7th CPC LTC Rules - Complete Guide

1. The decision was made after consultation between the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) and the Department of Expenditure.

1. Employees will be reimbursed for travel expenses under LTC as per their entitlements, allowing travel to their hometown or any other destination in India.

1. The LTC scheme includes paid leave, ensuring employees can get travel benefits without salary deductions.

LTC Rules

Reimbursement claims in the case of LTC can be made by departments or ministries after agreeing with attached offices or financial advisers and subordinate post agreeing with the Head of Département without providing references under the below-mentioned timelines:

1. In case no advance has been taken, reimbursements claims can be made with six months.
2. In case an advance has been taken, the entire amount must be paid back within three months as a lumpsum and interest will be charges from the date the advance was availed to the date the amount was recovered.

The rules mentioned above are applicable only when the employee cannot submit a claim within the time that has been given under the specified rules and the respective departments must be satisfied that the individual was not able to raise a claim.

Flight Tickets Booked Through Travel Agents

In case the three travel agents that have been authorised, Indian Railways Catering and Touring Corporation Ltd. (IRCTC), Ashok Travels & Tours (ATT), and Balmer Lawrie & Company Limited (BLCL), have to book tickets under LTC, the cheapest fare details must be shown and the only tickets that are 10% more than the cheapest fare must be shown.

Demand for Changes to Benefits

1. There have been several demands to increase the number of times LTC can be availed, particularly for the "All India" visits. There are requests to extend the LTC to foreign countries as well.
2. Employees working on islands have raised requests to split the hometown LTC, so that it would be possible to visit families once a year and vice versa. Officers working in Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) have requested for Additional LTC such as that offered to Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs).
3. Railway employees and officers whose spouses are railway employees have indicated that there are several places that are not connected by rail and visits to these places cannot be scheduled due to the non-availability of LTC. Hence, it was requested to allow the necessary changes to mitigate this issue.
4. There were requests to split the hometown LTC for employees posted in Ladakh, North East, and Island territories such as Andaman, Nicobar, and Lakshadweep. This would help employees in meeting their families more often.
5. Demands were also raised for defence forces placed at high altitude, field, and CI Ops regions to be granted an additional free railway warrant. This was also requested to be extended to CAPF personnel and Indian Coast Guards.

Other recommendations for the benefit of Railway employees are as follows:

1. Railway employees to be granted "All India" LTC once in four years; hometown LTC will not be applicable.
2. In order to procure the LTC, all passes for the ongoing year will have to be surrendered.
3. If the employee has already received a pass, then LTC will not be provided for that year.
4. If both spouses are Railway employees, either of them will have to surrender the pass.
5. The allowance follows the calendar year, not the financial year.

Air Travel Rules for Central Government Employees

The Leave Travel Concession has been increased for employees over the years. There are still some areas wherein there could be further relaxations. These are as follows:

1. Permission for journey by air to and from the North Eastern Region, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, and Andaman & Nicobar Islands for all employees.
2. Permission for employees posted in North Eastern states for travel within that region.
3. Increase in the LTC periodicity once in 2 years.
4. Allow an employee to tour outside the country once in his/her lifetime under the provisions of LTC.

7th CPC Travel Entitlement on LTC - New Rules

According to an Office Memorandum (O.M.) from the Ministry of Finance dated 19 September 2017, the travel entitlements for government employees for LTC would remain the same as TA entitlements. The only exception would be in the air travel entitlement for officers between Level 6 and Level 8 of the Pay Matrix. The air travel entitlement for these employees would be allowed for Travelling Allowance only and not for LTC.

The following conditions are also to be noted:

1. There will be no daily allowance for travel through LTC.
2. All incidental expenses incurred on local journeys would not be reimbursed.
3. Reimbursement under LTC is allowed only for journeys that are performed in government vehicles or Corporation vehicles in the public sector.
4. If the journey undertaken is between places that are not connected through public transport, the employee will be allowed reimbursement according to his/her entitlement for journey on transfers. The maximum limit for the same will, however, be 100 km covered by the private transport vehicle. The employee will have to self-certify the claim and submit it. All expenses beyond the upper limit will be borne by the employee.
5. Travel through Premium, Premium Tatkal, or Suvidha trains will be allowed under LTC. The reimbursement of Tatkal or Premium Tatkal charges are also provided for the LTC purpose.
6. Flexi fare applicable on Shatabdi, Rajdhani, or Duronto trains will be allowed if the travel is performed by these trains on LTC. This component of dynamic fare will not be applicable if a non-entitled government employee travels by air and raises a claim subsequently.
7. The rules in the O.M. will be effective from 1 July 2017.