Temporary Lodging Allowance (TLA)

There are no military Temporary Lodging Facilities (TLF).  As soon as you have completed medical screening and have orders in hand, start negotiating a hard transfer and arrival date so you can reserve temporary living arrangements.  Personnel coming to Northwood have taken as little as one week and as long as three months to find a permanent home, so ensure the place you pick is comfortable and meets your family’s needs for a potentially extended stay.  Work closely with your sponsor to find a place that is suitable in terms of cost, location, and size.  (Note:  Plan to use your personal, not government, credit card for payment and be reimbursed later via direct deposit.)   

TLA Authorization Amount: 

Your TLA is based on the official local per diem rates for your new duty station—specifically, the Max Lodging Rate and the Meals & Incidental Expenses (M&IE) Rate.

How to Calculate Your Temporary Lodging Allowance (TLA)

TLA is designed to partially offset the higher costs of living in a hotel and eating out while you secure permanent housing in the UK. Your daily TLA cap is based on two things: your family composition and the local per diem rate for your specific base. Click on the links below to help you determine your max lodging and meals and incidentals. 

TLA COMPUTATION AND EXAMPLES

Look Up Local Per Diem Rates 

Popular TLA Accommodations. 

The majority of personnel stay at one of the following locations: 

a. Downtown London Apartments (Flats) via McGlashans. Near Baker Street Tube Station, with easy access to Northwood Base on the Metropolitan Line, but from door to door, it can take over an hour to get back and forth.  One advantage is that you will be downtown, giving you the opportunity to sightsee when off-duty.  Go to www.mcglashans.co.uk to look at some of the properties.  If you choose this option, call +44 (0)2074-863-147 and ask to speak with James McGlashan directly, or e-mail: james@mcglashans.co.uk – some recent arrivals have reported difficulty finding availability here over the summer period. 

b. Novotel, or Holiday Inn, in the Wembley area.  Located near the Wembley Tube Station.  Easy access to the Tube (also on the Metropolitan Line) and not far from central London, but a little closer to Northwood than downtown.  From door to door, it can still take about an hour to get back and forth.  Go to www.accorhotels.com/gb/hotel-9389-novotel-london-wembley/index.shtml or call +44(0) 20 8069 1200 for Novotel, or go to www.ihg.com/holidayinn/hotels/us/en/wembley/lonwe/hoteldetail for Holiday Inn, to book rooms if you decide to use this option. 

c. USAF/USSF/USA Personnel.  U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force, and U.S. Space Force personnel in processing are done at RAF Blenheim Crescent, and members generally find lodging IVO Wembley Park or along the Metropolitan line convenient for ease of transit to both MARCOM and RAF Blenheim Crescent (Ruislip tube station). Please discuss options with your sponsor. 

Other TLA Accommodations.  

There are many hotels in the London metro area that you can use based on your own preferences.  Airbnb properties are considered nonconventional lodging and can be used when traditional accommodations are unavailable.  While not explicitly prohibited by the Joint Travel Regulations, outside CONUS, there is a general requirement that any accommodation booked be in a safe, secure location.  If you do elect to stay in nonconventional lodging, discuss it with your sponsor and consider the following: 

a. Location.  How far is it to the nearest Tube station? Does the station have access to the line you need? How long is the train ride to the base? 

b. Cost and Payment.  Are rooms within the TLA allowance? How much advance notice do you need to check out?

c. Food.  Are there cooking facilities? How far from restaurants and/or grocery stores if you intend to cook meals? 

d. Laundry.  Facilities and the cost of doing laundry. 

e. Stores.  Accessibility to stores where you can get things like toiletries, diapers, etc.? 

f. Other Services.  Cable television, internet, etc. 

Allowances and Entitlements.  While you are in temporary lodging, you are entitled to Temporary Living Allowance (TLA).  When you check into the admin department and again at your Housing Office appointment, you will be briefed on how to collect TLA.  TLA is a reimbursed cost, and can take up to 15 days the first time, then up to 10 days after that.  Each time you submit a claim, via Salesforce, the following items are required, based on how long you have been in TLA, to the admin department at Northwood

Per Diem.  

Each day you are living in temporary accommodation, you are entitled to per diem. The rate is based on whether you have dependents and if your accommodations have cooking facilities.