Mililtary Benefits

[Gregory Matthews]

People who have served in the U.S. military often wonder what benefits may be available to them after they have left military service.  The following may be of help to them.

 

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“Where can I find current and comprehensive information about the (fill in the blank) benefit?” is a frequently asked question. Once retired or in the Retired Reserve, the information you’re seeking can sometimes be a challenge. That day-to-day contact with experts you used to have is gone and your life has taken on new rhythms and responsibilities that can get in the way of taking care of yourself.  Of course, the internet offers a multitude of resources, but be careful, many of these are outdated, incomplete or over-simplified. And some of the information posted is just simply incorrect. Remember, once written it’s there forever. So, for you Google sleuths: caveat emptor!

As a first stop on the information superhighway, you might want to consider MyArmyBenefits (https://MyArmyBenefits. us.army.mil) to get the straight scoop on all your military related benefits. It is the official Army benefits website; current, complete and up-to-date; all in one place - and has the answers for all your federal and state benefit questions.

For example, if it’s federal benefits information you want, there’s no better place to look than MyArmyBenefits because this website has every federal benefit for which retirees, their families, veterans and survivors are eligible: TRICARE, the VA, scholarships, tuition assistance, SBP, Space-A travel, legal assistance, social security, home loans, nursing homes, disability compensation, burial and memorial benefits. You name it - they got it. And you can search by category, lifeevent, component or A - Z. You will find them under “Benefits Library” on the MyArmyBenefits homepage.

What about the state benefits for active or drilling Soldiers, veterans and Retired Soldiers where you live or, perhaps, in a state where you’re considering moving or where your grandkids live? MyArmyBenefits has that covered too and is the only place you can see all state and territory military benefits. To begin with, every state is different, and not surprisingly has different benefits, so you can’t just assume because one state offers it, another will as well. And they change with great frequency. Some tax military pay at a reduced rate, some don’t tax retired pay at all. Some exempt veterans from sales and property tax; some give full scholarships to the children of Soldiers with disabilities. There are states that offer reduced rate home loans and others that subsidize state park entrance fees, hunting and fishing licenses and even onstreet parking. Look in the MyArmyBenefits website library, pick your state and get ready to be impressed.

For those who haven’t retired yet, in addition to lots of good information, the MyArmyBenefits website has decision support tools that quantify the impact future promotion, deployment and longevity have on retired pay and helps put a number on security, quality of life and rate of return for time invested. So, check it out at https://myarmybenefits. us.army.mil/.

Bottom line: The tools and libraries in MyArmyBenefits provide Soldiers, veterans and Retired Soldiers and their families with the information they need to plan and decide their future, put goals in place that are attainable and determine which provides the greatest benefit to their situation.