(a) General principles. In granting administrative leave, an agency must adhere to the following general principles:

(1) Administrative leave may be granted (subject to the requirements of this section) only when—

(i) The absence is directly related to the agency's mission;

(ii) The absence is officially sponsored or sanctioned by the agency;

(iii) The absence will clearly enhance the professional development or skills of the employee in the employee's current position; or

(iv) The absence is in the interest of the agency or of the Government as a whole.

(2) Administrative leave is not an entitlement, but is an authority, entrusted to the discretion of the agency, that should be used sparingly, consistent with the sense of Congress expressed in section 1138(b)(2) of Public Law 114-328.

(3) Administrative leave is appropriately used for brief or short periods of time—usually for not more than 1 workday. An incidence of administrative leave lasting more than 1 workday may be approved when determined to be appropriate by an agency.

(4) An agency must retain the discretion to grant or not grant administrative leave in any circumstance based on agency judgments regarding mission needs. Generally, administrative leave should be granted on an ad hoc, event-specific, or time-limited basis. If an agency determines that it will generally grant administrative leave under a specific set of circumstances that may recur (e.g., blood donations, voting-related activities), that determination must allow the agency to not grant administrative leave due to mission needs.

(5) A determination that an absence satisfies one of the conditions in paragraph (a)(1) of this section must be—

(i) Permitted under written agency policies (established by the head of the agency or by other agency officials under a specific delegation of authority); or

(ii) Reviewed and approved by an official of the agency who is (or is acting) at a higher level than the official making the determination, if the specific type of use and amount of leave for that use has not been authorized under established written policy as described in paragraph (i) of this paragraph (a)(5).

(6) In developing agency policies regarding the appropriate uses and corresponding amounts of administrative leave and in approving specific incidents of administrative leave where the particular use was not specifically authorized in agency policies, authorized agency officials must consider the following factors:

(i) The regulations in this subpart;

(ii) The effect on productivity and the agency's ability to meet mission needs;

(iii) Current Administration policies that identify Governmentwide interests;

(iv) The strength of the justification for using appropriated funds for the administrative leave in question;

(v) Equitable treatment of similarly situated employees; and

(vi) The degree of delegation that is appropriate for various uses of administrative leave.

(b) Specific prohibited uses. An agency may not grant administrative leave—

(1) To mark the memory of a deceased former Federal official (see also 5 U.S.C. 6105); or

(2) As a reward to recognize the performance or contributions of an employee or group of employees (i.e., in lieu of a cash award or a time-off award).