Is It Common to Offer a Winter Clothing Allowance for Employees Traveling to the UK?

Hi,

We have three employees due to travel from India to the UK in January to work for one month. They have asked about a winter clothing allowance to allow them to purchase clothes for the colder weather (temperatures are currently at freezing and below 5 degrees centigrade in the UK).

Would this be a normal policy to have? If so, is there a recommended amount that you would give to employees? They will be staying in an apartment with facilities to wash clothes easily.

Thank you for any help.

If they are going to the UK, they should be given a clothing allowance. The winter there is chilling and challenging, and you cannot put your employees and their health at risk. Normally, the amount given as an allowance would depend on the company, but we used to provide around £3k to £5k for the clothing allowance for travel to the UK. If you have seen recent weather reports, Europe and other countries are facing bad weather, so I think it's better to provide the allowance. Even if it is slightly on the higher side, you should not hesitate, as they will be staying for a month, and the weather will worsen. I hope this helps you make a decision.

Regards,
Namitabh

Hi, we have three employees due to travel from India to the UK in January to work for one month. They have inquired about a winter clothing allowance to purchase clothes for the colder weather (temperatures are currently at freezing and below 5 degrees centigrade in the UK). Would this be a standard policy to have? If so, is there a recommended amount that you would provide to employees? They will be staying in an apartment with facilities to wash clothes easily. Thank you for any help.

Thank you for your help. Has anyone else any information on how much they have provided? The amounts provided seem to vary, and I want to ensure we are fair.

I had been to the UK during the Nov-Jan period last year, and the winter clothing allowance provided for me was around 8K, which was sufficient to get all the required clothing.

Regards,
Anil
[Login to view]

Hi All,

I agree with Mr. Namitabh; you should provide the allowance slightly on the higher side.

Regards,
Ram

It is not necessary. Whatever extra allowance is given is for that purpose only. You can give an advance. This is what big software companies are following.

I feel the allowance given for these items/materials is not justified. I have been traveling abroad every 2 months and haven't seen any such allowance, the same cases are practiced in every organization.

Items such as winter jackets are utilized by individuals and thus don't carry any formal purpose of official duties.

What I have seen is, allowance is given, but to have control over expenditure, the policy can state that this allowance will be given only once in a time frame - say two years - three years.

It depends on organization to organization to have a policy with its own terms and conditions. Hence, in case you don't have a policy, which works on one and any amount that your management approves or you have a budget for, could be inserted in the same.

Hi LJMCD,

Many organizations have a definite policy on KIT ALLOWANCE/ Foreign Tour Allowance, especially for those traveling abroad. The KIT allowance covers the purchase of a set of decent shoes/boots, a medium to large suitcase, two pairs of thermal wear minimum, and/or a blazer/coat. The allowances vary from INR 6000 to 15000 and are payable every third year. If the employee leaves the services within one year of availing the KIT allowance, then this amount is fully deducted from his F&F. Kindly revert for further details required, if any.

Kind regards,
Dayanand L Guddin
HR Advisor
BOBST INDIA

Yes, in some industries, there is a practice of giving an allowance for such occasions to meet additional clothing expenses for winter. It can be somewhere around Rs. 7,500 in our industry. First, you need to establish a company policy and define the allowance, conditions, etc.

B. Dakshina Murty
Manager - HR

One additional thing to be considered is the grade/salary of the deployed personnel. If the persons are in senior management cadre, you can expect them to afford the expenditure on their own, as is the case with IT. If the employees are of a junior cadre and the expenses are going to burn a hole in their pocket, the company should definitely foot the bill. If the dilemma is regarding the process (whether the amount will be spent on the clothing or something else), the company can as well buy one or two sets of the required clothing and provide them to the employees.

Yes, the company needs to provide a winter allowance. (Please draft a clear winter allowance policy as this is an expenditure that the employee has to make, and it is not feasible to ask the employee to cover this expense from their regular DA amount.)

The allowance amount can be calculated based on common sense regarding the cost of providing one set (one jacket, one pullover, and/or a cap/stockings). You can check the current market rate and decide on the appropriate amount.