Pay administration is the implementation of the laws, regulations, and policies that govern employee compensation. Some terms related to pay administration are:

Time off with pay in lieu of overtime pay for irregular or occasional overtime work, or When permitted under agency flexible work schedule programs, time off with pay in lieu of overtime pay for regularly scheduled or irregular or occasional overtime work.

Compensatory time off for travel is earned by an employee for time spent in a travel status away from the employees official duty station when such time is not otherwise compensable. Compensable time off for travel may only be earned for time in a travel status that is not otherwise "compensable."

Credit hours are those hours within a flexible work schedule that an employee elects to work in excess of his or her basic work requirement (e.g., 80 hours in a pay period for a full-time employee) so as to vary the length of a workweek or workday.

The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as amended (referred to as "the Act" or "FLSA"), is published in law in sections 201-219 of title 29, United States Code. The Act provides for minimum standards for both wages and overtime entitlement, and spells out administrative procedures by which covered worktime must be compensated. Included in the Act are provisions related to child labor, equal pay, and portal-to-portal activities. In addition, the Act exempts specified employees or groups of employees from the application of certain of its provisions.

A change of an employee while continuously employed from one General Schedule (GS) grade to a higher GS grade.

Each General Schedule (GS) grade has 10 steps. Within-grade increases (WGIs) or step increases are periodic increases in a GS employee's rate of basic pay from one step of the grade of his or her position to the next higher step of that grade.

Annual leave is the time earned by an employee that can be used for personal time off. Full time employees earn annual leave at the following rates:

Annual leave may be used for vacations, rest and relaxation, personal business or emergencies. An employee has a right to take annual leave, subject to the right of the supervisor to schedule the time at which annual leave may be taken.

Sick leave is the time accrued by an employee that can be used for time off for health related purposes. It is accrued at a rate of 4 hours per pay period for all full time employees regardless of length of service.

Leave without pay (LWOP) is a temporary nonpay status and absence from duty that, in most cases, is granted at the employee's request. In most instances, granting LWOP is a matter of supervisory discretion and may be limited by agency internal policy.

An employee may donate annual leave directly to another Federal employee who has a personal or family medical emergency and who has exhausted his or her available paid leave. Each agency must administer a voluntary leave transfer program for its employees. There is no limit on the amount of donated annual leave a leave recipient may receive from the leave donor(s). However, any unused donated leave must be returned to the leave donor(s) when the medical emergency ends.

A leave year begins on the first day of the first full biweekly pay period in a calendar year.A leave year ends on the day immediately before the first day of the first full biweekly pay period in the following calendar year.