This article provides an overview of the Expatriation allowance and Foreign Residence allowance paid to employees of EU institutions and the difference between them. If you are an expat (not a national of the country you are working in) you will usually be entitled to one or the other of these.
Expatriation allowance
The European Commission ‘Expatriation allowance’ is one of allowances paid to employees of EU institutions if they had to relocate from another EU Member State for work.
Amount
Expatriation allowance equals 16 % of the sum of your total of your basic salary, household allowance and dependent child allowance.
For temporary agents AD5 that just start out it will amount to EUR 786,77 = 16% X (basic salary 4917,29 + household allowance + dependent child allowance).
For contract agents FG IV at grade 13 step 1 it will amount to at least EUR 568.96 = 16% X (basic salary 3555,98 + household allowance + dependent child allowance).
Important – the minimum Expatriation allowance is EUR 571,35 per month. If 16% of your basic salary is less than this amount, your Expatriation allowance amount will be increased.
Conditions
For nationals of the country the institution is located in or “locals” – you will not receive the Expatriation allowance, unless during the ten years ending at the date of starting your employment you have “habitually resided” outside the European territory of your home country and were not a diplomat or employee of another international organisation.
For expats – you will receive the Expatriation allowance, unless you have “habitually resided” in the particular country during the preceding 5,5 years.
If you acquired the nationality of your host country through marriage automatically and cannot renounce it, you will continue to be entitled to either the Expatriation or the Foreign Residence allowance.
Foreign Residence allowance
If you are an expat and lived in the country of your EU institution for 5,5 years preceding your employment, then you will receive the Foreign Residence allowance.
The regular amount of the Foreign Residence allowance is 1/4 of the Expatriation allowance. The minimum amount is EUR 142.84 = EUR 571,35 / 4.
Remember about the Correction Coefficient
As all allowances, the Expatriation Allowance and the Foreign Residence Allowance are indexed by the Correction Coefficient. You can read about this in a separate article on the Correction Coefficient, where you will also find out the actual amount of the above allowances you will receive, based on the location of your EU institution or place of employment if your deployed not at the HQ.
This article is based on the European Commission Staff Regulations and other publicly available information such as EU institutions’ vacancy announcements.
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