significant recruitment source for Overseas Specialist appointments. Such employees will be given priority consideration over outside applicants when applying for Overseas Specialist positions, when qualifications are otherwise equal.

(c) Eligibility requirements. All applicant must be citizens of the United States, and must be at least 21 years of age and no more than 58 years of age at the time of appointment. The 21-year age requirement may be waived by the Director, Office of Personnel (M/P or VOA/P) when she or he determines that the applicant's services are urgently needed. USIA employee applicants must also have at least three years of Federal government experience and occupy a position at the GS-11 level (or equivalent) or above (GS-10 for Electronic Technicians in the Voice of America). All applicants must be available for worldwide assignment to positions in their occupational category.

(d) Application procedures. (1) Applications for all specialties except secretarial should include a current SF-171, Application for Federal Employment; a DSP-34, Supplement to Application for Federal Employment; university transcripts; a 1,000 word autobiographical statement which should include mention of the qualifications the applicant would bring to the job and reason for desiring to work for the Agency; and a statement affirming willingness and capacity to serve at any post worldwide.

(2) Special requirements for Foreign Service Secretaries. Secretarial applicants must submit a current SF-171, Application for Federal Employment, and a 250 word essay on a commonly understood subject to demonstrate grammatical competence. The following specific requirements must be met by applicants: Ability to type accurately at 60 words per minute; four years of secretarial or administrative experience (business school or college training may be substituted for up to two years of required work experience); and attainment of an acceptable score in verbal ability and spelling tests. Applicants will subsequently be given a written examination to measure administrative aptitude.

(e) Examination process-(1) Application review. All applications are to be sent to the Special Recruitment Staff, Office of Personnel (M/PDSE), or to the Foreign Personnel Advisor (VOA/PF) for Voice of America positions.

(2) Qualifications Evaluation Panel. A Qualifications Evaluation Panel will evaluate the applicant's qualifications including his/her performance and administrative files (or equivalent), claimed language proficiency and other background or factors which may be related to the work performed by an Overseas Specialist Officer in the relevant specialty.

(3) Oral examination. (i) Applicants who are passed on by the Qualifications Evaluation Panel to the Board of Examiners will be given an oral examination to evaluate the applicant's total qualifications for service as an Overseas Specialist in the desired functional specialty.

(ii) The Board panel examining all candidates except those of the Voice of America will consist of one USIA Overseas Specialist and two BEX Deputy Examiners. For VOA candidates, the panel will consist of the Foreign Personnel Advisor, a BEX Deputy Examiner assigned to the Voice of America, and a Deputy Examiner assigned to the Board of Examiners.

(iii) The panel will examine each applicant through questioning and discussion. Hypothetical problem-solving exercises, a writing exercise and an inbasket test may also be required. The panel will also recommend the F.S. entry level for appointment. If the panel's recommendation is unfavorable, the application process will be discontinued. An unsuccessful applicant may apply again in 12 months.

(4) The same medical and security requirements applicable to FSO Candidates pertain to Specialist Candidates.

(5) Overseas Specialist Candidate register. If an applicant is successful in the examination, and medical and security clearances have been successfuly completed, his/her name will be added to the appropriate Overseas Specialist register for a period of 18 months, or completion of an inside candidate's current tour of duty overseas, whichever is longer, at the Foreign Service

class determined in the examination process and based on previous experience. Inclusion on the register does not guarantee eventual assignment and appointment as an Overseas Specialist Candidate.

(f) Appointment as a Specialist Candidate. (1) When the Office of Personnel identifies an overseas vacancy which cannot be filled from the existing ranks of Overseas Specialists, applicants on the Overseas Specialist register will be considered for the assignment. An applicant will not be appointed unless an overseas position has been identified and a need for the individual in the Foreign Service has been certified by the Director, Office of Personnel (M/P or VOA/P). Any applicant selected from the register who refuses an assignment offer will be dropped from the register and precluded from reapplying for a period of seven years.

(2) Applicants will be given a Foreign Service limited appointment (or redesignation) for a period of four years at the Foreign Service Class determined in the examination process. The purpose of this untenured appointment is to allow the Agency to evaluate and assess the Specialist Candidate's abilities and future potential prior to offering career appointment as an Overseas Specialist. The limited appointment may be extended for one additional year, but must be terminated at the end of the fifth year if the Candidate does not obtain career tenure.

(3) The Candidate will receive the orientation and training necessary to serve overseas and will be assigned overseas in a position in his or her specialty. USIA Civil Service employees selected as Overseas Specialist Candidates will be appointed only if the Agency element to which they are currently assigned is willing to affirm in writing that a position at the appropriate level will be made available for the employee should the candidacy end unsuccessfully. USIA Civil Service applicants will be appointed as Overseas Specialist Candidates on or about the date of their departure for post of assignment or upon assumption of an assignment (which has been identified and will follow a period of orientation in Washington). The Agency may also assign a Candidate to a U.S.-based posi

tion for an initial assignment of up to 24 months when the Candidate will spend the majority of his/her time traveling overseas and will, except for the U.S. basing, be fully functioning as an Overseas Specialist. Specialist Candidates will compete for promotion by the Annual Overseas Specialist Selection Board with other officers in the same specialty and at the same class level. Specialist Candidates at the Class 1 level are ineligible for promotion into the Senior Foreign Service.

(4) The Specialist candidacy may be terminated a any time for unsatisfactory performance (22 U.S.C. 4011) or for such cause as will promote the efficiency of the Service (22 U.S.C. 4010).

(g) Career appointment as an Overseas Specialist. In accordance with section 3946 of title 22 United States Code, the decision to offer a Specialist Candidate a career appointment will be based on the recommendation made by the Annual Overseas Specialist Selection Board which reviews all employees in the Candidate's occupational category and class level.

(1) Eligibility. Specialist Candidates who have performed at least two years of overseas service will be eligible for review for career status at the time of the Candiuate's third Board review. Candidates serving an initial tour in the U.S. but spending the majority of time working overseas will be credited with up to one year's overseas service, but no more than half of the time based in the U.S. If a Specialist Candidate is not recommended for career status during the initial review, the Candidate may be reviewed again when the next Annual Overseas Specialist Selection Board convenes if the initial Board so recommends.

(2) Selection Board Review. The Selection Board(s) will review the official performance file of the eligible Specialist Candidates and in accordance with established precepts, will determine whether the Candidates should be recommended for career appointment as Overseas Specialists. Recommendations by the Board will be based on the Candidate's demonstrated aptitude and fitness for a career in the Foreign Service in their occupational specialties. No quota or numerical limit is placed

on the number of positive career status decisions that can be made by Selection Boards. The Specialist candidacy will be terminated if the Candidate fails to be recommended for career status after a second Board review for tenuring. Candidates may be terminated earlier than the expiration of their limited appointment if so recommended by the Board and approved by the Director, Office of Personnel (M/ P or VOA/P). Specialist Candidates recommended for career status by the Selection Board will be given Foreign Service career appointments (or redesignation) as Overseas Specialist, to take effect within one month of the Board's recommendation.

$501.7 Appointment as Chief of Mission.

(a) Appointment by President. Chiefs of mission are appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. They may be career members of the Foreign Service or they may be appointed from outside the Service.

(b) Recommendation of Foreign Service career members. On the basis of recommendations made by the Director of USIA, the Secretary of State from time to time furnishes the President with the names of Foreign Service career members qualified for appointment as chiefs of mission. The names of these officers, together with pertinent information concerning them, are given to the President to assist him in selecting qualified candidates for appointment as chiefs of mission.

(c) Status of Foreign Service career members appointed as Chiefs of Mission. Foreign Service career members who are appointed as chiefs of mission retain their career status as Foreign Service career members.

$501.8 Reappointment of Foreign Service Officers and Career Overseas Specialists.

The President may, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, reappoint to the Service a former Foreign Service Officer who is separated from the Service. The Director (USIA) may reappoint to the Service a former career Overseas Specialist.

(a) Requirements for reappointment. (1) On the date of application, each applicant must be a citizen of the United States.

(2) No applicant will be considered who has previously been separated from the Foreign Service pursuant to section 608 or 610 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (or predecessor section 633, 635, or 637 of the Foreign Service Act of 1946, as amended); or who resigned or retired in lieu of selection out or separation for cause.

NOTE: This requirement will not apply where it has been determined by the Foreign Service Grievance Board under 3 FAM 660 or by the Director, Office of Personnel, that the separation or the resignation or retirement in lieu of selection out or separation for cause was wrongful; where reappointment is determined by the Director, Office of Personnel, as an appropriate means to settle a grievance or complaint of a former Foreign Service career member on a mutually satisfactory basis; or where reappointment is the indicated redress in a proceeding under 3 FAM 130 "Equal Employment Opportunity."

(b) Application. Apply by letter addressed to the Director, Office of Personnel. Include the standard application forms, SF-171, Application for Federal Employment; and DSP-34, Supplement to Application for Federal Employment; and a brief resume of work and other experience since resignation from the Foreign Service. Whenever the Director, Office of Personnel, finds that the reappointment of one or more former Foreign Service Career Members may be in the best interest of the Service, all application forms, along with the available personnel files, will be referred as appropriate to the Board of Examiners for the Foreign Service which will conduct an advisory evaluation of the qualifications of each applicant.

(c) Nature of evaluation. (1) The Board of Examiners' advisory qualifications evaluation of FSO applicants (i) will be based on a review of all pertinent information relating to the applicant's record of employment in the Foreign Service and to subsequent experience, as well, and (ii) will take into consideration among other factors, the rank of the applicant's contemporaries in the Service in recommending the class in which the applicant will be reappointed

under section 308 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980.

(2) In consultation with the Foreign Service Personnel Division (M/PF or VOA/PF) and officials from the pertinent Agency elements, the Overseas Specialist applicant's total qualifications and experience will be evaluated based on the application and an interview. On the basis of this review and the recommendations of the appropriate officials, the personnel office will determine whether the application should be continued and, if so, will recommend the appointment class.

(d) Medical examination and security investigation. Qualified applicants and their dependents who will accompany them overseas will be given a physical examination. A security investigation will also be conducted. The reappointment action is subject to completion of a satisfactory security investigation and satisfactory medical examination of the applicant and his/her dependents.

(e) Selection for reappointment. The Director, Office or Personnel (M/P or VOA/P), taking into consideration (1) the qualifications and experience of each applicant as outlined in the qualifications evaluation performed by the Board of Examiners for the Foreign Service or the personnel office, (2) future placement and growth potential, and (3) the needs of the Service for the applicant's skills determines which applicant, or applicants, are qualified for reappointment and the appointment class that is considered to be appropriate. An Overseas Specialist may not be reappointed until and unless an overseas assignment has been identified. The Director, Office of Personnel (M/P or VOA/P) is responsible for initiating appointment action. Any voluntary applicant who refuses an offer of reappointment will not be considered for reappointment again.

§ 501.9 Interchange of FSOS between USIA and other Foreign Affairs Agencies.

Foreign Service Officers (FSOs) desiring transfer from one agency to another may apply under the following provisions:

(a) Applications. Applications for interchange appointments should be

sent to the Board of Examiners for the Foreign Service, Department of State, Washington, DC 20520.

(b) Certification and approval. (1) When a Foreign Service Officer of another Foreign Affairs Agency wishes to transfer to the U.S. Information Agency, a certification of need is required from the Director, Office of Personnel, USIA, and approval is required by the Director of Personnel for the other Agency for the officer's release to USIA.

(2) When a USIA FSO wishes to transfer to another Foreign Affairs Agency, a certification of need is required from the Director of Personnel of the other Agency, and approval is required by the Director, Office of Personnel, USIA, for the officer's release to that Agency.

(3) A review by the Board of Examiners for the Foreign Service will certify the eligibility of candidates for exchange. BEX will notify the Office of Personnel, USIA when a Foreign Service Officer of another Agency has been approved for transfer and USIA will process the necessary employment papers.

(4) A new FSO appointment for officers transferring between another Foreign Affairs Agency and USIA is not required.

$502.1 Purpose.

The United States Information Agency administers the "Beirut Agreement of 1948", a multinational treaty formally known as the Agreement for Facilitating the International Circulation of Visual and Auditory Material of an Educational, Scientific and Cultural Character. This Agreement facilitates the free flow of educational, scientific and cultural audio-visual materials between nations by providing favorable import treatment through the elimination or reduction of import duties, licenses, taxes, or restrictions. The United States and other participating governments facilitate this favorable import treatment through the issuance or authentication of a certificate that the audio-visual material for which favorable treatment is sought conforms with criteria set forth in the Agreement.

$502.2 Definitions.

Agency-means the United States Information Agency.

Applicant-means:

(1) The United States holder of the "basic rights" in the material submitted for export certification; or (2) the holder of a foreign certificate seeking import authentication.

Application form-means the Application for Certificate of International Educational Character (Form IAP-17) which is required for requesting Agency certification of United States produced audio-visual materials under the provisions of the Beirut Agreement.

Attestation Officer-means the Chief Attestation Officer of the United States and any member of his or her staff with authority to issue Certificates or Importation Documents.

Audio-visual materials-means: (1) Films, filmstrips and microfilm in exposed and developed negative form, or in positive form, viz., masters or prints, teletranscriptions, kinescopes, videotape; (2) electronic sound recordings and sound/picture recordings of all types and forms or pressings and transfers thereform; (3) slides and transparencies; moving and static models, wallcharts, globes, maps and posters.

Authentication-means the process through which an applicant obtains a United States Importation Document

for Audio-visual Materials (Form IA862).

Basic rights-means the world-wide non-restrictive ownership rights in audio-visual materials from which the assignment of subsidiary rights (such as language versions, television, limited distribution, reproduction, etc.) are derived.

Beirut Agreement-means the "Agreement for Facilitating the International Circulation of Visual and Auditory Materials of an Educational, Scientific, or Cultural Character."

Certificate-means a document attesting that the named material complies with the standards set forth in Article I of the Beirut Agreement issued by: (1) The appropriate government agency of the State wherein the material to which the certificate relates originated, or (2) by the United Nations Educational, Scientific or Cultural Organization.

Certification-means the process of obtaining a certificate attesting that audio-visual materials of United States origin being exported from the United States comply with the standards set forth in Article I of the Beirut Agreement, as interpreted pursuant to Section 207 of Public Law 101-138.

Collateral instructional materialmeans a teacher's manual, study guide, or similar instructional material prepared or reviewed by a bona fide subject matter specialist. Such material must delineate the informational or instructional objectives of the audio-visual material and illustrate or explain how to utilize such material to attain the stated objectives.

Committee on attestation-means the committee which advises the Attestation Officer on matters of policy and the evaluation of specific materials. Director-means the Director of the United States Information Agency. Exports-means educational, scientific, and cultural audio-visual material of United States origin, being sent from the United States.