Leave Bank
- If I donate leave, will there be anything on my Leave and Earning Statement that lets me know the donation has been processed?
Yes. Your Leave and Earning Statement (LES) will display any contribution to the bank. You will see an increase in the used year-to-date portion for the type of leave donated, e.g. annual, restored annual, with a corresponding reduction in your available leave balance. The return of donated leave will also be reflected as a reduction to the used year-to-date for annual leave with an increase in your available balance. - What happened to my annual leave accrual in the first pay period of the leave year?
In the first full pay period of the leave year, employees that participate in the Leave Bank will be contributing their first leave year accrual to the leave bank. - Where will I be able to see my donated leave?
The LES will display donated leave separately from the employee’s annual leave balance and will be displayed as either: a) Leave Bank Medical (LVBNKM) if the employee is an approved leave recipient for their own illness. b) Leave Bank Family (LVBNKF) if the employee is an approved leave recipient due to the illness of a family member. - Will additional donations be processed by my agency?
Note: If donations are retroactive they need to be entered in retroactively. Yes. Your agency’s staff will enter new donations into FPPS. These donations will appear as available leave identified as LVBNKM and LVBNKF on the LES, as stated in question 1. - Will I still accrue leave if I am using donated leave for the entire pay period?
Maybe. While using donated leave, a leave bank recipient may accrue no more than 40 hours of annual leave and 40 hours of sick leave per emergency which are placed in “special set-aside accounts” for use after the medical emergency ends or when the employee exhausts all donated leave. You will continue to accrue leave until you reach the 40 maximum. Hours over the 40 maximum for annual leave can reduce the decrement of the advanced annual leave. 5 CFR 630.1008 (a) (1) and (d)(2) - Will I accrue leave if I am working for part of the pay period and on donated leave for the rest of the pay period?
Yes. Leave accruals will be prorated for both regular annual and sick leave or special set aside accounts, based on hours in a pay period not related to donated leave used. - Must I use up my annual and sick leave before I use my donated leave?
Yes. After all earned annual, sick, and restored annual leave is used; an employee may use the donated leave. The leave will be used in the following order: sick leave and annual leave first. The timesheet will need to have all leave taken for the emergency coded to Leave Bank. Generally, time and attendance reports should be coded when applicable as emergency leave used and FPPS will ensure other available leave balances are exhausted first. (see #8) - If I have not used up my earned leave and the time card is posted as using donated leave, will I be allowed to use the donated leave?
No. If the individual is an approved leave bank recipient, with the proper use of the appropriate Leave Bank pay code, FPPS will automatically exhaust sick leave, annual leave, and restored annual leave balances before using donated leave. Note: There are different pay codes depending on the type of emergency (self or family) and for multiple occurrences. - What if I am retroactively approved as a leave bank recipient and receive donated leave; can I be paid for any leave without pay?
Yes. If an employee is approved retroactively as a leave bank recipient prior to the recomputation pay periods of FPPS, the timekeeper and/or HR must prepare manual corrected time cards, changing time reported to leave bank emergency used codes, and fax them to the Payroll Operations Branch. If the effective date is within the recomputation pay periods those amendments can be entered directly into your Time and Attendance (T&A) system. The employee will be paid for any leave without pay up to the amount of donated leave that has currently been received as long as the donations were also entered retroactively. - I have leave bank donation hours, why was I not paid?
Timesheets should be coded specifically to reflect the proper donated leave codes and should only be used for absences relating to the emergency. Absences not related to the approved emergency should be coded to other leave as applicable. Input of the proper codes on a T&A indicates that you are a donated leave recipient and the Shared leave regulations are now applicable during processing. - What should I do if I receive a debt during the period of time I was using donated leave?
Most debts are created due to the use of invalid pay codes. Check with your servicing HR office to ensure that your T&A was properly coded. If improperly coded, a corrected T&A will be required to resolve the debt. - What if I received advance leave prior to either being approved as a recipient and/or prior to receiving donated leave. Can my donations be used to pay off my advance leave?
No. Donations can only be used to pay off advance leave from the effective date of the emergency forward. - Can my donations be used to pay off my advance leave after the emergency begin date?
Yes, by submitting a corrected T&A changing advance leave used to the medical emergency. In addition, the agency must also request a reversal of the previously advanced leave. If approved retroactively, T&A amendments will be needed from the start of the Leave Bank case going forward. - Do I get to keep my leave donations when my medical emergency ends?
No. When the medical emergency ends, donations will automatically be sent back to your agency leave bank. - What happens to the special set aside accruals displayed on my Leave and Earning Statements?
The special set aside accruals move to the regular annual and sick leave balances for active employees. If the employee has separated from the agency the special set aside accruals are forfeited. - Where do I go for help if I want to donate leave or apply to be a leave recipient?
Contact your servicing HR office. - What is the Leave Conversion Matrix for Leave Bank?
Please follow this link to learn more about the Leave Conversion Matrix for Leave Bank.
Please Note: If there is a question you hear often and you think it may be of general interest to other users of this site, we would appreciate hearing from you.
Federal Personnel Payroll System (FPPS) and the Leave Bank Program Approving Officials may also reference Employee FAQs for additional information. Approving Officials may have limited access in FPPS.
- Will I still be able to see when an employee has received donated leave by viewing the employee’s leave balance?
In FPPS, donated leave will be maintained separately from the employee’s annual leave balance and displayed as either: a.) Leave Bank Medical (LVBNKM) if the employee is an approved leave recipient for their own illness. b.) Leave Bank Family (LVBNKF) if the employee is an approved leave recipient due to the illness of a family member. - Will I still approve annual leave (Time Not Worked Code - ANNLV) for employees using donated leave?
Maybe. When the employee is absent for time unrelated to the emergency, annual or sick leave may be appropriate. When the employee is absent for time related to the approved emergency, leave bank hours used should be approved. The T&A system will have unique codes for using leave under the Leave Bank Program. You will see the new leave donor codes on the T&A under Time Not Worked. Note: There are different pay codes for multiple occurrences. - Will I be able to see an employee’s donated leave balances in the Time and Attendance system?
Yes. Beginning, June 1, 2014, Pay Period 2014-13, you will be able to view donated leave balances. However, the balances reflected in the T&A system may not reflect current donations that are being entered into FPPS. The donated leave balances will be correctly reflected under the leave category (LVBNKM or LVBNKF) on the Leave and Earning Statement. - Is there any way I can find out what the exact leave bank medical or family balances are in FPPS that are available for use?
Yes. You can view this information from the FPPS Leave View screen. - Does a person need to use up their annual and sick leave before they use donated leave?
Yes. After all earned leave is used; an employee may use the donated leave. The leave will be used in the following order: sick leave and annual leave first. The timesheet will need to have all leave taken for the emergency coded to Leave Bank. (see #6) - If a person has not used up their earned leave and the time card is posted as using donated leave, will they be allowed to use the donated leave?
No. If the individual is an approved leave bank recipient, with the proper use of the appropriate Leave Bank pay code, FPPS will automatically exhaust sick leave, annual leave, and restored annual leave balances before using donated leave. - What if a person is retroactively approved as a leave recipient and receives retroactive donated leave; can I approve amended time cards?
Will they be paid for any leave without pay? Yes. If an employee is approved retroactively as a leave bank recipient with an effective date prior to the recomputation pay periods of FPPS, the timekeeper and/or HR must prepare manual corrected time cards, changing time reported to leave bank emergency used codes, and fax them to the Payroll Operations Branch. If the effective date is within the recomputation pay periods of FPPS those amendments can be entered directly into the T&A system. The employee will be paid for any leave without pay up to the amount of donated leave that has currently been received as long as the donations were also entered retroactively. - Does the employee get to keep unused leave donations when the medical emergency ends?
No. When the medical emergency ends, donations will automatically be sent back to the agency’s leave bank. - What happened to the annual leave accrual in the first pay period of the leave year?
In the first full pay period of the leave year, employees that participate in the Leave Bank will be contributing their first leave year accrual to the leave bank. - Where do I go for help on employees who are pending approval for the leave bank program?
Contact your servicing HR office. - Where do I go for help on employees who are approved leave bank recipients and are receiving leave?
Contact your servicing HR office. - What is the Leave Conversion Matrix for Leave Bank?
Please follow this link to learn more about the Leave Conversion Matrix for Leave Bank.
Please Note: If there is a question you hear often and you think it may be of general interest to other users of this site, we would appreciate hearing from you.