DLA Calculator

Dislocation Allowance is authorized under 37 U.S.C. § 477 to partially defray the household-relocation expenses incident to a Permanent Change of Station that are not otherwise reimbursed. The amount is set annually by the Department of Defense Per Diem, Travel, and Transportation Allowance Committee (PDTATAC) using the Employment Cost Index. For Calendar Year 2026, PDTATAC Memorandum 72-25(I) implemented a 3.8% ECI increase over the CY2025 table. JTR paragraph 050501 governs the entitlement; the rate table itself lives in the PDTATAC Uniform Travel Determination memo signed each December.

Timing on the LES. Full DLA is paid as a one-time lump sum, typically settling on the travel-voucher disbursement after the member files at the gaining installation. It appears as a single line item — "DLA" — on the LES for the disbursement month, not spread across the move period. Members who are waiting on DLA and have already paid moving expenses out of pocket can request an advance of DLA through their servicing finance office before the move.

DLA is non-taxable. Under 26 U.S.C. § 134, qualified military benefits including DLA are excluded from federal gross income and do not appear on the W-2. State income tax treatment generally mirrors federal under most state conformity statutes. The non-taxable status is what makes the practical value of DLA roughly 1.25-1.4× a taxable wage payment of the same dollar amount.

Dual-military couples. A married couple in which both spouses are service members executing PCS to the same location receives one DLA at the higher of the two pay-grade rates per JTR 050506. PCS to different locations pays each member their own DLA at their own rate and dependency status. The single-DLA rule frequently produces a surprise on the dual-military side of the LES because both spouses see PCS orders that look entitled to DLA, but only one payment lands.

Partial DLA — the local-move case. JTR paragraph 050508 authorizes Partial DLA at a fixed flat amount ($1,002.71 for CY2026 per PDTATAC MAP 72-25(I)) when a member is directed to vacate government quarters for non-personal reasons (renovation, demolition, base reorganization) and moves locally rather than under PCS orders. Partial DLA is overlooked in the LES audit because it does not appear on PCS-style orders; the authorization is typically a unit-level memorandum or a housing-office directive. Members forced into a local move without PCS orders should ask their finance office whether JTR 050508 applies.

Retirement-orders DLA. Final-move retirement PCS does not pay full DLA — the entitlement expressly applies to PCS between active-duty assignments under 37 U.S.C. § 477. Retiring members executing the final move to the home of selection should not budget for DLA. They are still entitled to the standard MALT and per diem on the final move under JTR Ch 5 Part B.

Authorities: 37 U.S.C. § 477 (Travel and transportation allowances: dislocation allowance); 26 U.S.C. § 134 (Certain military benefits); Joint Travel Regulations Chapter 5, paragraphs 050501-050508; PDTATAC MAP 72-25(I), effective 01 January 2026.