LTC Air Travel Rules & Authorized Travel Agents — Special Dispensation Scheme 2026

Air travel under LTC is one of the most rule-heavy areas of the scheme — and also one of the most commonly misunderstood, especially after a series of relaxations issued by DoPT over the last few years. This article explains who is entitled to fly on LTC, who can still choose to fly even without entitlement, the role of the three Authorized Travel Agents, and the special air travel relaxation for the North-East and other difficult regions.

Basic Air Travel Entitlement Under LTC

The travel entitlement for LTC purposes generally follows the same Travelling Allowance (TA) entitlement notified by the Ministry of Finance, with one notable exception: air travel entitlement for Level 6 to Level 8 of the Pay Matrix is allowed only for TA (official tour) purposes, and not for LTC. This means employees in these pay levels who are entitled to fly on official tour are still not automatically entitled to fly on LTC, unless covered by a specific relaxation scheme.

The Three Authorized Travel Agents (ATAs)

For all cases of air travel under LTC, tickets are required to be purchased only from the three Authorized Travel Agents:

• M/s Balmer Lawrie & Company Limited (BLCL)
• M/s Ashok Travels & Tours (ATT)
• Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd. (IRCTC)

Government employees are required to choose the flight with the Best Available Fare — essentially the cheapest fare available in their entitled travel class — preferably opting for a non-stop flight in the relevant time slot at the time of booking.

Relaxation for Non-Entitled Employees Travelling by Air

An important and employee-friendly relaxation: Government employees who are not entitled for air travel, but wish to travel by air anyway, are no longer mandatorily required to book their air tickets only through the three ATAs. In such cases, reimbursement is simply restricted to the actual air fare or the entitled train/bus fare for the shortest route — whichever is lower. This gives ordinary employees the flexibility to book through any platform, while capping the Government's reimbursement liability at what it would have cost via the entitled surface mode.

Exception: Under the Special Dispensation Scheme (covered below) for travel to the North-East, J&K, Ladakh and A&N Islands, non-entitled employees who wish to fly are still required to book through the three ATAs only.

Special Dispensation Scheme — NER, J&K, Ladakh and A&N Islands

Recognising the difficulty of overland travel to certain regions, the Government has, for some years now, allowed Group B and C employees — who are otherwise not entitled to air travel — to fly to the North-Eastern Region (NER), Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir, Union Territory of Ladakh, and Andaman & Nicobar (A&N) Islands while availing LTC. This scheme has been periodically extended by DoPT and is currently in force, having been extended through the relevant period of 2026 as well; employees should always confirm the latest validity date with their administration before booking, since this scheme is renewed through fresh Office Memorandums from time to time.

Example: Suppose Shri Rakesh Yadav, a Level 5 employee (not otherwise entitled to fly on LTC), wants to take his family to Port Blair in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands under his Anywhere in India LTC. Under the Special Dispensation Scheme, he can fly there — but only by booking his air tickets through one of the three ATAs, and not through any private booking app or website.

Flexi-Fare (Dynamic Fare) Rules for Premium Trains

The flexi-fare or dynamic fare component applicable on Rajdhani, Shatabdi, and Duronto trains is admissible for LTC journeys performed by these trains. There is, however, an important restriction: this dynamic fare component is not admissible in cases where a non-entitled Government servant instead travels by air and tries to claim reimbursement equal to the entitled class fare of these premium trains — the comparison in such cases is made against the base fare, not the flexi-fare.

Separately, admissibility of travel by the newer Tejas Rajdhani Express trains while availing LTC has also been specifically clarified by DoPT.

Rules for Children's Air Travel

• No reimbursement is allowed for air travel performed by children below 5 years of age, where the Government servant himself is not entitled to travel by air on LTC.
• For children in the 5-12 years age group, actual rail fare is reimbursed as per the choice of rail tickets actually purchased by the Government servant.

IRCTC and Tourism Corporation Tour Packages

Tours conducted by the India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) and State Tourism Development Corporations (STDCs) — whether in their own buses or in buses hired/chartered by them — qualify for LTC purposes. Similarly, tours conducted by IRCTC also qualify on the same lines, subject to conditions, and reimbursement of air fare along with rail and road fare is allowed for LTC journeys undertaken through IRCTC tour packages.

There is also a specific facility for tour packages conducted by SPORTS (Society for Promotion of Nature Tourism and Sports) to Lakshadweep Island, on ships owned and operated by the Lakshadweep Administration, which are allowed for LTC purposes subject to conditions.

Booking Through Unauthorized Agents — Relaxation in Genuine Cases

Where, due to unavoidable circumstances, an LTC air ticket is booked from an unauthorized travel agent or website, relaxation can be granted by the Financial Advisor of the Ministry/Department, or by the Head of Department not below the rank of Joint Secretary in subordinate/attached offices — this is meant to handle genuine emergencies, not routine convenience bookings.

Cancellation Charges

Both types of cancellation charges — those levied by the airline, and those levied by the three ATAs for use of their own booking platforms — are reimbursed, but only on the ground of official exigencies. Routine personal-reason cancellations are not reimbursed and must be borne by the employee.

Booking Without an Official Email ID

Many junior or field-posted employees do not have an official email account. To address this, the three ATAs have been directed to register such employees for LTC ticket booking, provided the administrative office shares the employee's name, employee code, private email ID, and mobile number with the travel agents.

Common Mistakes Employees Make

• Booking through private apps for the Special Dispensation Scheme — this leads to outright rejection of the claim, since ATA booking is mandatory for that specific scheme.
• Assuming flexi-fare always applies — it does not apply when a non-entitled employee flies and tries to claim the premium train's dynamic fare as a benchmark.
• Not checking the latest validity of the Special Dispensation Scheme — this scheme is renewed periodically through fresh OMs, and employees should confirm current validity before finalising air travel plans.
• Forgetting the children's air fare rule — parents sometimes assume air fare for young children will automatically be reimbursed.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)