)" available for use by all U.S. government agencies to
determine employee eligibility for and appropriate amounts of allowances under the Department of State
Standardized Regulations (DSSR). In
lieu of this form, U.S. government agencies may require their employees to use
an equivalent agency-approved form which shall have the same meaning as SF-1190
for purposes of the DSSR. A completed
SF-1190, or equivalent, may be submitted by an employee in digital or paper
format. (eff. 07/16/2024 TL:SR-1103)