ADS 478 - Payments to Missing Employees

This chapter applies to Agency employees who are in active Federal service and are officially determined to be in a missing status. The missing status is defined as an employee who is absent in a status of missing, missing in action, or interred in a foreign country. The Principal USAID Officer is responsible for informing the Principal Officer of the U.S. Diplomatic Mission when an unaccounted-for USAID employee may be missing due to hostile action. The Principal Officer is also responsible for reporting the incident to the host government and requesting their assistance in locating the missing employee. The Deputy Assistant Administrator for Human Resources (DAA/OHR) is responsible for keeping the case of an employee in a missing status under active review for twelve months when no official report of death or circumstances of the employee's continued absence has been received. The DAA/OHR is also responsible for conducting a full review of the missing employee's case, determining the continuance of the employee's missing status, or making a finding of death. The Agency shall adhere to the entitlement policies and procedures stated in 5 USC 5562, transportation and household effects policies and procedures stated in 5 USC 5564, claims policies and procedures stated in 5 USC 5564(h), allotment policies and procedures stated in 5 USC 5563, and income tax deferment policies and procedures stated in 5 USC 5568. The Agency's policy for payments to missing employees is based on the following mandatory references: 5 USC 5562, 5 USC 5563, 5 USC 5564, 5 USC 5564(h), 5 USC 5568, and Public Law 98-259, dated April 10, 1984. The Agency also references ADS 530, Emergency Planning Overseas. The definitions of key terms used in ADS Chapter 478 include allotment, dependent, employee, missing status, pay and allowances, and other relevant terms. The definitions are incorporated into the ADS Glossary. The Agency's policy for payments to missing employees is designed to provide support to employees who are missing in action or have been declared missing. The policy outlines the responsibilities of various Agency officials, including the Principal USAID Officer, the Principal Officer of the U.S. Diplomatic Mission, and the Deputy Assistant Administrator for Human Resources. The policy also outlines the procedures for determining the missing status of an employee, making payments to the employee, and handling claims and allotments.