2023 handbook summarySource checked 29 July 2026

Family Definition for Leave Travel Concession

For LTC, the 2023 handbook applies the family definition in the Travel Regulations and adds specific conditions for children, spouses, and dependent...

Overview

For LTC, the 2023 handbook applies the family definition in the Travel Regulations and adds specific conditions for children, spouses, and dependent parents or step-parents. Residence with the officer is not always required, but dependency, the type of LTC used, journey limits, and child-number restrictions still affect eligibility.

What the handbook says

LTC is generally limited to two surviving unmarried children or stepchildren.
The source lists exceptions for officers who already had more than two children before 1 October 1997, children born within one year of that date, and multiple births arising from the second childbirth.
A spouse or dependent child need not reside with the officer. Reimbursement is limited to the lower of the actual distance travelled and the distance between the officer's headquarters or posting and the home town or place of visit.
From 1 September 2008, wholly dependent parents and step-parents are included for LTC whether or not they reside with the officer.
The source links parental dependency to the Central Government minimum family pension of Rs.9,000 per month plus Dearness Relief.

What this means

Being related to an officer does not by itself establish LTC eligibility. The claim must satisfy the applicable family definition, dependency test, child-related restrictions, and the particular LTC rule being used. Later pages in the same source state that dependent parents are not beneficiaries of the anywhere-in-India concession under Rule 177(B).

Who this applies to

Children and stepchildren are subject to the two-child rule and its stated transitional and multiple-birth exceptions.
Parents and step-parents must be wholly dependent under the test recorded by the source.
Separate conditions continue to apply to married, divorced, abandoned, separated, or widowed daughters; the two cited pages do not restate those conditions.
A family member living elsewhere may travel independently, but the reimbursable distance can be restricted.
Eligibility under one form of LTC must not be assumed to establish eligibility under another.

Rates and dates

The two-child restriction is linked by the source to 1 October 1997.
Inclusion of wholly dependent parents and step-parents is stated as effective from 1 September 2008.
The dependency benchmark shown is Rs.9,000 per month plus Dearness Relief, based on the cited 2016 order. This is a 2023 source snapshot and requires current-policy verification.

What you may need

The cited pages do not prescribe a complete document list. A claim involving dependency, separate residence, or a child-number exception should not be published with an invented checklist; the competent authority must confirm the evidence required under the current rules.

Authorities and source references

Rule 2 and Rule 176(f) of the Travel Regulations
GoI, MoD letter No. 12647/Q Mov C/2610/D(Mov)/98, dated 11 September 1998
Note 1 below Rule 2(p) of the Travel Regulations
GoI, MoD letter No. 17(01)/2016-D(Pen/Pol), dated 29 October 2016

Related guidance

About this guidance

This is a plain-language summary for general information. It is not an official order or an authority for a claim. Confirm the applicable order and your individual eligibility with the competent authority or PCDA(O) before acting.

Overview

What the handbook says

LTC is generally limited to two surviving unmarried children or stepchildren.

The source lists exceptions for officers who already had more than two children before 1 October 1997, children born within one year of that date, and multiple births arising from the second childbirth.

A spouse or dependent child need not reside with the officer. Reimbursement is limited to the lower of the actual distance travelled and the distance between the officer's headquarters or posting and the home town or place of visit.

From 1 September 2008, wholly dependent parents and step-parents are included for LTC whether or not they reside with the officer.

The source links parental dependency to the Central Government minimum family pension of Rs.9,000 per month plus Dearness Relief.

What this means

Who this applies to

Children and stepchildren are subject to the two-child rule and its stated transitional and multiple-birth exceptions.

Parents and step-parents must be wholly dependent under the test recorded by the source.

Separate conditions continue to apply to married, divorced, abandoned, separated, or widowed daughters; the two cited pages do not restate those conditions.

A family member living elsewhere may travel independently, but the reimbursable distance can be restricted.

Eligibility under one form of LTC must not be assumed to establish eligibility under another.

Rates and dates

The two-child restriction is linked by the source to 1 October 1997.

Inclusion of wholly dependent parents and step-parents is stated as effective from 1 September 2008.

The dependency benchmark shown is Rs.9,000 per month plus Dearness Relief, based on the cited 2016 order. This is a 2023 source snapshot and requires current-policy verification.