The most important thing to consider when separating from the military is ensuring your immediate needs are taken care of. This includes making sure you have some cash coming in to cover your bills, a roof over your head, and health care coverage for you and your family. Unfortunately, you can only take your military health care benefits with you in limited circumstances, which we will cover in this article. ...
Continued Health Care Benefit Program – Health Care for Transitioning Veterans
One of the most overlooked aspects of leaving the military is losing your military health care benefits. Love it, or hate it, TRICARE provides military members and their families with a stable health care plan which is virtually unrivaled in the private sector. If you have just left, or are leaving the military health care system soon, then the Continued Health Care Benefit Program (CHCBP) may (literally) prove to be a ...
Transitional Assistance Management Program (TAMP) – Health Care When Leaving the Service
Transitioning from the military to the civilian world can be a stressful time, and the last thing you want to worry about is health care coverage for you and your family. That is why the military offers two programs to help transitioning military members maintain high quality health care coverage when they leave the military. The first program is the Transitional Assistance Management Program (TAMP), which we will cover in ...
Free Tax Filing and Preparation for Military Members
One of the little known benefits of being in the military is access to free tax preparation services. There are several options for military personnel to file their taxes for free, including free tax preparation assistance on base, and free tax prep software you can use online to file your taxes. Some local communities may also offer free tax preparation. We can't cover each of the local opportunities, but we ...
IRS E-File Schedule for Check Refunds and Direct Deposits
If you count yourself among the millions of Americans who file your federal taxes electronically using a software program or IRS E-File, then you are probably wondering when you will receive your federal tax refund. Thankfully, the IRS is one step ahead of you - they release an E-File schedule each year that lists when you will receive your tax refund. Learn how military members can file taxes for free. IRS E-File ...
Customer Service Win: Reporting a Stolen Debit Card to USAA
I recently logged into my USAA account to pay a bill and I noticed three large transactions from my joint checking account. My first thought was that my wife may have gone shopping (the category listed was clothing and shoes). But my wife isn't the type of person to spend over $1,000 on three separate transactions at the same store, in the same day - in another country. Further investigation showed ...
VOW to Hire Heroes Act of 2011 – GI Bill for Unemployed Veterans Age 35-60
If you are an unemployed military veteran, you may be eligible for a new GI Bill / career training program: the VOW to Hire Heroes Act of 2011 was created to help veterans gain marketable skills to more easily find a job. These new GI Bill benefits include education and training for unemployed veterans who are aged 35-60. The Veteran Opportunity to Work (VOW) Act of 2011 (HR 2433) is part ...