1.   These rules are applicable to seconded national experts (SNEs) seconded to the General Secretariat of the Council (GSC) by Member States’ public administrations. They shall also apply to experts on secondment from an international organisation.

2.   The persons covered by these rules shall remain in the service of their employer throughout the period of secondment and shall continue to be paid by that employer.

3.   The GSC shall recruit SNEs in accordance with requirements and budgetary possibilities. The Deputy Secretary-General shall establish the arrangements for such recruitment.

4.   Except where the Deputy Secretary-General grants a derogation which is not applicable in the area of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP)/European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP), SNEs must be nationals of a Member State. SNEs shall be recruited on as wide a geographical basis as possible from among the nationals of the Member States. The Member States and the GSC shall cooperate to ensure, as far as possible, a balance between men and women and observe the principle of equal opportunities.

5.   Secondment shall be implemented by an exchange of letters between the Directorate-General for Personnel and Administration of the GSC and the Permanent Representation of the Member State concerned or the international organisation, as appropriate. The place of secondment must be indicated in the exchange of letters. A copy of the rules applicable to SNEs on secondment to the GSC shall be attached to the exchange of letters.

1.   The period of secondment may not be less than six months nor exceed two years and may be renewed successively up to a total period not exceeding four years.

2.   Notwithstanding paragraph 1, the period for which an SNE is seconded to take part in the preparation of military or civilian operations or to study their launch may be less than six months.

3.   The intended period of secondment shall be fixed at the outset in the exchange of letters provided for in Article 1(5). The same procedure shall apply in the case of a renewal of the period of secondment.

4.   An SNE who has already been seconded to the GSC may be seconded again, in accordance with internal rules laying down maximum periods during which such persons may be present in GSC departments and subject to the following conditions:

1.   An SNE shall assist GSC officials or temporary staff and carry out the tasks assigned to him.

The duties carried out shall be defined by mutual agreement between the GSC and the administration which seconds the national expert in the interest of the departments and taking into account the candidate’s qualifications.

2.   An SNE shall take part in missions and meetings only:

Unless a special mandate has been granted, under the authority of the Secretary-General/High Representative, by the Director-General of the department concerned, the SNE may not commit the GSC externally.

3.   The GSC shall retain sole responsibility for approving the results of tasks performed by the SNE.

4.   The GSC departments concerned, the SNE’s employer and the SNE shall make every effort to avoid any conflict of interest or appearance of such a conflict in relation to the SNE’s duties during secondment. To that end, the GSC shall, in good time, inform the SNE and the employer of the intended duties and shall ask each of them to confirm in writing that they know of no reason why the SNE should not be assigned to those duties. The SNE shall be asked in particular to declare any potential conflict between his family circumstances (in particular the professional activities of close family members or any important financial interests of his own, or of close family members) and the proposed duties while on secondment.

The employer and the SNE shall undertake to notify the GSC of any change of circumstances during the secondment which could give rise to any such conflict.

5.   Where the GSC considers that the nature of the tasks entrusted to the SNE requires particular security precautions, security clearance shall be obtained before the SNE is seconded.

6.   In the event of failure to comply with the provisions of paragraphs 2, 3, 4 and 7, the GSC may terminate the secondment of the SNE under the terms of Article 8(2)(c).

7.   Notwithstanding the first subparagraph of paragraph 1 and the first subparagraph of paragraph 2, the Deputy Secretary-General may, on a proposal from the Director-General of the department to which the SNE is assigned, entrust the SNE with specific duties and charge him with the conduct of one or more specific missions after verifying that there is no conflict of interest.

1.   During the period of secondment:

2.   Both during and after the period of secondment, an SNE shall exercise the greatest discretion with regard to all facts and information of which he becomes aware in the course of or in connection with the performance of his duties. He shall not in any form whatsoever disclose to any unauthorised person any document or information not already lawfully made public, nor shall he use it for personal gain.

3.   At the end of the secondment an SNE shall continue to be bound by the obligation to act with integrity and discretion in the exercise of new duties assigned to him and in accepting certain posts or advantages.

To that end, in the three years following the period of secondment an SNE shall inform the GSC forthwith of any duties or tasks he has to perform for his employer which are likely to give rise to a conflict of interest in relation to the tasks he carried out during secondment.

4.   SNEs shall be subject to the security rules in force in the GSC.

5.   Failure to comply with the provisions of paragraphs 1, 2 and 4 during the period of secondment shall entitle the GSC to terminate the secondment of an SNE under the terms of Article 8(2)(c).

1.   To qualify for secondment to the GSC, an SNE must have at least three years’ full-time experience of administrative, scientific, technical, advisory or supervisory functions equivalent to those of function groups AD or AST as defined in the Staff Regulations of officials of the European Communities and the Regulations and Rules applicable to other servants of the Communities. Before the secondment, the SNE’s employer shall supply the GSC with a statement of the expert’s employment covering the previous 12 months.

2.   An SNE must have a thorough knowledge of one Community language and a satisfactory knowledge of a second language for the performance of his duties.

1.   The GSC may authorise suspensions of secondment and specify the terms applicable. During such suspensions:

2.   The GSC shall inform the SNE’s employer.

1.   Subject to paragraph 2, secondment may be terminated at the request of the GSC or of the SNE’s employer, provided three months’ notice is given. It may also be terminated at the SNE’s request provided the same notice is given and subject to the GSC’s agreement.

2.   In certain exceptional circumstances the secondment may be terminated without notice:

3.   In the event of termination under paragraph 2(c), the GSC shall immediately inform the employer.

1.   Before the period of secondment begins, the employer from which the national expert is to be seconded shall certify to the GSC that, throughout the period of secondment, the SNE will remain subject to the social security legislation applicable to the public administration or international organisation which employs the SNE and which will assume responsibility for expenses incurred abroad.

2.   From the commencement of his secondment, the SNE shall be covered by the GSC against the risk of accident. The GSC shall provide him with a copy of the terms of this cover on the day on which he reports to the relevant department of the Directorate-General for Personnel and Administration to complete the administrative formalities related to the secondment.

3.   When, in the context of a mission in which the SNE is participating under the terms of Articles 4(2) and 20, or when, as a result of specific risks at the place of secondment, additional or specific insurance is required, the relevant costs shall be borne by the GSC.

1.   An SNE shall be subject to the rules in force in the GSC as regards working hours. These rules may be modified by the Deputy General-Secretary where the needs of the department so require.

2.   An SNE shall serve on a full-time basis throughout the period of secondment. Following a duly justified request from a Directorate-General and subject to compatibility with the interests of the GSC, the Director-General of Personnel and Administration may authorise an SNE to work part-time, after agreement from his employer.

3.   Where part-time working is authorised, the SNE shall work at least half of the normal working time.

4.   The allowances in force within the GSC for shift-work or standby duty may be paid to SNEs.

1.   In the event of absence for reasons of sickness or accident, an SNE shall notify his superior as soon as possible, stating his present address. He shall produce a medical certificate if absent for more than three days and may be required to undergo a medical examination arranged by the GSC.

2.   If absence due to sickness or accident of not more than three days exceeds a total of 12 days over a period of 12 months, an SNE shall be required to produce a medical certificate for any further absence due to sickness.

3.   Where the period of sick leave exceeds one month or the period of service performed by the SNE, whichever is the longer, the allowances referred to in Article 15(1) and (2) shall be automatically suspended. This provision shall not apply in the event of illness linked to pregnancy. Sick leave may not extend beyond the duration of the secondment of the person concerned.

4.   However, an SNE who is the victim of a work-related injury which occurs during the secondment shall continue to receive in full the allowances provided for in Article 15(1) and (2) throughout the period during which he is unfit for work up to the end of the period of secondment.

1.   An SNE shall be entitled to two-and-a-half working days of leave per whole month of service (30 days per calendar year).

2.   Leave is subject to prior authorisation by the department to which the SNE is assigned.

3.   An SNE may, on reasoned application, be granted special leave in the following cases:

Additional special leave of two days per period of 12 months may be granted at the request (with due justification) of the person concerned.

4.   Upon a duly substantiated application by the SNE’s employer, up to two days of special leave in a 12-month period may be granted by the GSC on a case-by-case basis.

5.   In the case of part-time work, annual leave shall be reduced proportionately.

6.   Days of annual leave not taken by the end of the period of secondment shall be forfeited.

7.   Paragraph 3 shall not apply to those SNEs whose period of secondment is less than six months. However, an SNE whose period of secondment is less than six months may be granted special leave, on the basis of a reasoned application and subject to a decision by the Director-General of the department to which he is assigned. That special leave may not exceed three days for the whole period of secondment. Before granting the leave, the above Director-General in charge must consult the Director-General of Personnel and Administration.

1.   An SNE who is pregnant shall be granted maternity leave of 20 weeks, during which period she shall receive the allowances provided for in Article 15. The leave shall begin not earlier than six weeks before the probable date of delivery indicated in the certificate and shall end not earlier than 14 weeks after the date of delivery. In the event of multiple or premature birth or birth of a handicapped child, the period of leave shall be 24 weeks. For the purposes of this provision, a premature birth shall be one which occurs before the end of the 34th week of pregnancy.

2.   Where the national legislation of the SNE’s employer grants longer maternity leave, the secondment shall be suspended for the period exceeding that granted by the GSC. In that case a period equivalent to the suspension shall be added at the end of the secondment if the interests of the GSC warrant it.

3.   An SNE may, alternatively, apply for a suspension of the secondment to cover the whole of the period allowed for maternity. In that case a period equivalent to the suspension shall be added at the end of the secondment if the interests of the GSC warrant it.

1.   An SNE shall be entitled to a daily subsistence allowance throughout the period of secondment. Where the distance between the place of origin and the place of secondment is 150 km or less, the daily allowance shall be EUR 29,44. Where the distance is more than 150 km, the daily allowance shall be EUR 117,74.

2.   If the SNE has not received removal expenses from either the GSC or from the employer, an additional monthly allowance shall be paid as shown in the table below:

This allowance shall be paid monthly in arrears. It shall be payable until the end of the month in which, where applicable, the SNE has effected his removal under the terms of Article 19(1).

3.   These allowances shall be payable for periods of mission, annual leave, maternity leave, special leave and holidays granted by the GSC.

4.   When the SNE starts the secondment, he shall receive an advance amount equivalent to 75 days of the subsistence allowance, whereupon entitlement to any further such allowances shall cease during the corresponding period. If the secondment to the GSC is ended before the expiry of the period taken into account to calculate the advance, the SNE shall be obliged to return the amount corresponding to the remaining part of that period.

5.   At the time of the exchange of letters provided for in Article 1(5) the GSC shall be informed of any payment similar to that mentioned in paragraphs 1, 2, 7 and 8 of this Article received by the SNE. Any such amounts shall be deducted from the corresponding allowances paid by the GSC.

6.   Daily and monthly allowances shall be adjusted each year without retroactive effect on the basis of the adaptation of the basic salaries of Community officials in Brussels and Luxembourg.

7.   For SNEs seconded to a GSC Liaison Office or to any other place where the Union operates under a decision adopted by the Council, the allowances referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 may be replaced by a housing allowance where this is justified by circumstances relating to accommodation costs at the place of secondment, subject to a reasoned decision by the Director-General of Personnel and Administration.

8.   A special allowance, determined on the basis of the place of secondment, if this place is situated outside the EU, to take account of the cost of living or particularly difficult living conditions, may be granted subject to a reasoned decision by the Director-General of Personnel and Administration. This allowance shall be paid monthly and shall be fixed at between 10 and 15 % of the basic salary of an official in step 1 of grade AD 6 or grade AST 4, depending on the function group to which he is assimilated.

1.   Except where the place of origin of an SNE is 150 km or less from the place of secondment, he shall, where appropriate, receive an additional flat-rate allowance equal to the difference between the gross annual salary (less family allowances) paid by his employer plus any allowances paid by the GSC, pursuant to Article 15, and the basic salary payable to an official in step 1 of grade AD 6 or grade AST 4, depending on the function group to which he is assimilated.

2.   This allowance shall be adjusted once a year without retroactive effect on the basis of the adaptation of the basic salaries of Community officials.

1.   For the purposes of these rules,

2.   If either the place of recruitment or the place of return is located outside the territory of the European Union or in a Member State other than that in which the SNE employer’s head office is located or, if the SNE does not pursue a professional activity after his secondment is terminated, the place of origin shall be considered to be the place of recruitment or place of return, as appropriate.

The place of recruitment, the place or places of secondment and the place of origin shall be determined in the exchange of letters referred to in Article 1(5). The place of return shall be determined on the basis of a declaration by the SNE’s employer.

3.   For the purposes of applying this Article, circumstances arising from work done by SNEs for a State other than that of the place of secondment or for an international organisation shall not be taken into account.

1.   An SNE whose place of recruitment is more than 150 km from the place of secondment shall be entitled to reimbursement of travel expenses:

2.   Unless the journey is made by air, the amount shall be reimbursed at a flat rate, limited to the cost of the second-class rail fare, without supplements. This shall also apply to journeys made by car. Where the rail journey exceeds 500 km or where the standard route involves a sea-crossing, air travel may be reimbursed up to the actual cost of a reduced-price ticket (PEX or APEX), on production of tickets and boarding cards.

3.   An SNE shall be entitled to reimbursement for himself and, if applicable, for the persons referred to in paragraph 1(b), of travel expenses to the place of return at the end of the secondment within the above limits. The reimbursement may not be for a sum higher than that to which the SNE would have been entitled if he had returned to his place of recruitment.

4.   If an SNE has effected his removal from his place of recruitment to his place of secondment, he shall be entitled each year to a flat-rate payment equal to the cost of a return journey from his place of secondment to his place of origin for himself, his spouse and any dependent children, on the basis of the provisions in force at the GSC.

1.   An SNE may remove his furniture and his personal effects from the place of recruitment to the place of secondment, at the GSC’s expense, after obtaining its prior authorisation, pursuant to the rules in force at the GSC concerning reimbursement of removal expenses, provided the following conditions are met:

2.   Subject to paragraph 3, where the removal to the place of secondment has been reimbursed by the GSC, the SNE shall be entitled at the end of the secondment, after prior authorisation, to reimbursement of removal costs from the place of secondment to the place of return, pursuant to the rules in force in the GSC concerning reimbursement of removal costs, subject to fulfilment of the conditions set out in paragraph 1(d) and (e) above and the following further conditions:

3.   An SNE whose secondment is terminated at his request or at the employer’s request within two years of the start of the secondment shall not be entitled to reimbursement of removal costs at the end of the secondment.

1.   An SNE may be sent on mission subject to Article 4.

2.   Mission expenses shall be reimbursed in accordance with the provisions in force at the GSC.

1.   The SNE shall report to the relevant department of the Directorate-General for Personnel and Administration on the first day of secondment to complete the requisite administrative formalities. He shall take up his duties on either the first or the 16th of the month.

2.   An SNE assigned to a GSC liaison office shall report to the relevant department of the GSC at his place of secondment.

3.   Payments shall be made by the appropriate department of the GSC, in euro, into a bank account opened at a banking institution in Brussels. In the case of an SNE seconded to a place other than Brussels, payments may be made in euro into a bank account opened at a banking institution either in Brussels or at the SNE’s place of origin. The accommodation allowance may be paid in another currency into a bank account opened at a banking institution at the place of secondment.

1.   For the purposes of this Decision, an SNE on free short-term secondment (SNE-FSTS) shall mean a highly specialised SNE seconded to perform very specific duties for a maximum period of three months. Such secondment entails the payment of no allowances or expenses for the Council except, where appropriate, those provided for in Article 28 and without prejudice to a different agreement between the GSC and the administration which seconds the SNE-FSTS.

2.   An SNE-FSTS may be seconded only in exceptional cases, with the authorisation of the Deputy Secretary-General. An SNE-FSTS may be seconded only for the purposes of performing duties which it would be difficult to have performed in the GSC within a very short time span. Such duties include:

3.   Subject to Articles 23 to 28, the rules laid down in Articles 1 to 14 and 20 to 22 shall also apply to SNEs-FSTS.

4.   Without prejudice to Article 5, an SNE-FSTS’s conduct must always reflect the fact that he is seconded to the Council and must never reflect adversely on his position.

1.   The period referred to in Article 23(1) may be extended once, for a maximum period of three months.

2.   An SNE-FSTS who has been seconded to the GSC may be seconded again in accordance with the rules laid down in this Decision and always subject to the following conditions:

3.   In exceptional cases, the period indicated in the first indent of paragraph 2 may be shortened by decision of the Deputy Secretary-General.

1.   In the exchange of letters provided for in Article 1(5) reference shall be made to the person in charge within the directorate-general or directorate, unit, mission or exercise to which the SNE-FSTS will be seconded and the duties to be performed by the latter shall be described in detail.

2.   As for the specific duties which devolve upon him, the SNE-FSTS shall receive instructions from the person in charge referred to in paragraph 1.

1.   Notwithstanding Article 10(1), an SNE-FSTS shall abide by the rules in force as regards working hours at the place of secondment. These rules may be modified by the person in charge of the administrative unit, mission or exercise to which an SNE-FSTS is seconded where the needs of the department so require.

2.   Notwithstanding the second sentence of Article 10(2), an SNE-FSTS shall work only on a full-time basis during his secondment.

3.   Article 10(4) shall not apply to an SNE-FSTS.

4.   The management and control of an SNE-FSTS’s presence and holidays shall lie with the person in charge mentioned in Article 25(2).

5.   Article 12(3), (4) and (7) shall not apply to an SNE-FSTS. However, he may be granted special leave by decision of the Director-General of the department to which he is seconded, on the basis of a reasoned application submitted by him. Such leave may not exceed three days over the entire period of secondment. Before granting such leave, the Director-General referred to above must consult the Director-General of Personnel and Administration.

1.   If an SNE-FSTS takes part in missions in a place other than his place of secondment, he will be reimbursed in accordance with the rules in force for the reimbursement of missions involving officials, except where another arrangement has been agreed between the GSC and the administration which seconds an SNE-FSTS.

2.   If, in connection with a mission, special ‘high risk’ insurance is provided by the GSC for officials, this facility shall also apply to an SNE-FSTS who is taking part in the same mission.

3.   An SNE-FSTS who takes part in a mission outside the territory of the EU will be subject to the security arrangements in force in the GSC for such missions.

1.   Notwithstanding Article 2(1), the length of secondment may not be less than six months nor more than three years and it may be extended successively up to a total period not exceeding four years.

2.   Notwithstanding Article 2(4)(b), except in exceptional cases, a period of at least three years must have elapsed between the end of the previous period of secondment and a further secondment, where the conditions so justify and in agreement with the Secretary-General/High Representative.

1.   Authorisation for Article 7(1) to be applied to a seconded military staff member shall be given by the Secretary-General/High Representative.

2.   Notwithstanding Article 8(2), secondment may be terminated without notice if the interests of the GSC or of the seconded military staff member’s national administration so require or for any other sufficient cause.

1.   Secondment may be terminated without notice in serious cases of intentional or negligent failure of the seconded military staff member to comply with his obligations. Notwithstanding Article 8(2)(c), the decision shall be taken by the Secretary-General/High Representative after the person concerned has had an opportunity to submit his defence. Before taking a decision, the Secretary-General/High Representative shall notify the Permanent Representative of the Member State of which the seconded military staff member is a national. Following that decision, the allowances referred to in Articles 18 and 19 shall no longer be granted.

Prior to the decision referred to in the first subparagraph, a seconded military staff member may be suspended where serious failure to comply with his obligations is alleged against him by the Secretary-General/High Representative after the person concerned has been given an opportunity to submit his defence. The allowances referred to in Articles 15 and 16 shall not be paid during this suspension, which may not exceed three months.

2.   The Secretary-General/High Representative shall inform the national authorities of any violation by a military staff member on secondment of the rules set out or referred to in this Decision.

3.   A military staff member on secondment shall continue to be subject to his national disciplinary rules.