Family Separation Allowance

Family Separation Allowance (FSA) is a non-taxable monthly allowance authorized under 37 U.S.C. § 427 and administered per DoD Financial Management Regulation Volume 7A, Chapter 27. It compensates a service member with dependents when military duty causes an involuntary, continuous separation that exceeds 30 days. The intent is to offset the additional household expenses (childcare, household maintenance, transportation) that arise when a parent is unable to perform those duties for the family in person.

The FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act increased FSA from $250 to $300 per month, effective December 18, 2025. Per par. 4.4.3 note 1, payment is computed on a 30-day month basis: the 31st of any month is excluded from the count and February is treated as 30 days. Once the qualifying period exceeds 30 continuous days, FSA is paid back to day one of departure.

FSA-R (Restricted) covers separation due to military orders to a duty station where dependents are not transported at government expense. This includes dependent-restricted OCONUS tours (Korea, certain Middle East tours) and any assignment where the member is ordered alone and dependents remain at the prior or other authorized location.

FSA-S (Sea) covers separation due to assignment aboard a ship away from homeport for more than 30 continuous days (par. 2.3.1.2.1). Pierside time at homeport breaks the continuous count if the member can return home.

FSA-T (Temporary) covers separation when the member is on TDY/TAD away from the permanent duty station for more than 30 continuous days while the dependents remain at the permanent station (par. 4.4.1). Unit exercises lasting more than 30 days also qualify per par. 4.2.

A member can only receive FSA under one category at a time, but the categories cover the full range of military-driven separations from family.

FSA-S and FSA-T require the separation to exceed 30 continuous days, not merely reach 30 (par. 2.3.1.2.1, par. 4.4.1). A separation of exactly 30 days does not qualify; a separation of 31 days does, and the entitlement is paid back to the date of departure.

Continuity is evaluated against the period the member is away from the permanent duty station. Short returns within the period (mid-deployment R&R, weekend visits) do not break continuity if the member returns to the separation duty. However, an extended dependent visit at the duty station of more than 30 days interrupts FSA: entitlement ends the day before the visit starts and resumes when dependents depart, provided the member is still away more than 30 more days (par. 3.2.2 for FSA-S, par. 3.2.3 for FSA-T).

Constructed departure and return dates are computed by the finance office under par. 4.4.1.2. Authorized leave, proceed time, and permissive TDY are subtracted from the constructed period; the first authorized travel day starts the FSA clock.

Mil-to-mil couples are governed by DoD FMR Vol 7A, par. 2.3.4 (Members Married to Members). FSA is payable to mil-to-mil couples — including couples with no other dependents — because each spouse counts as the other's dependent for FSA purposes when separated by competent military orders (par. 2.3.4.1). The threshold question is whether the couple was residing together immediately before the orders that caused the separation. If they were not residing together, FSA is not payable for that separation (par. 2.3.4.1).

Single FSA (par. 2.3.4.1.1): when only one set of qualifying orders is in play, only one FSA per couple per month is payable. It goes to the member whose orders caused the separation. If both members received orders to depart on the same day, the senior member is paid. Sequential entitlement under par. 2.3.4.1.2 allows the spouses to claim FSA in different months when their qualifying separations don't overlap.

Dual FSA (par. 2.3.4.2): both spouses receive their own FSA simultaneously when (1) the couple resided together with their shared dependents immediately before the separation, AND (2) both members are independently under qualifying orders. Each spouse's entitlement is independent — one spouse losing entitlement does not affect the other's.

If the couple later reestablishes a joint household before another set of orders, FSA can apply to that subsequent separation (par. 2.3.4.1.3).

FSA is non-taxable for federal income tax — it is excluded from gross income and does not appear in W-2 Box 1. As a military allowance it is also excluded from FICA wages. The allowance appears as a separate line on the Leave and Earnings Statement (LES), typically labeled "FAM SEP ALLOW" or "FSA". Members should verify the line each month using the LES Auditor to ensure the constructed start date and amount are correct; finance-office errors on FSA are common at the boundary between separation onboarding and steady-state pay.