Divorce And Military Retirement - A service member's retired pay can be a valuable asset in the event of a divorce, legal separation or dissolution of marriage.
In 1982, Congress passed the Uniformed Services Former Spouse Protection Act, which allows state courts to treat disposable pension payments as property belonging solely to the member or as property of the member and his spouse in accordance with the laws of the state court.
Divorce And Military Retirement
Contrary to popular belief, there is no "magic formula" in the law to determine the appropriate distribution of retirement pay. A state court can divide retired pay any way it wants (subject to that state's laws). All 50 states treat retirement as marital or community property.
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One of the popular misconceptions about pension is that it is only divisible if the marriage lasted at least 10 years. A state court can award a portion of the retirement benefits to a former spouse of a member even if the marriage lasted less than a year.
In order for the Department of Defense to make direct payments of a member's pensionable pay to the former spouse, the former spouse must have been married to the member for a period of at least 10 years, with at least 10 years of the marriage which is a period of service that can be credited against the pensionable wage.
Direct payments will also not be made for pension salary sharing that exceeds 50 percent or 65 percent if alimony or child support is paid in addition to pension salary sharing. Disability pay is not subject to division as property, but it is subject to attachment for alimony or child support.
A very important provision of the USFSPA is that the court must have jurisdiction over the member in order to be allowed to divide the member's retired pay, by:
Dividing Military Retirement
For example, if John Smith is stationed in Ohio but claims Nebraska as his legal domicile and if his spouse files for divorce in Ohio, the court will not be allowed to divide John's retired pay unless John agrees to the court's jurisdiction.
In addition to a share of the pensionable salary, the former spouse is entitled to certain benefits as long as he/she meets the criteria. Because the benefits are statutory rights, they are automatic and not subject to negotiation or deviation by a divorce court, and the member cannot confiscate the spouse's ID card or otherwise suspend the spouse's privileges.
Former spouses will retain all benefits and privileges, including medical, commissary, exchanges, if he or she was married to the member for at least 20 years, the member had at least 20 years of service, and there was at least 20 years of overlap between marriage and service.
If there is less than 20 but at least 15 years of overlap, the former spouse will be entitled to only one year of transitional medical benefits. Medical benefits are suspended while the former spouse is covered by an employer-sponsored health care plan and will terminate upon the former spouse's remarriage.
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A giant US government fuel storage facility hidden in a ridge overlooking Pearl Harbor has the... The Uniformed Services Former Spouse Protection Act (USFSPA) was enacted in 1982 to provide some provide financial protection to former spouses of a service member. The USFSPA focuses on the distribution of benefits earned during the marriage. Disability pay is not part of the USFSPA and cannot be awarded under its provisions.
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As part of the USFSPA, the 10/10 rule allows direct payments to the former spouse of the service member's pension. To qualify under the 10/10 rule, the service member must have at least 10 years of creditable service contributing to the service member's retirement, there must be 10 years of marriage and there must be 10 years of overlap.
If the former spouse is awarded a portion of the service member's DFAS pension, the rule allows the former spouse to receive direct payments. Direct payments are preferred because the ex-spouse is not dependent on their ex-spouse to send payments. And if the ex-spouse needs to refinance property or debt, the bank may favor direct deposits.
Direct payments may take more than three months to process and receive. The assessment language must take this time into account and require the officer to pay directly to the former spouse until the withholding tax ruling takes effect.
When the service member dies, their military pension payments stop. In order for a former spouse to continue receiving payments, the service member must have subscribed to an annuity to protect the beneficiary's benefits. Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) is an annuity available to the service member.
Military Spouse Divorce Benefits
The SBP allows the service member's beneficiaries to continue receiving pension payments after the service member's death. SBP is a percentage of the service member's benefits. Generally, the SBP benefit is limited to 55% of the gross salary. This is not an automatic plan. The service member must enroll for coverage.
The cost of SBP depends on the cover chosen. Generally, there is no charge if the officer is on active duty. However, the cost at retirement can be up to 6.5% of the gross pensionable salary. A civil servant can choose to receive reduced salary cover. If the officer opts for reduced SBP, the cost is calculated on the covered income.
The SBP can be changed after a divorce judgment has been issued. To protect the SBP, the divorce decree must establish language to protect the former spouse from the service member unilaterally changing or terminating the plan. If the divorce order directs the service member to continue to elect SBP, the service member will need the consent of the former spouse before they can change coverage.
TRICARE is a health care program within the US Department of Defense's military health system. TRICARE provides benefits to US military personnel, military retirees and dependents.
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The 20/20/20 rule allows the former spouse to claim full military health care, including TRICARE. Similar to the 10/10 rule, the former spouse must have been married to the employee to be eligible for medical expense coverage,
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