VA Career Transition Programs

Employees must:

• be “surplus” or “displaced” (see below);
• have a current performance rating of at least “fully successful” or equivalent;
• occupy a position in the same local commuting area of the vacancy;
• apply for a specific vacancy at or below their current grade level with no greater promotion potential than their current position;
• meet the application deadline in the announcement; and
• be found well-qualified for the job.

Where practicable, eligible VA title 38 and hybrid title 38 employees subject to RIFs and related activities are afforded the provisions of their local CTAP, such as career transition assistance services. However, clearing CTAP/ICTAP only applies to competitive service vacancies – a CTAP/ICTAP eligible does not receive special consideration for title 38 or hybrid title 38 positions.

A “surplus” employee is:

• in the competitive service;
• in tenure group I (career) or tenure group II (career-conditional); and
• has an official notice from VA saying that their position is being abolished.

An official notice is:

• a “Certificate of Expected Separation” (CES);
• a certification from VA that an employee is in a surplus organization or occupation;
• a notice that their position is being abolished; or
• a letter of discontinued service retirement eligibility.

A “displaced” employee is:

• in the competitive service;
• in tenure group I (career) or tenure group II (career-conditional); and
• has an official notice from VA saying they will be separated by RIF.

An official notice is:

• a specific RIF separation notice or
• a notice of proposed removal because the individual declined a directed reassignment or transfer of function out of the local commuting area.

The PPP provides priority consideration to eligible employees who receive grade or pay retention. Priority consideration means that the servicing HRO must refer and ensure that employees with PPP eligibility receive priority consideration for positions (designated by occupational title and series) for which they are qualified before initiating a recruitment action to fill a vacancy by any other means. However, the selecting official may select from the PPP or RPL. For additional information on PPP, refer to VA Handbook 5005, Part III, Appendix F.

VA can extend the definition of “surplus” or “displaced” if employees on Schedule A or B appointments without time limit have received an appropriate notice (see above). Selection priority for these employees is limited to other permanent Schedule A or B positions in VA and local commuting area. Note: Excepted Service employees are not eligible for selection priority in other agencies under the ICTAP.

Employees are generally not eligible for selection priority if they are:

• in the excepted service (unless VA gives special selection priority to excepted employees);
• downgraded or reassigned due to RIF but not separated;
• in a different local commuting area from the vacancy;
• in a temporary or term position in the competitive service; or
• in the Senior Executive Service (SES).

Eligibility begins when an employee receives one of these notices or documents:

• a RIF separation notice;
• a notice of proposed removal for declining a directed reassignment or transfer of function to another local commuting area;
• a CES memorandum which identifies an employee as being in an excess organization or occupation and therefore subject to possible separation [through RIF procedures].; or
• VA’s certification that they are in a surplus organization or occupation (this could be a position abolishment letter, a notice of eligibility for discontinued service retirement, or similar notice).

CTAP eligibility expires when:

• VA separates the employee by RIF;
• the employee resigns, retires, or otherwise separates from the Department;
• the Department separates the employee for declining a directed reassignment or transfer of function to another local commuting area;
• the Department cancels or rescinds the notice that made the employee eligible;
• the employee moves to another position in the Department, time-limited or permanent, that is not affected by the RIF;
• The employee receives a career, career-conditional, or excepted service position without time limit in any agency; or
• The employee is no longer being separated by RIF.

With few exceptions, if the HRO plans to fill a vacancy in the local commuting area lasting more than 120 days, it must give CTAP eligibles the opportunity to apply. The HRO can advertise vacancies to surplus and displaced VA employees using OPM’s USAJOBS, email, bulletin boards, etc. CTAP eligibles must apply within the time frame given and attach proof of eligibility. CTAP applicants that are determined to be well-qualified for a VA vacancy in their local commuting area must be given priority over other candidates from within or outside the VA. If two or more well-qualified CTAP eligibles apply, the HRO may select the best qualified applicant. For a list of personnel action exceptions, refer to 5 C.F.R. § 330.609 Exceptions to CTAP selection priority.

Step One: Application

Eligible employees request CTAP selection priority by:

1. applying for a vacancy in VA in the local commuting area; and
2. attaching proof of eligibility (for example: their RIF separation notice, CES, surplus notification, or notice of proposed removal).

Step Two: Qualifications Review

The HRO reviews their application, comparing the applicant’s background to the required qualifications, selective factors, knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies to determine if they are well-qualified for the job. “Well-qualified” must be defined in vacancy announcements.

If the HRO finds that a CTAP applicant is not well-qualified, it must conduct a second review of their application and inform them of the results in writing.

Step Three: Selection

If the HRO finds a CTAP applicant well-qualified for the vacancy, in most cases they must select the applicant before hiring another candidate from either inside or outside the Department. If two or more well-qualified CTAP applicants request selection priority, the Department may select among them.

VA’s candidate selection order is as follows:

1. a displaced or surplus VA employee in the local commuting area;
2. a qualified employee from within the facility under the PPP and any facility-wide special placement programs;
3. qualified RPL registrants in the local commuting area;
4. any qualified current VA employee from within or outside of the facility;
5. a current or former well-qualified displaced Federal employee from another agency in the local commuting area under ICTAP;
6. any other candidate from outside of the Department, including Federal certificates of eligibles, a reinstatement eligible, a transfer from another agency, a noncompetitive appointment, or another routine competitive staffing action.

If no well-qualified CTAP eligibles apply, the HRO can fill the position through other means.

Under CTAP, a vacancy is a vacant competitive service position (GS-15 or below) to be filled for a total of 121 days or more, regardless of whether the Department intends to do so without posting a competitive announcement.

The local commuting area is the geographic area usually considered a single area for employment purposes; it includes any population center and the surrounding localities where people live and routinely travel back and forth daily to their jobs. An employee’s local commuting area is based on the official worksite associated with the employee’s position of record when they receive their official displacement or surplus notice. The official worksite generally is the location where the employee regularly performs their duties and is generally documented as the employee’s duty station on their Notification of Personnel Action (Standard Form 50 or equivalent). Employees can only get selection priority for vacancies announced in their local commuting area. HROs determine the local commuting area for jobs they announce. There is no mileage standard. For more information, see OPM’s Fact Sheet: Official Worksite for Location-Based Pay Purposes.

“Well-qualified” means that an employee:

• meets the qualification standards and eligibility requirements for the position including any medical qualifications, suitability, and minimum educational and experience requirements;
• meets all selective factors;
• either meets quality ranking factor levels at the level set by the HRO or is rated above minimally qualified in accordance with the HRO’s specific rating and ranking process;
• is physically qualified, with reasonable accommodation where appropriate, to perform the essential duties of the position;
• meets any special qualifying condition(s) for the position (such as the ability to speak a specific language or other selective factor); and
• can satisfactorily perform the duties of the position upon entry.

An employee’s qualification rating can vary between positions and HROs. If the HRO, in consultation with subject matter experts as appropriate, finds that the employee is not well-qualified, then the HRO must conduct a second review of their application and inform the employee of the results in writing.

No. Selection priority only applies to vacancies at the same (or a lower) grade with no higher promotion potential than their current position. They can still apply for jobs at higher grades or those with greater promotion potential, but they won’t receive selection priority when they compete for those jobs.

Yes, however, candidates considering applying to lower-graded jobs should ask about pay-setting policies and be aware they could be offered a job at a lower salary than they had before. They should not apply for a job they won’t accept because turning down any permanent job offer may end their selection priority.

No. Employees can apply for any position, but they only get selection priority if they are well-qualified for the job.

They should review the requirements in the vacancy announcement and compare them to their credentials (i.e., knowledge, skills, abilities, and/or competencies).

The HRO may end an employee’s selection priority if they apply for a permanent vacancy and are selected but decline the offer. If they decline a temporary or term position, they keep their selection priority for permanent positions until they separate or their eligibility ends for some other reason.

Accepting another position, even part-time, ends their eligibility for VA selection priority. They should not apply for a job they won’t accept because turning down a permanent position will end their selection priority.

Yes. Accepting another position, even time-limited, means they are no longer faced with RIF separation so they no longer get VA selection priority.

Eligibility for CTAP selection priority in VA ends when they separate whether they leave involuntarily (such as by RIF) or voluntarily (such as by resignation). However, if they separated involuntarily, they might still have selection priority in other agencies under ICTAP.

No, not unless VA policy expands the area for CTAP priority. They can still apply for jobs in their new location, but they will not receive selection priority for those jobs.

Each HRO has an assigned Human Resources (HR) Specialist to handle secondary reviews. The employee should ask the HR Specialist to review the justification for reconsideration of qualification determination.

All employees, including those in the competitive, excepted, and Senior Executive Service (SES), are eligible for some type of career transition assistance or services.

SES employees are eligible for placement assistance through a special SES placement program. SES employees facing RIF separation should check with their HRO for information about this program.