FAQ: Emergency Leave Transfer Program

You [or your timekeeper or administrative officer (AO) on your behalf] may donate the leave through the time and attendance system (ITAS).  Just click on the left menu item “Donate Leave.”  Once in that screen, choose the VLTP recipient set up as “ELTP, HHS.”  Select a leave type (either annual leave or restored annual leave, as appropriate) and insert the number of hours you wish to donate.  Click on “OK.”  You and your Leave Approving Official (LAO) will receive an e-mail with information regarding your donation.  Once your LAO approves the donation, the hours will be deducted from your leave balance in the time and attendance system. 

The definition of family member covers a wide range of relationships, including spouse; parents; parents-in-law, children; brothers; sisters; grandparents; grandchildren; step parents; step children; foster parents; foster children; guardianship relationships; same sex and opposite sex domestic partners; and spouses or domestic partners of the aforementioned, as applicable. The list of family members for whom an employee may request donated annual leave under the ELTP may be found at OPM.

The minimum number of hours of annual leave that can be donated is 1 hour.  The maximum number of hours of annual leave that can be donated in a leave year is 104 hours.

To be eligible as a recipient under the ELTP, an employee or an employee’s family member must be adversely and directly affected by a major disaster or emergency which causes severe hardship to the employee or the employee’s family member to such a degree that the employee’s absence from work is required. An emergency leave recipient may only use donated annual leave to care for a family member if that family member has no reasonable access to other forms of assistance.

No.  According to government-wide regulations for the ELTP, employees may ONLY donate accrued annual leave to the program.

No.  Donations made to the ELTP do not count against the limitation to the donations under VLTP.

No.

Yes. You may not receive more than 240 hours of donated leave at one time.

No.  According to government-wide regulations, donations to an ELTP may not be directed to a specific individual.  Donations made to an ELTP are applied towards a central pool.

No. Commissioned Corps members are not eligible to participate in the HHS ELTP, either as a leave donor or as a recipient.

No. The ELTP covers more than just medical conditions.  Perhaps you need time to file insurance claims for lost property, or to assist a family member relocate from a major disaster or emergency area.  In order to receive leave under ELTP, you need only to demonstrate “severe hardship resulting in required absence from work.”

No.  ELTP, as described above, is only for those employees directly affected or employees whose family members were directly affected by a major disaster or emergency. ELTP cannot be used in order to “volunteer” to help the situation.

When the emergency ends, you will receive a proportional share of any unused leave remaining in the bank.

Perhaps.  It depends on the amount of leave in the bank available.  Employees directly impacted by the major disaster or emergency have first priority to available leave.  Employees who need to assist family members impacted by the event have secondary priority to the leave.

Submit an OPM Form 1637, Application to Become a Leave Recipient under the Emergency Leave Transfer Program and OPM Form 71, Request for Leave or Approved Absence (both can be found on the OPM website) to your supervisor for approval.

If you have not used all the leave you were granted within a month of your estimated end date, you will be asked whether the time needs to be extended. If the original need for the leave is over, any remaining leave will be returned to the leave bank to be distributed.