3 FAM 6200
mandatory RETIREMENT
3 FAM 6210
foreign service Mandatory retirement - general
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(Office of Origin: GTM/PE)
3 FAM 6211 AUTHORITY
(CT:PER-594; 03-06-2007)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
Authority for mandatory retirement is found in sections 601, 607-609, 812, 813, 2102, and 2106 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended (hereinafter the Act).
3 FAM 6211.1 Definitions
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
FS Act of 1980 or Act: The Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended
FS or Service: Foreign Service
FSOs: Foreign Service Officers
SFS: Senior Foreign Service
Senior Threshold Board (STB): Board that reviews files of those eligible for promotion to the SFS who have requested such consideration, i.e., opened their windows.
SFS Threshold Window: The designated period during which an employee has the opportunity to compete for promotion into the SFS.
Time-in-class (TIC) or Single Time-in-class (STIC): Time in a single salary class, computed from date of entry into the class, e.g. promotion, tenure, or skill code change, unless otherwise stipulated.
Time-in-service (TIS): Time in a combination of salary classes, computed from date of entry into the Foreign Service.
Controlling TIC: Earlier of the TIC period end date, TIS period end date, or SFS Threshold Window close date.
3 FAM 6212 MANDATORY RETIREMENT FOR AGE
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
a. Except as provided in paragraphs b, c, d, and e of this section, career members of the FS shall be retired at the end of the month in which they reach age 65.
b. If the Director General determines it to be in the public interest, a member of the FS who would be retired for age under 3 FAM 6212, paragraph a, may be retained on active service for a period not to exceed five years.
c. A member of the FS otherwise required to retire under 3 FAM 6212, paragraph a, while occupying a position to which he or she was appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, may continue to serve until that appointment is terminated.
d. A member of the FS who would be retired for age under 3 FAM 6212, paragraph a, and who has not accumulated five years of creditable service toward retirement (excluding military and naval service), will have the effective date of retirement postponed until the end of the month in which five years of such creditable service is accumulated.
e. Certain Diplomatic Security (DS) special agents covered under Public Law 105-382 are subject to mandatory retirement effective on the last day of the month in which the employee attains age 57 and has 20 years of service as a special agent as provided under 3 FAM 6153.
3 FAM 6213 MANDATORY RETIREMENT FOR EXPIRATION OF TIME-IN-CLASS (TIC)
3 FAM 6213.1 Unassigned
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
3 FAM 6213.2 Unassigned
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022
3 FAM 6213.3 TIC Limits
3 FAM 6213.3-1 FS Specialist Classes not Subject to Mandatory Retirement for TIC
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
Career FS specialists in classes FS-9, FS-8, FS-7, FS-6, and FS-5, are not subject to mandatory retirement for TIC.
3 FAM 6213.3-2 Occupational Categories not Subject to Mandatory Retirement for TIC or TIS
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
Career FS specialists in the following occupational categories, aka primary skill codes, are not subject to mandatory retirement for TIC or TIS:
|
Category |
Skill Code |
|
Office Management Specialists (03 who do not open their windows, and below) |
9017 |
|
Medical Technicians |
6145 |
|
Security Technicians |
2560 |
3 FAM 6213.3-3 Career Members of the SFS
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
a. Subject to 3 FAM 6213.6, 3 FAM 6216.2-1, and 3 FAM 6216.2-2, and except as provided for in paragraphs b and c of this section, the maximum TIC limits for career generalist and specialist SFS members are:
(1) Counselor―Seven years;
(2) Minister-Counselor―14 years combined TIC with no more than seven years in the class of Counselor;
(3) Career Minister―Seven years.
b. The effective date of mandatory retirement for expiration of TIC of a member in the class of Career Minister who has been conferred the personal rank of Career Ambassador in accordance with section 302(a)(2)(A) of the FS Act of 1980 shall be postponed until the end of the month in which the member reaches age 65, unless further postponed in accordance with 3 FAM 6212, paragraphs b or c.
c. Notwithstanding these TIC limits, the TIC of a career member of the SFS who entered the Service at class FS-1 and who is not eligible for voluntary retirement under section 811 of the Act (22 U.S.C. 4051) will not expire until the member is eligible for an immediate annuity.
d. Career SFS specialists who have primary skill codes in the following two occupational categories are subject to a 20-year STIC at class FS-1 and a 30-year multi-class TIS in classes FS-1, Counselor, and Minister-Counselor. There is no STIC at the SFS levels for these two categories:
|
Category |
Skill Code |
|
Medical Officer |
6110 |
|
Psychiatrist |
6125 |
3 FAM 6213.3-4 Career FS Generalists Below the SFS
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
Subject to 3 FAM 6216.2-1 and 3 FAM 6216.2-2, career generalist members of the FS are subject to mandatory retirement upon expiration of the following TIC/TIS limits:
(1) Generalists who enter the FS at class FS-4, FS-5, or FS-6 are subject to a 27-year TIS limit calculated from date of entry into the FS through class FS-1, with no more than the following STIC:
|
Class |
Single-class TIC |
|
FS-4 |
10 years from date of tenure |
|
FS-3 |
13 years |
|
FS-2 |
13 years |
|
FS-1 |
15 years |
(2) Generalists who enter the FS at class FS-3, FS-2, or FS-1 are subject to the following TIS/TIC limits:
|
Class at Entry |
Cumulative TIS through FS-1 |
Single-class TIC |
|
FS-3 |
22 years |
13 years from date of tenure |
|
FS-2 |
20 years |
13 years |
|
FS-1 |
15 years |
15 years |
(3) Members of the FS who convert from specialist to generalist status through the skill code conversion process are subject to the following TIS/TIC limits, from date of conversion:
|
Class on Conversion |
Cumulative TIS through FS-1 |
Single-class TIC |
|
FS-4 |
27 years |
10 years from date of tenure |
|
FS-3 |
22 years |
13 years |
|
FS-2 |
20 years |
13 years |
|
FS-1 |
15 years |
15 years |
(4) Generalist officers who were promoted to class FS-2, FS-3, or FS-4 prior to October 1, 1999, retain their 15-year STIC until promoted to the next higher class.
3 FAM 6213.3-5 FS Specialists Below the SFS
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
a. Subject to 3 FAM 6213.6 and in paragraphs b through f of this section, specialist members of the FS at class FS-4 and above who have the following primary skill codes:
|
Category |
Current Primary Skill Code |
|
Finance |
2101 |
|
Human Resources |
2201 |
|
General Services |
2301 |
|
Security Officer (See paragraph b. below for 20-year STIC provision for FP-03 only. All others remain at 15-year STIC. |
2501 |
|
Security Engineer |
2550 |
|
Diplomatic Courier (See paragraph b. below for 20-year STIC provision for FP-04 only. All others remain at 15-year STIC.) |
2580 |
|
Information Management Specialist |
2880 |
|
Information Management Technical Specialist |
2882 |
|
Information Technology Manager |
2884 |
|
Medical Laboratory Scientist |
6145 |
|
Public Engagement |
4200 |
|
English Language Program |
4300 |
|
Medical Provider |
6115 |
|
Facilities Maintenance Specialist |
6217 |
|
Construction Engineer |
6218 |
are subject to mandatory retirement upon expiration of a 30-year TIS limit from date of entry into the FS through class FS-1 or expiration of the following STIC limits:
|
Class |
Single-class TIC |
|
FS-4 |
15 years (see paragraph b of this section) |
|
FS-3 |
15 years (see paragraph b of this section) |
|
FS-2 |
15 years (see paragraph c of this section) |
|
FS-1 |
15 years (see paragraph c of this section) |
b. Foreign Service specialists in class FS-4 with the primary skill code 2580 have a single-class TIC limit of 20 years. Foreign Service specialists in class FS-3 with the primary skill code 2501 have a single-class TIC limit of 20 years.
c. FS specialists who are promoted from class FS-3 to class FS-2 in less than 15 years can carry over up to a maximum of five years of their unused STIC and add it to their class FS-2 STIC, thereby creating a new class FS-2 STIC of up to 20 years. Likewise, FS specialists who are promoted from class FS-2 to class FS-1 in less than 15 years can carry over up to a maximum of five years of their unused STIC and add it to their class FS-1 STIC, thereby creating a new class FS-1 STIC of up to 20 years.
d. FS specialists who enter the Service (including conversion from Civil Service) above the class at which TIC limits begin for their primary skill codes and class or who change from primary skill codes not subject to TIC/TIS limits, listed in 3 FAM 6213.3-2, to one subject to TIC/TIS, will be governed by the following cumulative TIC/TIS limits, except for the carryover provisions in 3 FAM 6213.3-5, paragraph b:
|
Class of Entry or Conversion |
Cumulative TIS through FS-1 |
Single-class TIC |
|
FS-4 or FS-3 |
30 years |
15 years |
|
FS-2 |
25 years |
15 years |
|
FS-1 |
20 years |
20 years |
e. FS specialists who change their primary skill codes from one skill code subject to TIC to another code also subject to TIC will be governed by the TIC/TIS limits in the new primary skill code. Time-in-class before and after a skill code change counts in the calculation of total TIC/TIS limits.
f. Specialists who converted within the same class under section 2102 of the Act are subject to the TIC limits of 3 FAM 6213.2-2, whether or not they change skill codes subsequent to conversion.
3 FAM 6213.4 Computations
(CT:PER-586; 05-01-2017)
(State only)
TIS is computed from date of entry into the Foreign Service. TIC is computed from the effective date of promotion or appointment to the class, or tenure, whichever is later.
3 FAM 6213.5 Calculation of TIC and TIS
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
a. Except as provided for in paragraph c of this section, the calculation of maximum TIC and TIS under 3 FAM 6213.4 shall include all periods of performance in relevant class except:
(1) Periods of separation from the Service, including periods during which a member has been transferred to an international organization pursuant to 5 U.S.C. sections 3581 through 3584 with reemployment rights;
(2) Periods of consecutive leave without pay (LWOP) under 90 days. When the total consecutive period exceeds 90 days, the actual number of LWOP days will be applied to the STIC or the TIS; paneled extensions of LWOP for employees with an open Threshold Window will be applied in yearly increments to maintain the full allowable number of reviews for promotion;
(3) Periods of sabbatical leave granted to a career member of the SFS in accordance with section 504(c) of the FS Act of 1980 – the actual number of sabbatical days will be applied to the STIC or the TIS up to 11 months, with an 11-month sabbatical applied as a 1 year period;
(4) Periods for which a Selection Board has “non-rated” a member of the Service on grounds of insufficient performance information or data for the most recent rating period subject to review of the Board (not to exceed 1 year);
(5) Periods for which the Director General or a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Global Talent determines that the member should be “non-rated” to correct denial of opportunity for promotional consideration resulting from inadequate or incorrect performance data or administrative error (not to exceed 1 year);
(6) Periods which are “non-rated” by direction of the Foreign Service Grievance Board, the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Department’s Office of Civil Rights, or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission;
(7) Periods during which a member is serving as chairman of the Open Forum, or on assignment to the Foreign Service Grievance Board, not to exceed 2 years;
(8) Periods of no more than two years during which a member is serving as the full-time elected AFSA president or vice-president. If the member serves terms in both positions, the total period cannot to exceed four years total for any employee;
(9) Periods of assignment to training in all languages specified as “hard languages” by FSI at the time the employee begins training (i.e., completion of 44 weeks or longer, as of August 1987, or achieving the required language proficiency score specified in the assignment to language training), not to exceed 1 year, provided that the full course is completed prior to the expiration of the member’s TIC;
(10) Periods of assignment to training (88 weeks or longer or achieving the required language proficiency specified in the assignment to language training) in Japanese, Chinese, Arabic (as of 1986) or Korean (as of 1987), in yearly increments not to exceed 2 years, provided that the full course is completed prior to the expiration of the member’s TIC;
(11) Commencing in the 1987-88 academic year, periods of assignment to university economics training (not to exceed 1 year);
(12) Periods of pre-approved long-term training under way on or after March 12, 1997, as certified by the Professional Development Unit (GTM/CDA/PDU) (not to exceed 1 year); and
(13) Periods, not to exceed two years, in which an SFS member or an FS generalist or specialist in class FS-1 is serving in a hard-to-fill, critical-needs, or historically-difficult-to-staff position at a high-differential post, which has been specifically designated as a qualifying position by the Director General on the basis of recommendations by the appropriate bureaus, in consultation with the Office of Career Development and Assignments (GTM/CDA). To benefit from this action, members who are facing final Selection Board reviews must be actually serving in the qualifying position by September 1 of the year TIC expires. Status will be certified by GTM/CDA.
b. When TIC is recalculated under the provisions of 3 FAM 6213.5, subparagraphs a(1) through a(13) so that, the member is entitled to one or more additional Selection Board reviews, the Senior Threshold Window will be extended by that number of additional board reviews, provided that all of the periods specified in 3 FAM 6213.5, subparagraphs a(1) through a(13), occurred in whole or in part during the period after opening of the Senior Threshold Window and prior to the Threshold Window close date. Extensions of the Threshold Window period are only granted in yearly increments.
c. Effective June 1, 2006, members of the SFS at the FE-OC level whose time against TIC is recalculated under 3 FAM 6213.5, subparagraphs a(9) through a(13) and who are subsequently promoted to FE-MC, may not apply the additional time to the combined OC/MC 14-year TIC.
3 FAM 6213.6 Annuity Exception
(CT:PER-594; 03-06-2007)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
Notwithstanding time-in-class/time-in-service (TIC/TIS) limits established elsewhere in this section, the TIC of a career member of the Foreign Service who is not eligible for voluntary retirement under section 811 of the Act or who is not qualified for an immediate annuity under section 609 of the Act will not expire until the member is eligible for an immediate annuity.
3 FAM 6213.7 Limited Career Extensions
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
a. In accordance with sections 602(a)(4) and 607(b) of the Act, and pursuant to delegated authority based on the recommendations of Selection Boards, the Director General may offer limited career extensions (LCEs) to certain career members of the Foreign Service for whom there are no promotion opportunities at the next higher grade. Such members must be:
(1) In their last year of TIC or under the transition provisions governing employees to whom a TIC does not apply; and
(2) In one of the following classes:
FE-OC and FE-MC generalists
FS-1, FE-OC, and FE-MC specialists
b. LCEs may be granted to fill overseas positions with qualified officers when there are no bidders, at-grade and in-cone, late in the bidding cycle. The limited number of LCEs that may be granted will be determined by specific Service needs to retain expertise and experience that may be in short supply. LCEs are granted in accordance with Selection Board recommendations.
c. Senior Generalist and Specialist and FS-1 Specialist advertised vacancies that remain unassigned no less than 30 days after the opening of the stretch assignment season are available for potential assignments through LCEs. No executive direction positions (ambassador, deputy chief of mission, principal officer, Assistant Secretary, or deputy assistant secretary) will be considered in the LCE program, and no positions will be created to provide LCE opportunities. With the exception of political adviser (POLAD) positions, no detail to another agency, reimbursable or non-reimbursable, will be eligible for an LCE.
d. Identification of positions to be staffed through LCEs:
(1) The LCE season will begin 30 days after the start of the stretch season for Generalists. The relevant bureau or GTM (Bureau of Global Talent Management) may request the Director General to authorize an LCE for a specific position. The request must justify why the position should be considered and present the views of both GTM and the bureau(s) concerned. The Director General decides whether a senior position can be more appropriately filled by a qualified FS-1 bidder (through the granting of a senior cede).
(2) The Director General will authorize the LCE, deny the LCE, or direct a senior cede in accordance with procedures of the Office of Career Development and Assignments (GTM/CDA), in order that FS-1 bidders on the position may compete and, if qualified, be assigned, prior to granting an LCE. All qualified FS-1 bidders on the position will be brought to the assignments panel within 30 days of a senior cede. If the position remains unfilled after 30 days, it will be deemed approved for the LCE program.
e. Selection Board procedures:
(1) Before consideration of LCEs, the Selection Boards will first complete their consideration of the Official Performance Folders of members for promotion and possible selection out or low ranking;
(2) If the Director General has determined that, because of Service needs, a limited number of LCEs may be granted, the Director of the Office of Performance Evaluation (GTM/PE) will provide the relevant Selection Boards the names of all FS Generalist/Specialists career members in the class who are in their last year of time-in-class but who were not reached for promotion. Based on the identification of positions to be staffed through LCEs, the Director General will provide the Selection Boards information on the particular specialized skills that have been determined to be in short supply for the subsequent three-year period;
(3) The relevant Boards will review the records of all members to be considered for LCEs, applying the same criteria as for promotion. However, recognizing that members extended will serve only in their present class, the Boards will give considerably less weight to evidence of potential to perform at the next higher class and substantial weight to the quality of performance and potential for continued outstanding service in the class in which the member is being considered for an LCE;
(4) Based on its review, each Board will list in rank order, by primary skill code, those members whom it deems qualified for an LCE. The Director General will grant LCEs only to members whom the Board has found qualified and will grant them to those qualified members in the rank order recommended by the Board.
f. Selection of LCE candidates for assignment:
(1) When LCE rank-order lists have been established, the eligible candidates will be notified of their places on the rank-order lists and the governing regulations. All candidates on these lists will be furnished with information concerning the vacancies approved for LCE staffing as soon as possible after the Director General’s determination;
(2) The Director General will offer the top-ranked candidates on the rank-order lists who have been medically cleared for service abroad the choice of any of the positions on their respective lists. When both FE-MC and FE-OC lists are established, a position classified at the FE-MC level will first be offered to all candidates on the applicable FE-MC rank-order list. If no FE-MC candidate accepts the offer, then the offer will be made to FE-OC candidates rank-ordered by that same Board. Similarly, for FE-OC positions, a position will be offered first to all FE-OC candidates on the applicable rank-order list; and if no FE-OC candidate accepts the offer, the offer then will be made to FE-MC candidates on the list compiled by that same Board. The candidate may accept an offer or decline them all. Once the top-ranked candidate has selected a position or declined them all, the second candidate on each respective list will be offered a choice of the remaining positions. Offers will be made sequentially to candidates further down the respective rank-order lists until the available positions are exhausted. If additional positions are added, they will be offered to candidates in their rank order.
g. Waivers may be given to those offered LCEs who do not have the required language for a position. However, prior to proposing the LCE, the position will be re-advertised with a language waiver for the requisite two weeks on the combined Open Assignment list.
h. Any career member of the Foreign Service granted an LCE will be eligible for an assignment for a period of the standard length of tour of the post, but in no case beyond the member’s mandatory retirement for age, unless retained on active service in accordance with 3 FAM 6212, paragraph b. If the employee is currently stationed at the same post as the LCE tour, then the combined tour of the officer and the LCE tour shall not exceed four years at that post. LCE recipients will be eligible for the other benefits associated with the positions to which they are assigned.
i. The tours of duty for LCE recipients may be curtailed and the LCEs terminated in the following circumstances:
(1) Voluntary curtailment for personal reasons: The recipient will not be offered another position, and the LCE will terminate 30 days after departure from post;
(2) Loss of the required medical clearance: The LCE will terminate 30 days from the Medical Director’s determination, on the basis of a thorough examination of the medical record, that service at that post is not authorized;
(3) Post closure: The LCE is valid for the stated tour of duty unless the post is closed, whereupon the LCE will terminate 30 days after departure from post.
j. No LCE recipient will be eligible for promotion or LCE renewal.
3 FAM 6213.8 Members Requesting Promotion into the SFS
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
a. The Official Performance Folders (OPFs) of FS career members at class FS-1 who request consideration for promotion into the Senior Foreign Service (SFS) and who meet the Department’s annual eligibility requirements will be reviewed for promotion by annual STBs. In order to be eligible for promotion into the SFS, members must be in an occupational category, as indicated by primary skill code, for which at least some promotion opportunities are expected at the FS-1 to FE-OC level. Effective October 1, 1999, STB reviews for members in specialist categories will only be counted during years when at least one promotion opportunity is available. No member shall be considered by an STB that convenes after the month of expiration of the member’s TIS/TIC limit. A member who is not promoted during this period of Senior Threshold Window review will, notwithstanding the TIS/TIC limits otherwise applicable in this section or the transition provisions of 3 FAM 6213.2, be separated mandatorily in accordance with 3 FAM 6216.
b. A member who has requested consideration for promotion into the SFS may subsequently withdraw that request, but will continue to be subject to mandatory retirement as provided in 3 FAM 6213.8, paragraph a, and may not thereafter request consideration for promotion into the SFS unless the initial request was withdrawn prior to the member’s first review for promotion by the STB. A request that is withdrawn prior to a first STB review may be resubmitted at a later time.
c. Any member who withdraws his or her request for promotion into the SFS after at least one review by an STB will be subject to separation by November 1 of the year of what would have been the member’s final STB review.
3 FAM 6214 MANDATORY RETIREMENT BASED ON RELATIVE PERFORMANCE
(CT:PER-594; 03-06-2007)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
A career member of the Service shall be retired for failure to meet the standards of performance for his or her class, in accordance with section 608 of the Act.
3 FAM 6214.1 Selection Board Responsibilities
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
Selection Board responsibilities for low ranking and possible referral to Performance Standards Boards of career members of the Service who are eligible for promotion, including FS-01s and FS-03 OMS who are eligible but who have chosen not to open their windows for promotion consideration, are defined in the Procedural Precepts for the Foreign Service Selection Boards.
3 FAM 6214.2 Performance Standards Boards (PSBs)
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
a. The Office of Performance Evaluation (GTM/PE) will convene as many Performance Standards Boards (PSBs) as may be necessary in light of the number and class of career members designated for PSB review. PSBs will recommend, on the basis of the PSB precepts, whether career members should be separated for failure to meet the performance standards of their class.
b. Each PSB shall be made up of at least three career FS members of a class at least one level above those members whose records will be reviewed by the PSB. The members of PSBs shall be knowledgeable about the occupational requirements of the categories of members they review.
c. PSB criteria for determining whether or not to separate mandatorily a member of the Service are contained in the PSB precepts at the GTM/PE website.
d. PSBs will review or have available for reference during their deliberations only the following material:
(1) A copy of the FS Act of 1980, as amended, and these regulations (3 FAM 6200);
(2) A copy of the PSB precepts and the relevant Selection Board core and procedural precepts;
(3) The Official Performance Folders of the members referred to the PSB;
(4) Previous Selection Board rankings of the members referred to the PSB for the years the members were in their present class; Selection Board justifications for previous low rankings and for the designation for PSB review; and previous findings of PSBs concerning members reviewed while they were in their present class, together with the record of actions taken;
(5) Lists of the members who competed for promotion against those designated for PSB review;
(6) The Official Performance Folders of other members in corresponding classes and functions, as set out in the PSB precepts, to compare their performance records with those of the members under review;
(7) A personal statement an employee under consideration may choose to provide; and
(8) Any other material that was available to the Selection Boards that low ranked or direct-referred the members under review.
e. At the conclusion of their review, PSBs will submit their findings to the Director General. The findings will include a list of the members designated for mandatory retirement under section 608 of the Act, along with individual statements justifying the PSB’s findings in each case and any personal statements submitted by employees to the PSB. The PSB statements shall indicate the documented shortcomings where the members did not meet the standards of their present class, as set forth in the Procedural Precepts for the Performance Standards Boards. The Director General shall review the complete PSB report to determine if the findings are in accordance with the PSB Precepts. Upon his or her acceptance of each PSB’s findings, the Director General will instruct GTM/PE to carry out its recommendations for separation.
f. Employees designated for separation by PSBs will be notified in writing by the Director General, provided a copy of the PSB statement of justification, and informed of the effective date of their mandatory retirement from the Service. In addition, they will be advised in writing by the Office of Career Development and Assignments (GTM/CDA) of their right to file a grievance at any time prior to their mandatory retirement date. An employee may request interim relief from separation while the grievance is pending at the agency level.
g. Members who are reviewed by a PSB but who are not designated for mandatory retirement or separation will be notified in writing. The PSB will provide a counseling statement to each such member, issued by GTM/CDA.
3 FAM 6214.3 Unassigned
3 FAM 6215 MANDATORY RETIREMENT OF FORMER PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTEES
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
a. Career members of the FS who have completed Presidential appointments under section 302(b) of the Act (hereinafter “assignment”), and who have not been reassigned within 90 days after the termination of such assignment, plus any period of authorized leave, shall be retired as provided in section 813 of the Act. For purposes of this section, a reassignment includes the following:
(1) An assignment to an established position for a period of at least six months pursuant to the established assignments process (including an assignment that has been approved in principle by the appropriate assignments panel);
(2) Any assignment pursuant to section 503 of the FS Act of 1980, as amended;
(3) A detail (reimbursable or non-reimbursable) to another U.S. Government agency or to an international organization;
(4) A transfer to an international organization pursuant to 5 U.S.C. sections 3581 through 3584; or
(5) A pending recommendation to the President that the former appointee be nominated for a subsequent Presidential appointment to a specific position.
b. Except as provided for in paragraph c of this section, a reassignment does not include an assignment to a Department bureau in “overcomplement” status or to a designated “Y” tour position.
c. The Director General may determine that appointees who have medical conditions that require assignment to “medical overcomplement” status are reassigned for purposes of Section 813 of the FS Act.
d. To the maximum extent possible, former appointees who appear not likely to be reassigned and thus subject to retirement under section 813 of the Act will be so notified in writing by the Director General not later than 30 days prior to the expiration of the 90-day reassignment period.
3 FAM 6216 EFFECTIVE DATE OF RETIREMENT
3 FAM 6216.1 Setting Effective Date
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
a. Members of the FS who are subject to mandatory retirement under 3 FAM 6213 or 3 FAM 6214 shall have the effective date of their retirement set by the Director General of the FS, as follows:
(1) For expiration of TIC/TIS, at the discretion of the Director General, but no later than one year after the expiration of their TIC;
(2) For retirement based on failure to be promoted following review by six successive STBs, within six months following dismissal of the final STB;
(3) For retirement based on relative performance, within six months after the decision in the final administrative review specified in 3 FAM 6214.2.
b. The Director General will notify a member of the FS in writing as soon as the effective date of retirement has been set under subparagraphs a(1), a(2), or a(3) of this section. To the maximum extent possible, such members shall be given at least 30 days’ notice of retirement.
c. A member of the FS retired under 3 FAM 6213.7 after failing to be promoted following review by six successive STBs will, to the maximum extent possible, be provided sufficient notice of retirement to permit the member 60 days in the United States prior to the effective date of retirement.
d. The effective date of retirement of a former Presidential appointee mandatorily retired under 3 FAM 6215 ordinarily will be the day after the expiration of the 90-day reassignment period, or the day following any period of authorized leave after the expiration of the 90-day reassignment period. The Director General will authorize leave during this period of extension only in special circumstances.
e. The mandatory retirement of a member covered under 3 FAM 6213.6 will be effective at the end of the month in which the member becomes eligible for an immediate annuity, unless retirement is postponed for an additional period under 3 FAM 6216.2-1 or 3 FAM 6216.2-2.
3 FAM 6216.2 Postponement of the Effective Date of Retirement
3 FAM 6216.2-1 Members Retired for Expiration of TIC/TIS
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
a. Notwithstanding 3 FAM 6216.1 pursuant to delegated authority under Section 607(d)(2) of the Act, if the Director General determines it to be in the public interest, the Director General may extend temporarily the appointment of a career member of the FS who is to be retired under 3 FAM 6213. No such increase may exceed one year from the date of TIC/TIS expiration and such extensions may be granted only in special circumstances.
b. Notwithstanding 3 FAM 6216.1, the effective date of retirement of a career member of the FS who has been recommended for promotion into or within the SFS, but who has not yet been confirmed by the Senate or appointed by the President, shall be postponed from the date of recommendation until up to one year from the date that the member is first nominated by the President. If the President does not nominate a recommended member to the Senate within one year of the date the recommendation was transmitted to the White House, and the member has not yet reached his or her TIC date, the effective date of retirement will be set in accordance with 3 FAM 6216.2-1(a). If the President does not nominate a recommended member to the Senate within one year of the date the recommendation was transmitted to the White House, and the member’s TIC has expired, the effective date of retirement will be set as one year from the date the recommendation was transmitted.
3 FAM 6216.2-2 Presidential Appointees
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
a. Pursuant to Section 607(d)(1) of the Act, with regard to a member of the FS who would be retired under 3 FAM 6213 who is occupying a position to which the member was appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, the effective date of retirement will not take effect until the end of the month in which such Presidential appointment is terminated, and may be further postponed in accordance with 3 FAM 6216.2-1.
b. Notwithstanding 3 FAM 6216.1, the effective date of separation of a career member of the FS who would otherwise be separated under 3 FAM 6213 and who has been recommended by the Secretary to the President for a Presidential Appointment, has been nominated to the Senate for a Presidential Appointment, or is awaiting appointment by the President into that specific position, will be postponed for a maximum of one year after an individual's TIC expires unless the Director General determines that such action is no longer in the interests of the Service. This extension applies only to those career members who have reached their maximum TIC and who are awaiting appointments to senior level positions by the President or have been appointed by the Secretary to positions where the President has accorded the rank of ambassador. This extension does not apply to career members awaiting appointments for promotion into or within the Senior Foreign Service (see 3 FAM 6216.2-1(b)), to career members awaiting appointments as commissioned Foreign Service officers, or to Entry Level Officers awaiting appointments in the Foreign Service.
3 FAM 6216.2-3 Effect of Postponement
(CT:PER-1113; 11-29-2022)
(State only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Employees)
a. Members whose effective date of retirement is postponed under 3 FAM 6216.2-1 paragraph a. will not be eligible for promotion consideration.
b. Career members of the SFS whose TIC has expired but who continue to serve under career appointments under Section 607(d) of the Act and who continue to work in a current assignment or in an assignment specified by the Office of Career Development and Assignments (GTM/CDA) as of the end of the rating period on April 15 shall be eligible to compete for agency and presidential performance pay for the final rating cycle during the period of extension of their appointments.
c. A career member of the SFS in the class of Career Minister whose effective date of retirement is postponed under 3 FAM 6212, paragraphs b or c, will be considered for conferral of the personal rank of Career Ambassador if the member is otherwise eligible.
d. Any member of the FS retired under 3 FAM 6214 based on relative performance shall not receive a within-grade increase or be eligible for performance pay during the period from the final decision of the PSB, or Foreign Service Grievance Board (FSGB), until the effective date of retirement.
3 FAM 6217 THROUGH 6219 UNASSIGNED