Guidance for civil servants: How to move jobs between departments and agencies
How to move between departments and agencies, including completing the Civil Service Employee Transfer form.
Updates to this page
- From:
- Cabinet Office
- Published:
- 24 February 2020
- Last updated:
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30 September 2026
Show all updates
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4 new additions to the list of departments using the digital Employee Transfer Service from 30 September 2026.
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Moved the list of departments who use the digital Employee Transfer Service onto its own page. With over 40 departments listed, the bulleted list was becoming long and hiding the content beneath it.
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Updated the list of departments who use the digital Employee Transfer Service from 22 July 2026. Also updated the Staff transfer form to correct the pensions link in Part A-2 of the form.
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Update to guidance for exporting and importing managers "When an employee’s loan ends" to include HR teams in the wording: "Speak to your recruitment team or your HR team about how to start a transfer when an employee returns from a loan of 6 months or more."
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Added to first loan example in further details for exporting and importing managers about employees returning from loan.
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Updated list of departments using the digital Employee Transfer Service.
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Five new entries added to the list of department who use the digital Employee Transfer Service from Wednesday 29 April 2026.
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UK Space Agency (UKSA) is now part of DSIT and Valuation Office Agency (VOA) now part of HMRC, so their separate entries on the list of departments using the digital Employee Transfer Service removed to maintain an up-to-date list.
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Added Welsh Revenue Authority to the list of departments using the digitial Employee Transfer Service. Welsh Revenue Authority join the digital service on 18 March 2026.
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Clarified that transfers using the digital Employee Transfer Service to and from HMRC and Home Office are for vacancies advertised after 12 November 2025.
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Updated list of departments using the digital Employee Transfer Service from 12 November 2025 to include Home Office, HMRC and Valuation Office Agency.
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Added Government Property Agency (GPA) to the list of organisations using the digital Employee Transfer Service.
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Updated list of departments using the digital Employee Transfer Service published 17 September 2025.
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Updated list of departments using the digital Employee Transfer Service
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The list of departments who use the new, digital Employee Transfer Service has been updated to include more government departments. Reference to the service as "pilot" has been removed.
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New version of staff transfer form added to page. The form is updated to include OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE (WHEN COMPLETED).
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Added Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) to the list of pilot departments for the new digital Employee Transfer Service.
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Updated list of departments using the new, digital Employee Transfer Service as part of the new service's pilot phase. Updated version of the Excel staff transfer form.
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Updated the Staff transfer form to re-introduce the Annual Leave section in Part B and transferee address fields in Part A for departments who need this.
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Updated content about eligibility around transfers applying to civil servants who are transferring permanently or on a loan of 6 months or more.
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Updated staff transfer form and removed details about cost of living payment. Updated details about eligibility for non-departmental public bodies.
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Message added to guidance for employees attachment about pilot phase of new digital Civil Service Employee Transfer Service.
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New wording added to Further details for employees about the £1,500 non-consolidated payment. Staff Transfer Form (Part C) includes a new question in the pay award section about the £1,500 non-consolidated payment.
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Details added about changes from Counter Terrorist Check (CTC) to the new L1B clearance. References to Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS) removed. New content added to further details for employees around deductions.
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Guidance updated to reflect who the staff transfer process applies to, particularly around non-departmental public bodies.
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New section about annual leave entitlement added to employee further details page.
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Staff transfer form updated to include new Tax statements published by HMRC.
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Replaced 3 guidance PDFs with HTML attachments, and updated staff transfer form to improve usability and accessibility.
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Updated to include 'Loans policy - Combined HR and finance policy and process'.
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Updated versions of all forms
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Revised Civil Service Employee Transfer Form
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First published.
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Documents
Staff transfer form
MS Excel Spreadsheet, 379 KB
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Details
This page explains the process for transferring employees across the Civil Service. It contains guidance for:
- employees moving between departments
- exporting managers - the employee’s current manager
- importing managers - the employee’s new manager in their new department
When moving to a new department, the process normally includes transferring an employee’s:
- HR record
- pension details
- any current and valid National Security Clearance (NSV) they hold
- any reasonable adjustments
The page also includes the staff transfer form. This form covers HR, payroll and security clearance transfer. There are parts of the form for the employee, their current manager and HR team to complete. It is otherwise known as the Civil Service Employee Transfer (CSET) form.