In 2023, we published an article on frequently asked questions (FAQs) and sources on interims (Interim staff at the Commission: FAQs [1]). Today, we are revisiting the topic based on concrete situations where financial rights of some staff members had been adversely impacted by the fact they started to work under an interim contract in a transitory period preceding their recruitment as contract/temporary agent (CA/TA). This may also apply to a new official (permanent staff) which had an interim contract or several interim contracts preceding his or her recruitment as official of the Europeans institutions, agencies or bodies.
An “interim” may have several “interim” contracts along because “Interims” cannot work for more than 120 days uninterrupted. This may happen in a long-term period. To get around this, the Commission uses a 1-month period of unemployment (‘break’). The so-called ‘one-month break’ after 5 months is not a formality, it’s a legal loophole the European Commission uses to perpetuate precarious employment while avoiding accountability.
Let’s remind!
An “interim” is not EU staff, therefore, an interim does not have access to the My Intracomm [2] (MyIC) SharePoint and to all information available in Staff Centre/Staff Matters [3]. Interims are employed by an employment agency such as Randstad, Adecco or Start People. ‘Agency staff’ (“Intérimaires” in French) are not Staff members of the European Commission. As a result, they are not subject to the staff regulations nor by the Conditions of Employment of other servants of the European Union.’ Given that the applicable legislation and rules are dependent on the national legislation and the relevant framework, interim recruitment and conditions are depending on the Commission site/country hosting the Commission departments: Luxembourg, Italy (Ispra/JRC) or Spain (JRC/Seville).
The reasons above are two good reasons to let you, interims, know that an interim contract(s) may have a potential, and significant financial impact, on the determination of your future of origin/entitlement to the expatriation allowance.
Consider the following situation:
- a person residing outside Belgium is offered a CA/TA contract or a position as official. To ensure that she or he can start immediately in the unit, an interim contract is proposed until the recruitment procedure as CA/TA or as official is completed;
- depending notably on the length of the contract of the interim contract, the PMO might establish the place of recruitment of the person as being, for instance, Brussels;
- if so, she or he loses the benefits of the ‘mobility’ rights which she or he would normally have been entitled to when starting directly as CA/TA or official;
- the hierarchy of the person is unaware of such consequences, and the person is not informed of them before accepting to work under an interim contract.
Against this background, the relevant question is:
Can previous service as interim staff affect my mobility entitlements if I am recruited as statutory staff?
If, before your entry into service as statutory staff (e.g. official, contract agent or temporary agent), you worked as an interim in your future place of assignment, this may affect certain mobility-related entitlements.
The granting of benefits such as the installation allowance, daily subsistence allowance, reimbursement of travel expenses on entry into service and reimbursement of removal expenses depends, among other factors, on the determination of your place of recruitment.
For this purpose, the administration (Paymaster Office (PMO) department) assesses where you were habitually resident at the time of recruitment, taking into account all relevant circumstances of your individual situation, including your professional activity, accommodation arrangements, continuity of residence and any personal, family, social, administrative or professional ties.
Previous employment as an interim in the place of assignment may constitute an important indication that you had established your habitual residence there, particularly where such employment was continuous and extended over a significant period. Each case is assessed individually based on all the available evidence.
Please note that temporary absences from the place of assignment, including periods of annual leave or short/mandatory interruptions between interim contracts, will not normally be regarded as interrupting a period of habitual residence. Such periods will nevertheless be assessed in the light of all the circumstances of the individual case.
Where the administration concludes that your place of recruitment corresponds to your place of assignment, the mobility-related entitlements under Annex VII to the Staff Regulations [4] may not be granted.
Indeed, this is a problem you don’t have yet and which might never be relevant for you. Nevertheless, please look at potential future scenarios and keep yourself informed. It can change where you are considered to have been recruited from:
Consider someone from Germany accepting to move to Brussels on an interim contract while awaiting a promised contract (e.g. as a contract agent). On signing that promised contract agent contract the place of origin [5] could be set as the place of recruitment (Brussels). This new staff member might therefore not be entitled to moving costs, annual travel expenses or travelling time, in spite of having made the effort to move to Brussels to accommodate service needs. i.e. it would have been better for that same person to wait in Germany for the contract agent contract.
It can change whether you are considered to have been resident or not:
Consider a temporary agent from Italy who is working in Brussels and who is receiving the expatriation allowance [6]. If that colleague subsequently decides to become Belgian, then all previous residence in Belgium must be looked at. Even a month as an interim could be enough for that colleague to no longer receive the expatriation allowance.
In this context, we praise the Commission’s Mediation Service [7] by having brought up the matter to the 2025 General Activity Report [8], released on 26 April 2026. In particular, its recommendation addressed to Directorate-General Human Resources and Security (DG HR) on interim contract preceding a recruitment as contractual or temporary agent – impact on mobility rights (Recommendation No 3 – 2025)., 2025 Report, p7 and 8.
The Mediation Service is specifically recommending to DG HR:
- to put on the agenda of the HRCs’ network meetings a point concerning the possible consequences of proposing to a person residing outside Belgium an interim contract in the period preceding a recruitment as CA/TA;
- to request that HRCs inform Heads of Unit of such consequences, and whereas possible consider other options which do not affect the financial rights of the concerned person.
Generation 2004 sincerely hope DG HR could consider effectively “other options which do not affect the financial rights of the concerned person” as suggested by the Mediation Service.
Generation 2004 will closely follow up this issue with the Mediation Service and DG HR, and next year, in the 2026 General Activity Report, we wish to acknowledge a positive advancement as we just acknowledged this recommendation in the 2025 Report.
The matter is relevant, particularly in a context where contract and temporary agents represent more than one third of the staff working for the Commission (at 1 January 2025 contractual staff accounted for 8 080, where 32 860 staff members were part of the European civil service, including officials, temporary staff, contract staff, special advisors, local staff and staff under national law, HR key figures for 2025 [9]. This trend is even by the latest figures available. In July 2026, the contract staff accounts to 8762 which is 26,3% of the total EU staff (i.e. 33721), see statistical bulletin 1/7/2026.
An interim contract may also be proposed to you between a contract as CA/TA, specially to overcome punctual and transitory difficulties with the completeness of your recruitment procedure. If it is the case and later, you have the chance to apply for an internal competition, you risk based on a one day or 15 days or 30 days month interim contract, be excluded from an internal competition for non-fulfilment of the eligibility requirements. If you face such situation, you should be aware of the consequences and you should avoid such interim solutions!
To take or not to take an interim contract is in the end your personal choice! But now you are aware of the consequences and how to avoid/reduce them! Yes, we also know, interim colleagues cannot vote in staff committee elections, nevertheless we’re here to make sure that no one is left behind!
toolTips('.classtoolTips19','Staff Regulations of Officials and the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants of the European Union (\'Staff Regulations [10] (SR)\') are rules stating:
• fundamental conditions of service
• basic rights, duties and obligations of staff.
The SR have been reformed x 2 (so far):
• 2004 (Kinnock White paper)
• 2014 (Regulation 1023/2013 [11])
For a summary of stated intentions and real outcomes of those two reforms check out: European Court of Auditors, 2019, Special report no 15/2019 [12]: Implementation of the 2014 staff reform package at the Commission – Big savings but not without consequences for staff
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These are officials, temporary agents (TAs), Contract Agents (CAs), and special advisers. This excludes other staff working for the Commission such as persons employed under private law contracts, experts on secondment from national civil services (SNEs), trainees, and external experts. (Practical guide to staff ethics and conduct [13])
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See our frequently asked questions (FAQs [1]) on this topic to avoid the pitfalls.
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- the 6 Brussels-based Executive Agencies [16] which are \'legal entities established ... with a view to being entrusted with certain tasks relating to the management of one or more European Union programmes. These agencies are set up for a fixed period.\' They are CINEA, EACEA, HADEA, Eismea, ERCEA and REA.