Department of Defense Announces GI Bill Family Transfer Rulings

The Department of Defense has come to a final conclusion regarding the rulings of how family transfer will work for the Post 9/11 GI Bill, effective August 1, 2009.

The general gist of the ruling is that all service members, whether officer, warrant officer or enlisted personnel, must be on active duty on August 1st and must have completed six years of service, with the commitment to serve four more years. If these requirements are met, the military member may share their Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits with their spouse or dependent.

However, special rules have been passed for people who are eligible to retire before August 1, 2012, or who have already completed 10 years of service and are prevented by high-year tenure, mandatory retirement or other rules or laws preventing the completion of four years of additional service.

These special rules were put into effect so that retirement-eligible service members who find themselves with this new benefit do not clog up the ranks by delaying retirement so that they can pass their Post 9/11 GI Bill to their spouse or dependent. It also is meant to protect service members from losing their transfer rights over situations that are out of their control.

Bob Clark, the Department of Defense’s assistant accession policy director and the chief official working on the Post 9/11 GI Bill, says that the ability to share educational benefits “is one of hte most requested benefits we have heard about from the field and fleet for the last several years.” He is determined to make sure these rulings remain finalized and make sure that this service remains available. The ability to transfer the Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits to family members is considered one of the most popular military recruiting and retention benefits available.

Service members will be able to transfer up to 36 months of benefits to their spouse and/or child(ren). Changes in how this arrangement is dispersed among family members can be made once per month.

Here’s some additional information on how the rulings will work:

• Anyone eligible for retirement on August 1, 2009, will be permitted to transfer their benefits without additional service. Additionally, no service will be required for anyone who has an approved retirement date after August 1, 2009, but before July 1, 2010.
• Those who become eligible for retirement after August 1, 2009, and before August 1, 2010, must serve one year in the military after transferring the benefits to their family. (However, those that have an approved retirement date after August 1, 2009, and before July 1, 2010, will require no additional service.)
• Those who become eligible for retirement after August 1, 2010, and before August 1, 2011, must serve two years in the military after transferring the benefits to their family.
• Those who become eligible for retirement after August 1, 2012, will be required to serve the standard four years after transferring benefits.

Updated: The finalized rulings have been released.