The pay base for that pension is calculated from the average of the highest 36 months of pay in that rank using the pay tables in effect when you start that pension. In addition your pension is calculated from the High Three average of the pay tables in the year that you reach age 60 (2020 in your case) and at the longevity as though you’d been on active duty the entire time. locations. For each one, you’ll take the max pay at that rank (max longevity) and the number of months of that year. This means that you have to serve three years’ time in grade to retire at the rank of O-5 (waiverable down to two years) but you do not have to worry about MRD. You’ll earn even more points (and good years) as an O-5. DFAS uses the method that results in the largest payment. Those 36 months will probably be the ones just before your pension starts, and at the pay tables in effect when your pension starts. It’s absolutely essential that you resolve these questions now, before you apply for retirement, in order to avoid having to resolve them through a corrections board after retirement. The part which I’m frequently asked about is paragraph 1370(d)(5)(A). It also looks like you’re eligible to start your pension in November 2019. Federal law includes a section called “sanctuary”: any servicemember, active or Reserve/Guard, who reaches 18 years of active duty must be continued on active duty to 20 years (and an active-duty retirement). The current legislation (passed in early 2008 and updated in 2015) reduces the age 60 retirement requirement by three months for every 90 consecutive days of mobilization during a fiscal year for war or national emergency. If that might be an issue, though, you can read more about it at this post from my friend (and ANG officer) Ryan Guina: https://themilitarywallet.com/national-guard-and-reserve-early-retirement-age/, You could wait to start your Reserve pension on 1 January 2019, but it works against you with High Three. I began Basic Training in April 1983. Let me know if “TPU soldier” is a different subject. i have 4 full active army and 10 reserve. I did make O-5 and now am less than 18 months from retirement. Google everybody,somebody, anybody and nobody of the story. Tara, Tara, you might want to start with BUPERS Online for your point count. Your pension amount at age 60 will be based on your total points and on High-Three average of the pay tables in effect when you’re 60 years old. If I do that, will I get my retirement when I complete my 10 years of active duty time or will I have to do more time to get my retirement right when I retire? Thanks, Chris. I am eligible for reduced retired pay in Nov 2019 due to active duty performed after January 2008. Doug, I have a friend who is trying to straighten out his Active Federal Service (AFS) time as an Army Reserve AGR officer. I had almost a 16-year break in service before enlisting in the Army National Guard in April 2015 with the purpose of obtaining my final six good years. TRR is not subsidized like Tricare Reserve Select so the TRR premiums are higher. I know you have to be in a reserve status called to active duty for the reduction to occur. It’s taken over three years and it may need to be re-accomplished again due to lapse in shelf-life of the paperwork. Costs are typically based on Family income. Each service has their own procedures on their Reserve/National Guard websites, and they’re all just different enough (and changing frequently enough) to be extremely confusing. (Or an alert reader will let us know here on the blog.) Here is some helpful info concerning the early drop: Early Retirement for National Guard and Reserves. For a spreadsheet or a calculator, you could assume that military pay grows with the rate of inflation. The formula’s resulting dollar figure is rounded down. Login. You’re under a High Three pension plan, and your pension will be calculated from the average of the highest 36 months of pay. I understand over the years the way retirement points are calculated has changed. The Army has retired at least one other servicemember as an enlisted, despite their service at a commissioned rank, and you want to verify that your retirement references the appropriate sections of federal law. Your PEBD would be updated when you reentered the military. Thank you, I look forward to hearing from you. Thanks in advance. Thank you so much for all the useful and interesting information! It tops out at 30. But this law only applies for deployment time served after Jan. 28, 2008. Tricare starts at age 60 regardless of the start date of the Reserve pension. I’ve never heard of the program you describe, but I know that there are some “critical skill” civil-service or contractor jobs which require the employee to also hold a billet in the Reserve or National Guard. All rights reserved. You’d want to make sure you have the latest edition: https://www.opm.gov/retirement-services/publications-forms/csrsfers-handbook/c022.pdf For example, section 22A2.1-2.E on page 8 of that document goes into the detail you seek, and it essentially says that only the active-duty time of your Reserve career counts… but not every period of active duty. One loophole to this involves commissioned officers. If you have this login and password, this means you have access to a detailed and extremely informative US army retirement calculator. Congress and DoD just took advantage of a common civilian practice that doesn’t happen to be common to the military. Click to view AdvisoryHQ's, ► Get Featured on AdvisoryHQ. https://www.dfas.mil/militarymembers/payentitlements/military-pay-charts.html https://www.dfas.mil/dam/jcr:ccc8e348-187d-4bff-9e39-b113ad7fa67d/MilPayTable2018_4.pdf. Verify your free subscription by following the instructions in the email sent to: Check out the 2020 US military pay scale charts for all ranks for active duty, as well as Reserve and Guard components. I just re-sent you my response to your 4 July “Contact me”; please check your e-mail (and perhaps your spam folder) for my NordsNords at Gmail address. I know of two Reservists with over 7400 points, although they’ll never be approved for any orders over 29 days. One person says that my three years as a chaplain candidate count towards pay and seniority, but not towards retirement. Additionally, I will have 4 years of qualifying NDAA (post January 2008) service. Thanks, Tony, and you’ve asked a good question. Finally, the Final Pay formula is (Points / 360) x 2.5% x base pay = $/month According to the rules in the FMR, the first division is carried to three places and rounded to two. I should have applied for my retirement pay a long about 7 months ago but I live in a foreign country with no bank account here. https://www.dfas.mil/Portals/98/Documents/militarymembers/militarymembers/pay-tables/2020%20MilPay%20General.pdf?ver=2020-04-22-114904-720 Figure out how many years of service you’d technically have at age 60, check the numbers in the pay table for your retirement rank, and see whether that incorrect PEBD date gives you a different pay amount.