Domestic Employees Teleworking Overseas Program

A Domestic Employee Teleworking Overseas is an executive branch employee of the U.S. government assigned to a domestic position with an alternative work arrangement that permits their work to be performed at an approved worksite in a location abroad for a limited period of time.

DETO arrangements are especially helpful for federal employees who are married to military or DOW civilian sponsors assigned to military installations overseas. With the proper approvals from their employer and the State Department, DETOs may accompany their DOW sponsors on assignments overseas and still keep their own federal jobs by teleworking remotely from the location of their DOW sponsor’s overseas assignment.

The purpose of the MOA is to facilitate DETO arrangements for eligible federal employees authorized by the DOW to accompany service members and DOW civilian personnel on assignments abroad.

Under the MOA, the War Department will provide a range of required security services to covered DETOs that are normally carried out by regional security officers at U.S. embassies and consulates (e.g., emergency planning, evacuation assistance, initial incident response for serious incidents).

The MOA also streamlines residential safety and security screening requirements. Under the agreement, the State Department will accept DOW’s suitability determination for DETO residences and will not require additional inspections using State Department standards.

Under this MOA, the War Department and the State Department will work together to facilitate approval of DETO arrangements for federal employees who are spouses of military and DOW civilian employee sponsors.

More federally employed spouses will be able to maintain their careers, improve their economic security and keep their families together while they accompany their service member or DOW civilian employee spouse overseas.

The MOA took effect April 18, 2024.

The April 2024 agreement applies to locations where the Department of War has approved assignments and established Military Housing Offices. Recent policy updates expand DETO eligibility to additional NATO-supported locations in Belgium and the Netherlands where the Department of War provides the required housing and security support. Eligibility depends on the sponsor’s assignment location and each employee’s agency policies.

DOW employees should reference Section 5 of DODI 1035.01, “Telework and Remote Work,” which contains policy for domestic employees temporarily working from overseas pursuant to DETO arrangements. Additional information is available through the War Department Domestic Employees Teleworking Overseas webpage and the Office of Personnel Management’s Overseas Telework webpage. Federal employees from other executive branch agencies should contact their DETO coordinator or human resources office.

Any military spouse who is an executive branch employee wanting to work overseas must first get approval by their supervisor in the agency where they work.

No. The new MOA does not impact anyone working overseas with an approved DETO agreement.

Federal employees may not be approved to work remotely from a foreign location prior to obtaining approval from the State Department pursuant to the DETO program. They may be approved by their agency employer to telework or work remotely from locations within the United States.

Employees or their employing agency may either pay to make necessary upgrades to meet the required standards or must find a different residence that meets required standards.

Military spouses have access to career resources through installation-based employment readiness programs, as well as the War Department’s SpouseWorks (formerly SECO) program. SpouseWorks helps military spouses grow skills, get career advice and find jobs through tools and resources designed specifically for military spouses. To learn more about SpouseWorks, visit SpouseWorks.mil.