Which move type is right for you?
Compare your options side by side.
Full PPM (DITY)
You move everything yourself
Highest payout- Keep 100% of GCC
- You keep whatever the allowance exceeds your costs
- You control the schedule
- Most physical work
- Damage risk is on you
Partial PPM
TMO ships most, you move some
- Less work than full PPM
- Still earn some reimbursement
- Heavy stuff handled by pros
- Coordinating two moves
- Lower payout
Full TMO move
Government handles everything
- Zero effort on your part
- No upfront costs
- Full damage coverage
- No reimbursement ($0)
- Less schedule control
How PPM works
What is GCC?
The Government Constructive Cost is what DoD would've paid a contracted carrier to move your household goods. You receive 100% of this as your PPM reimbursement.
Tax treatment
PPM is taxable — DFAS withholds 22% federal only (no FICA/Medicare). Deduct unreimbursed moving expenses on IRS Form 3903 at filing.
What you need
PPM counseling through TMO · approved DD Form 2278 · certified weight tickets (loaded + empty) · receipts for operating expenses.
Advance
You can request up to 60% of your estimated GCC as an Advance Operating Allowance before you move — helps cover truck + fuel upfront.
GCC estimate based on real PPM closeout data. Rates are 2026. Always get an official estimate from your Transportation Office before making financial decisions.
Field notes
PPM at 100% GCC, the 22% tax withholding surprise, and the actual-expense documentation that protects profit
The Personally Procured Move (PPM) — historically called DITY — is the member-managed alternative to a government Household Goods (HHG) move under JTR paragraph 051502. The member arranges and pays for the move, then submits a settlement claim to receive a percentage of the Government Constructed Cost (GCC). For moves commencing May 15 through September 30, 2025, temporary authority MAP 42-25(R) paid the allowance at 130% of Global Household Goods Contract (GHC) rates (JTR par. 051502-C-1). That authority expired, and moves commencing after 30 September 2025 are paid at 100% of the Government's constructed “Best Value” cost (JTR par. 051502-C-2). PPM math for CY2026 uses the 100% rate.
The 22% federal supplemental wage withholding catches almost every first-time PPM filer.The taxable part of a PPM settlement is treated by DFAS as supplemental wages under IRS Regulations § 31.3402(g)-1 and has federal income tax withheld at a flat 22% rate at the time of disbursement. It is not withheld on the gross GCC. DoD FMR Volume 9, Chapter 6, paragraph 3.2.3 sets the order of operations: the payment office takes 100% of the GCC as the maximum allowance, deducts the expenses the member actually incurred and documented on the claim, calls the remainder the member's incentive payment, and only then multiplies that incentive by the federal withholding percentage — plus a state percentage if the member's state of legal residence has a withholding agreement with the Secretary of the Treasury (paragraph 3.2.3.4). A member whose documented truck rental, fuel, hired labor and packing supplies consume most of the GCC is taxed on what is left over, not on the gross.
Documenting actual costs at settlement is what keeps the tax off your gross. Under FMR Volume 9, Chapter 6, paragraph 3.2.3.7, the Form W-2 the payment office prepares carries only the incentive portion of the PPM monetary allowance in the earned-income block, with the federal and state withholding in their own blocks — not the full settlement. The settlement claim must include the member's statement of expenses actually incurred (FMR Volume 9, Chapter 6, paragraph 3.2.2.1); submitting no documented expenses makes the entire GCC taxable incentive and the member pays federal tax on all of it. Acceptable substantiation per the PPM Checklist & Expense Certification includes vehicle rental contracts, fuel receipts for the rental vehicle, packing-material receipts, hired-labor receipts, tolls, and weighing fees. Expenses you cannot get into the settlement claim are not lost — under IRS Publication 521 an active-duty member moving on orders can still deduct unreimbursed moving costs on Form 3903 and recover the over-withheld tax at filing.
Weight tickets are non-negotiable. The claim requires certified empty-weight and certified full-weight tickets from a certified scale — truck-stop CAT scales, public weigh masters, and installation scales all qualify (DTR 4500.9-R, Part IV, Chapter 411). Both weights must be of the same vehicle. The difference between full and empty is the net weight that earns the PPM payment. The member's authorized weight allowance (per JTR Table 5-37 — see also the Weight Allowance reference page) caps the payable weight. Over-weight is paid at 0% — the GCC math stops at the authorized allowance.
45-day submission window. The settlement claim — expense statement, weight tickets, and operating-expense receipts — must be submitted within 45 days of completing the move, per Service PPM turn-in guidance. Submit the packet to the gaining installation's Transportation Office; incomplete documentation is the most common cause of payment delays.
Authorities: 37 U.S.C. § 453 (Personally Procured Move reimbursement; household-goods self-move under § 453(c)); JTR paragraphs 051501-051504; PDTATAC MAP 42-25(R) (130% temporary authority, expired 30 September 2025); DoD FMR Volume 9, Chapter 6, par. 3.2.3 (PPM settlement and withholding sequence); IRS Publication 521 (Moving Expenses); IRS Form 3903; IRS Regulations § 31.3402(g)-1 (supplemental wage withholding); DTR 4500.9-R, Part IV, Chapter 411 (PPM turn-in); JTR Table 5-37 (Weight Allowances). Verify the current reimbursement rate, withholding treatment, and substantiation requirements with your installation Transportation Office and finance office before signing the DD Form 2278.