Staff moving their main private residence
General
Staff who agree to transfer at the Commission’s request to work at another office location will be helped to make this move.
Once the Commission agrees that a member of staff should transfer to another office the date and terms of transfer will be negotiated, including any agreement by the Commission that the transfer may be delayed until the sale of the main private residence.
Staff must complete the move of their main private residence from the old to the new location within 12 months from the date of beginning work at the new location, unless this period is extended at the Commission’s discretion.
The following allowances will be made to staff who need to change their main private residence so that they can live within reasonable travelling distance of the new work location.
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House hunting
Staff will be given up to five days’ paid leave in addition to the normal annual entitlement for the purpose of visiting the location to look for accommodation. Visits can take place before the date of beginning work at the new location.
Reasonable subsistence expenses of the employee, partner and children if appropriate will be met for up to four nights. A ticket for standard class rail travel will be given to the employee, partner and children if appropriate, together with car hire expenses for travel within the local area. The cost of private mileage will be reimbursed at NJC mileage rates if preferred.
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House sale and purchase
Reasonable fees incurred in the sale or surrender of the lease or tenancy of the old main private residence and in the purchase of the new main private residence will be reimbursed against receipted bills (and/or solicitors’ orders of costs schedule) for the following categories of expenses.
- Legal fees, including stamp duty, land registry fees and charges for surrender or entry into a lease/tenancy.
- Mortgagee’s fees, including mortgage redemption and arrangement fees charged by a building society, bank, insurance company or other recognised lending institution (but excluding insurance premium for mortgage guarantee policies).
- Tenancy fees, charges on premature surrender of a lease or tenancy if they are agreed by the Commission in advance.
- Estate agent’s fees, including advertising if they are agreed by the Commission in advance.
- Surveyor’s fees for valuation and structural surveys subject to prior agreement by the Commission. Where appropriate the Commission will also reimburse fees incurred in an unsuccessful attempt to buy or sell a property.
If it is intended to buy or sell a property by auction, the Commission’s prior approval must be obtained for the reimbursement of fees and charges.
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Removal and storage expenses
The Commission will pay the expenses actually incurred not exceeding the lower of two written quotations for the removal, but not the packing/unpacking of all household effects to the new home, plus the receipted costs of insuring the effects in transit.
If household effects have to be put into store before removal, the cost of storage and insurance will be paid for not more than 12 months from the date of taking up the new post.
Two days’ paid leave in addition to the normal annual entitlement will be given at the time of moving home. A warrant for standard class travel will be given for employee and immediate family for the journey from the old home to new, or car mileage allowance at the normal rate will be paid. If an overnight stay is necessary en route, the reasonable cost will be met for the employee and immediate family.
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Settling-in allowance
A resettlement allowance is also payable to a householder to meet reasonable miscellaneous costs of necessary reinstallation and refitting etc incurred in the house move. This allowance is a single payment of £2,930 paid tax free. It does not count for purposes of superannuation. The resettlement allowance is payable following the completion of purchase or on occupation of the new unfurnished residence.
A similar allowance of £2,930 paid tax free will be made to adult non-householders who were formerly resident and will continue to be resident in the new location.
An allowance of £700 will be paid tax free to a member of staff who does not have a property to sell and does not buy a property.
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Temporary accommodation and travel
If staff intending to relocate their main private residence are not able for good reason to complete the removal from their old home before beginning work at the new location the Commission will pay reasonable costs of temporary accommodation including rent, council tax, utilities and reasonable telephone calls for a period of up to 12 months or permit staff to travel daily to the new location. Prior approval must be obtained from the Commission to incur accommodation costs.
In exceptional circumstances the Commission will provide reasonable costs of temporary accommodation for the employee’s family for a limited period.
If the temporary accommodation is with friends or relatives and not in a commercial establishment a payment will be made for a similar period on the basis of the employee’s assessment of the cost incurred, subject to this being a reasonable cost to the Commission.
While the employee is living in temporary accommodation during the week or temporarily travelling daily the Commission will pay the cost of one first class return rail fare per week to go to and from his or her main private residence for a period of up to 12 months. For those travelling daily, the remaining fares each week will be at standard rate.
The Commission will pay reasonable travel costs on a weekly or daily basis.
Where the time taken to travel to work at the new location exceeds the time to travel to work at the original location, the difference in actual travel times of up to five hours per week for those in temporary accommodation and up to one hour per day for those temporarily travelling daily will be regarded as worked time for a period of up to 12 months.
The Commission will make a fixed lump sum taxable payment to staff irrespective of grade at the time of transfer to the new location and every three months thereafter for a total of four payments as long as the employee is in temporary accommodation or travelling daily. Each payment will be 10% of three months salary calculated at the mid-point of the investigators’ scale (excluding London weighting). Periods of transfer which are less than three months will be calculated pro rata. These payments do not count for purposes of superannuation.
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London salaries
The Commission will continue to pay London salaries to staff moving from London for 24 months at full rate and a further 24 months at half rate from the date when the staff member starts work at the new location.
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Repayment
If someone in recipient of relocation expenses leaves the Commission’s service within two years of receiving the expenses, they will be required to repay those expenses on a pro rata basis for each month of the period of two years that has not expired. An agreement to this effect will be signed by the employee before any expenses are paid. The Commission will waive this requirement in exceptional circumstances, for example the death of a member of staff, or where a member of staff is made redundant, or goes on a secondment after which they will return to the Commission. The expenses to be repaid will be those for house sale and purchase, removal and storage, and the settling-in allowance.
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Tax
Inland Revenue concessions are not available to an employee, who for whatever reasons retains their former residence whether the property is let or sublet. The employee must change their main private residence as a result of a change in their place of work required by the employer. If a move of home is contemplated but not actually achieved, any payments which may have been made, may, if not recovered, be liable to tax.
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November 2010
Date Updated: 04/04/11