USB defends your rights: The reduction in travel allowances, caused by a ruling from the Court of Justice of the EU, unfairly penalizes colleagues on delegation. Despite our warnings, the EEAS and the Commission have not taken action, leading to confusion and frustration. We have taken legal action to rectify this injustice and remain firmly by your side.
In detail:
This action by USB concerns colleagues who have seen their travel allowances decrease following the decision of the EU Court of Justice in April 2024. The court declared illegal a rule established in one of the annexes of the Staff Regulations concerning the calculation of travel allowances, which stated that for individuals whose place of origin was outside the EU, the country of nationality (European) should be considered instead of the declared country of origin for calculating travel allowances. Thus, a Spanish person whose place of origin is Costa Rica and working at the Brussels headquarters was reimbursed for travel from Brussels to Madrid, rather than Brussels to Costa Rica. The Court found this rule illegal and inapplicable in the case presented, and decided that the place of origin, even outside the EU, must be taken into account for the calculation of travel allowances.
For staff based in Brussels, this likely had little impact, possibly even positive consequences in some cases. However, for those on delegation, it was very bad news. It’s important to know that another Commission rule presumes the place of origin to be the place of recruitment. One characteristic of contractual staff in delegations is that they are often recruited for their international experience. This means many staff members are recruited from abroad, where they worked and resided before joining an EU delegation. Of course, no one highlights this aspect during recruitment. Therefore, many colleagues on delegation have their place of origin (being the place of recruitment) in non-EU countries. For those who noticed the “error” and tried to correct their place of origin to reflect their true origin, they were told it was unnecessary because travel allowances depended on nationality, not the place of origin/recruitment indicated in Sysper…
…until this ruling. Now, a French colleague recruited in Vietnam (because he/she were working there when recruited by the EU) and currently posted in the Vietnam delegation will be entitled to… no travel allowance.
From May 2024, USB warned the EEAS and the Commission of the dramatic consequences of this ruling for some of our colleagues on delegation. The institution did not react. Worse still, they disbursed the travel allowances according to the old rule in June before sending credit notes to those affected by the new rule in August, even though the majority had already used their allowances without knowing of this ruling (who reads Court of Justice decisions?).
Today, USB is proud to announce that after informing colleagues about the ramifications of this ruling (flyer dated 30/04/2024), alerting the institution as early as May, and organizing an online webinar—still accessible on our website here—to help colleagues file complaints (article 90), a case was brought to court in early September. Although some delay is to be expected, we hope to bring good news to the affected colleagues after the proceedings.
USB remains vigilant and supports you against institutional inconsistencies such as this “Kafkaesque effect” .
