Effective Aug. 1, all service members must serve four more years before they are eligible to transfer benefits of the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill to their spouse or children.
Currently, most service members must serve four years before they can transfer the benefits. However, in 2009 when the transfer was offered as an incentive for recruiting and retention, troops near retirement age were allowed to transfer the benefits based on their retirement eligibility date. Some service members served no additional time in uniform before making the transfer while others served up to an additional three years.
That waiver officially expires at the end of July.
For service members who are considering retiring in the coming months, or even years, the change may put a dent in their plans. Anyone retiring before the 2014 graduations, just in time to use the benefit for their newly minted college freshman, will be out of luck. Stars and Stripes covered the topic with Keith Davis, chief of education and training at the Ramstein Air Base education office.
“It’s across the board. Effective Aug. 1, all members of the military, regardless of branch, will be required to serve a four-year active-duty service commitment at the time they elect to transfer benefits to a family member.”
The four years of service begins the moment they transfer the benefits but doesn’t necessarily mean they have to re-enlist for another four years. Here’s what Davis told Stars and Stripes:
“You have to give the military four years from the day you execute the transfer. If you have two years left and you transfer (benefits), you would have to extend for an additional two years to satisfy the requirement.”
The change mostly affects senior officers and enlisted personnel who are nearing retirement.
To be eligible to transfer Post-9/11 G.I. benefits, a service member must have a minimum of six years in the military. To be eligible to receive those military for education benefits, their spouse or child must be enrolled in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS) computerized database.
Military members can transfer the benefit back to themselves to fund their own education for up to 15 years after leaving the service, but cannot transfer the benefits to their dependents after retiring. The transfer must be made while the military member is on active duty.
