Military Spouse Retirement Benefits

Most frequently former spouses who qualify for military benefits under the 20 20 20 rule are the spouses of retirees.

Military spouse retirement benefits. Former spouse benefits for marriage of any duration. Military service repays veterans and their families with a variety of benefits. Military life can be an exciting adventure for spouses as long as you re prepared. At retirement full basic sbp for spouse and children will take effect automatically if you make no other valid election.

There is the belief by some that the usfspa states the military member must pay their spouse or ex spouse a portion of their military retirement but this is a fundamental misunderstanding of the act. You can t reduce or decline the sbp without your spouse s written consent. This means the military requires former spouse s share in the plan benefits to be valued at the lower rank and pay grade of the military member at the date of divorce as opposed to using the higher rank and pay grade at the time of retirement. If the former spouse of a military service member is awarded a share of the ex spouse s military retirement pay the service member served for at least 10 years and the former.

According to the usfspa the division of military pay is not mandatory during divorce this is a common mistake made by divorcing couples. Being prepared includes knowing your military spouse benefits and where to find them as you navigate your way through the military community. The following benefits are available to a former military spouse regardless of the duration of the marriage. Be familiar with your entitlements.

Courts can award a former spouse a share of the military retirement even after just a brief marriage. As the spouse of a military retiree you may be eligible for. 20 20 20 spouses retain their tricare medical coverage commissary and exchange shopping privileges and access to other base amenities as long as they do not remarry. If you re new to military life there s lots of information to take in.

Whether you have a medal of honor pension survivor s or veteran s. If the veteran herself has passed on her spouse will lose some benefits such as retirement pay but may still be eligible for dependency and indemnity compensation dic or the survivor benefit plan sbp.