Non-resident's allowance
Introductory note. This allowance was introduced on the recommendation of the 1949 Committee of Experts (Flemming Committee). The relevant resolution of UN General Assembly (resolution 470(V)) gave the Secretary-General authority to "where he deems it appropriate, establish rules and salary limits for payment of a non-resident's allowance to General Service staff members recruited from outside the local area".
Specific conditions for payment were worked out by inter-organization consultation in each locality concerned. In some cases the conditions permitted payment to staff who were not recruited outside the local area, for a variety of reasons. Section 2.6 contains details on the interpretation given over time to the concept of "non resident" and on its relationship to entitlements other than non-resident's allowance.
Between 1953 and 1974, the non-resident's allowance and its justification and appropriateness were discussed on several occasions in CCAQ, as follows:
| 14th session | April 1953 | CO-ORDINATION/R.142, paras. 22-30 |
| 19th session | March 1958 | CO-ORDINATION/R.264, paras. 36-61 |
| 20th session | April 1959 | CO-ORDINATION/R.295, para. 50 |
| 21st session | April 1960 | CO-ORDINATION/R.325, paras. 39-42 |
| 24th session | March 1963 | CO-ORDINATION/R.430, Appendix D, Part B |
| 30th session | March 1969 | CO-ORDINATION/R.733, para. 33 |
| 31st session | March 1970 | CO-ORDINATION/R.798, para. 63 |
| 39th session | March 1974 | CO-ORDINATION/R.1031, para. 29 |
See also documents presented to ICSC:
ICSC programme of work: ICSC/R.280, paras. 10-12 (14 July 1981);
Historical background prepared by CCAQ: ICSC/16/R.10 (14 July 1982);
Additional information by ICSC secretariat: ICSC/18/R.14 (25 May 1983).
(1) At its 57th session (July 1982) CCAQ approved a paper on non-resident's allowance for submission to ICSC (issued as ICSC/16/R.10). This paper set out certain principles which CCAQ considered should govern the granting of the allowance and the methodology for establishing its level and sought the views of ICSC on a number of other issues (ACC/1982/23, paras. 35-37).
(2) At its 58th session (March 1983) CCAQ continued its review of the non-resident's allowance, and reached agreement on the nature of the allowance, its non-pensionability, and on the need to distinguish between the situation at duty stations in Europe and North America and at other duty stations (ACC/1983/9, paras. 29-36).
(3) At its 59th session (July 1983), in connection with the ICSC's review of all aspects of the non-resident's allowance, CCAQ confirmed that NRA was a benefit available to non-locally recruited staff under certain conditions, but was not a prerequisite for entitlement to other expatriate benefits to which such staff were entitled (ACC/1983/18, paras. 28-30).
(4) At its 18th session (July 1983) ICSC agreed on a new methodology for the determination of the level of the non-resident's allowance, and on criteria for its payment, effective 1 September 1983, as follows(9th annual report : A/38/30, paras. 59 and 60):
(a) The level of the NRA should be set by comparison with the assignment allowance for staff in the Professional category serving outside Europe and North America;
(b) The level of the allowance was set at $2,400/year for a single staff member and $3,000/year for a staff member with dependants;
(c) The allowance should be granted for a fixed duration of five years; from the time of arrival at a designated duty station;
(d) The allowance should be non-pensionable. With regard to the duty stations where the allowance was payable, it was decided that the level of the allowance in duty stations in Europe and in North and South America should be set at zero in respect of new recruits. The list of duty stations eligible should be reviewed annually and changes made based on proven recruitment difficulties as well as difficulties in inducing staff to work at a given location.
(5) The Commission further decided that no staff member in receipt of a pensionable NRA at the previously established rate should receive a lesser amount in local currency. Such staff could, however, be given the option of accepting the new allowance, if it were at a higher level, provided that all other conditions of duration and non-pensionability were also accepted (A/38/30, para. 63).
(6) At its 19th session (March 1984) ICSC decided to maintain an arrangement, introduced in 1983 on a trial basis, whereby General Service staff with non-resident status serving at duty stations where the NRA was not payable, would be eligible for rental subsidies (ICSC/19/R.22, paras. 117-122). For CCAQ's views, see ACC/1984/9, paras. 50-52 (see also section 14.4, para. (24)).
(7) At its 64th session (March 1986), CCAQ agreed to place on its work programme the question of the implementation of the non-resident's allowance, in view of the wide divergence in organizations' practices in respect of the conditions of service of support and clerical staff assigned from one duty station to another in a different country (ACC/1986/3, para. 108). At its 66th session (spring 1987), CCAQ reviewed a survey of organizations' practices prepared by the secretariat, and concluded that the matter did not lend itself to a common system solution. Organizations should continue to apply the administrative arrangements which best responded to particular situations (ACC/1987/14, para. 74).
(8) At its 73rd session (July 1990: ACC/1990/10, para. 55) the Committee decided that as a matter of priority its secretariat should devise arrangements for ensuring the correct relationship between the new mobility and hardship allowance and the non-resident's allowance. CCAQ would also undertake an early review of the latter as a whole.
(9) The 1991 and 1992 discussions in CCAQ and ICSC on the payment of NRA to internationally-recruited General Service staff are reported in section 10.1.