Remuneration Tribunal Determination 2004/03 - Official Travel by Office Holders

REMUNERATION TRIBUNAL
 

This Determination governs provisions applying to office holders who travel on official business.  The Determination applies to the following offices in the Tribunal’s jurisdiction:

• Judicial and Related Offices;
• Full-time Holders of Public Office;
• Part-time Holders of Public Office; and
• Principal Executive Offices (PEOs).

This Determination should be read in conjunction with the principal determination applying to the office held by the office holder.

Office holders are not expected to gain or lose financially as a result of travelling on official business.  Office holders must only incur or commit the Commonwealth to meet expenses where funds are lawfully available to do so. Travel may only be undertaken where its purpose is consistent with the duties of the office holder.

The Determination comprises:

• Part 1 – General;
• Part 2 – Travel on Official Business;
• Part 3 – Travel Expenses;
• Part 4 – Official Travel by Motor Vehicle; and
• Schedule A – Travelling Allowance Rates.

PART 1 – GENERAL

1.1             Authority:  The Remuneration Tribunal has made this Determination in accordance with sub-sections 5(2A), 7(3) and 7(4), of the Remuneration Tribunal Act 1973.

1.2             Effective Date:  This Determination takes effect on and from 28 March 2004.

1.3             Effect on Earlier Determinations:  This Determination revokes and supersedes Determination 2000/06 – Travelling Allowance Rates.

1.4             Relationship with other Determinations:  Other Determinations that set out remuneration for offices covered by this Determination, may contain exclusions or limitations in the application of this Determination to an office or offices.  Where there is an inconsistency, the provisions of this Determination will not apply to the extent of the inconsistency.

1.5             Definitions:  The following definitions apply in this Determination.

1.5.1            ‘agency’ means the agency to which the office holder is appointed, or the agency that administers the entitlements of the office holder if the office is not part of an agency;

1.5.2            ‘employer’ means the Commonwealth and includes any person authorised to exercise powers, perform acts, grant approvals or give directions for, or on behalf of, the Commonwealth; in respect of Principal Executive Offices it means the employing body;

1.5.3            ‘home base’ means the town or city in which the office holder’s principal place of residence is located;

1.5.4            ‘office holder’ means a holder of a public office covered by a Tribunal Determination or a holder of a Principal Executive Office;

1.5.5            ‘office locality’ means the geographic location of the office holders usual place of work on official business;

1.5.6            ‘official business’ means business pertaining to or required by the duties of the office holder’s office;

1.5.7            ‘partner’ means the de facto partner of an office holder as defined in the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.

1.5.8            ‘spouse’ means husband or wife.

1.6              Official travel:  Where an office holder is required to travel for official business away from their office locality, or home base in respect of a part-time office holder, the provisions of this Determination apply.

1.7              No double payment:  Where the office holder claims or receives travelling allowance or reimbursement of travelling expenses under any other source or entitlement for the same travel, no payment of travelling allowance or expenses will be made under this Determination.

1.8              General Principles: In making travel arrangements, office holders are to consider:

• the necessity of travel and potential alternatives to travel, such as teleconferencing or videoconferencing;
• the total cost of travel, including value for money (the ‘best deal’ for the taxpayer); and
• the flexibility to maintain an appropriate balance between work and home responsibilities, as well as safety and security.

1.9              Agency Guidelines: Office holders should comply with the travel-related administrative guidelines put in place by their agency, where these do not conflict with the provisions of this Determination.

1.10         Accompanied Travel:  An office holder may be entitled to be accompanied by his/her spouse or partner for purposes relating to official business at Commonwealth expense when travelling within Australia or overseas in accordance with this Determination.

1.10.1       Accompanied travel may only occur when the office holder’s employer certifies in writing that it is demonstrably in the interest of the Commonwealth, given the purpose of the travel, for the office holder to be accompanied by his/her spouse or partner.

1.10.2       Where the office holder’s spouse or partner accompanies him/her, the spouse or partner may travel at the same class of travel as the office holder.

PART 2 – TRAVEL ON OFFICIAL BUSINESS

2.1              Class of Travel: Where an office holder travels on official business he or she is entitled to travel at the class of travel set out in Table 2A below, according to the travel Tier specified for the office held by the office holder. This does not mean that the office holder cannot choose to undertake travel at a lower class if that would be more convenient or appropriate.

TABLE 2A – STANDARD OF TRAVEL

2.2              Upgrade – Accompanying travel:  An office holder may upgrade his or her class of travel in order to accompany a person travelling at a higher class of travel where it is demonstrably in the interest of the Commonwealth to do so.

2.3              Upgrade – lengthy flight:  An office holder who is entitled to travel Economy Class may upgrade to Business Class (for domestic and international travel) where the duration of the flight exceeds five hours.

2.4              Frequent flyer points:  Frequent flyer points accrued at the Commonwealth’s expense should not be used for private purposes.

2.5              Agency travel provider:  Office holders are to use their agency’s travel-related preferred provider arrangements where they exist.

PART 3 – TRAVEL EXPENSES
 

3.1              Payment of travel expenses:  Where an office holder travels on official business (refer clause 1.6) which requires an overnight absence, travelling expenses will be met in accordance with the provisions in this Part.

3.2              Accompanied accommodation costs:  Where the Commonwealth meets the travel costs of the office holder’s spouse or partner accompanying him/her in accordance with clause 1.10 (Accompanied Travel), an additional amount as is vouched as the difference between the cost of a single and double room shall be paid.

3.3              Day travel:  Where travel on official business does not require an overnight absence, no travelling allowance is payable.

Travel within Australia – Allowance

3.4              Travelling Allowance:  Office holders will be eligible to receive a travelling allowance for each overnight absence while travelling on official business within Australia, based on the rates in Table A1.A of Schedule A to this Determination, subject to the following provisions.

3.5              Part Payment of Travelling Allowance:  These provisions apply when an entity other than the office holder meets the cost of accommodation and/or meals and the office holder is otherwise eligible for an accommodation and/or meals allowance under clause 3.4 (Travelling Allowance).

3.5.1            Accommodation paid for: Where the cost of accommodation is met by an entity other than the office holder, travelling allowance payable is the relevant ‘Total’ amount shown in Table A2.A of Schedule A for the travel Tier applying to the office.

3.5.2            Meals paid for:  Where the cost of a meal or meals is met by an entity other than the office holder, the amount of travelling allowance should be reduced by the relevant meal amount(s) referred to in Table A2.A of Schedule A.

3.6              Unavoidable higher accommodation cost:  Where an employer certifies that an office holder is required to obtain high cost accommodation, an additional payment may be made to the office holder in accordance with the following.

(a) The requirement must be due to the unavailability of accommodation of a reasonable standard at a locality, which would have avoided this additional payment.

(b)  The additional payment will be based on the excess cost of accommodation over the travel allowance rate, after deducting the relevant ‘Total’ amount shown in Table A2.A of Schedule A (meals and incidentals).

(c) The additional payment will be calculated on accommodation expenses and travel allowance for the entire trip.

3.7              Additional meals:  Where an office holder is absent for a greater number of meal periods than that covered by the travelling allowance payment (the rate covers 3 meals per day) and provides evidence that actual meal costs exceeded the meal component for the absence, payment at the rates set out in Table A2.A of Schedule A may be made for the additional meal(s).

3.8              Non-commercial accommodation:  Where an office holder is accommodated in private, non‑commercial accommodation, such as the home of a family member or friend, a rate of one third of the specified travelling allowance is payable (rounded upwards to the nearest dollar).

Travel Overseas

3.9              Accommodation:  When travelling overseas on official business, an office holder is entitled to accommodation at Commonwealth expense.  Accommodation should be at a standard reasonably equivalent to that provided for the office holder in Australia.

3.10         Meals and Incidentals:  Rates for meals and incidentals are to be paid in accordance with the overseas meals and incidentals rates published annually by the Australian Taxation Office in its taxation ruling dealing with reasonable travelling allowances amounts (the ATO Ruling).

3.10.1       For the purposes of this clause, Tiers 1, 2 and 3 will correspond to the highest, middle and lowest salary levels respectively, specified in the ATO Ruling table that deals with the matter.

PART 4 – OFFICIAL TRAVEL BY MOTOR VEHICLE
 

4.1              Vehicle travel: The following arrangements apply to the use of vehicles where the office holder is not supplied with a vehicle by the agency that can be used for the purposes of travel on official business.

4.2              Use of vehicle:  An office holder may choose to hire a vehicle or use his or her own vehicle to travel on official business where it is demonstrably in the interest of the Commonwealth to do so.  In such circumstances the Commonwealth will:

(a) meet the cost of a rental vehicle; or

(b) pay the private vehicle costs calculated in accordance with Table 4A where a private vehicle is used for the journey.

Table 4A – Motor Vehicle Allowance

With effect on and from 30 August 2009

4.3              Agency vehicle:  These provisions do not apply to any journey commenced from the home base of an office holder where he or she is provided with an agency vehicle at that home base.

SCHEDULE A

REMUNERATION TRIBUNAL TRAVELLING ALLOWANCE RATES

A1.  Travelling Allowance Rates:  The Travelling Allowance rates set out in Table A1.A will apply on and from 26 August 2012 in accordance with the provisions of Part 3 (Travel Expenses) of Determination 2004/03.

Table A1.A – Rates of Travelling Allowance (Accommodation, meals and incidentals) per overnight absence.

A2.  Meal and Incidental Components:  The rates set out in Table A2.A provide the relevant meal and incidental components of the Travelling Allowance rates set out in Table A1.A.  These rates are specified for the purposes of clauses 3.5, 3.6 and 3.7 of Determination 2004/03.

Table A2.A – Meals and Incidentals Components

Table A2.B – Group 2 Country Centres

Notes to Remuneration Tribunal Determination 2004/03:

Official Travel by Office Holders

This determination as shown in this compilation is amended as indicated in the tables below.  Under the Legislative Instruments Act 2003, which came into force on 1 January 2005, it is a requirement for all non-exempt legislative instruments to be registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.

Table of Instruments

Notes to Remuneration Tribunal Determination 2004/03:

Official Travel by Office Holders

Table of Amendments

ad. = added or inserted am. = amended rs. = repealed and substituted rep. = repealed