How to Read Military PCS Orders: The Dates, the Dependents Line and the Money Each Part Triggers

For an E-5, the dependents line on a PCS order is worth $1,158.60 of dislocation allowance and 2,000 pounds of household goods: $3,548.02 and 9,000 pounds with dependents, $2,389.42 and 7,000 pounds without. The order itself grants nothing on its own terms. It applies the Joint Travel Regulations, whose November 1, 2026 edition binds every service. What is not uniform is the layout: each service prints its orders its own way. This page describes the Navy's and the Air Force's only from their own published manuals, and leaves the other services' line-by-line layouts out.

The dates: report, detach and the effective date

The Navy defines its date terms in MILPERSMAN 1320-306. Report NLT means "Arrival may take place earlier, but no later than, the date specified." Report NET means "Arrival must take place no earlier than the date indicated." When an order carries both, a Sailor can arrive early to avoid using leave, but "payment of per diem will not begin until the specified NET date." Report On Or About allows 10 days either side of the date, and an EDD month is the month detachment must occur, which the reporting senior may delay by up to two months.

The Air Force calls its reporting deadline the report-not-later-than date, or RNLTD, in DAFMAN 36-2102. Whatever the service's name for it, the JTR keys one rule to a different date, the order's effective date. Under JTR par. 050303-B, a family member's travel eligibility "is based on whether the individual is a dependent on the effective date of the PCS order."

The dependents line, and why it is worth the most

Two allowances change with that line. For weight, JTR par. 051401-B says a member with dependents "is one who has a dependent eligible to travel at Government expense," "regardless if the dependent actually travels." Dislocation allowance is stricter. Par. 050503-A pays the with-dependent rate when "The dependent relocates in connection with a PCS," and par. 050503-B pays the without-dependent rate when a dependent authorized to travel does not move and no Government quarters are assigned at the new station, with the difference paid if the family joins later at Government expense.

DLA does not depend on years of service, so the table uses grade alone. The weights exclude the 2,000 pounds of professional books, papers and equipment a member may certify under JTR par. 051304-A. Check a grade not shown in the DLA Calculator and the Weight Allowance Calculator.

In the Air Force, the dependents on the order must be right before the move. DAFMAN 36-2102 par. 2.24.1 says to ensure "travelers listed on the PCS order match the DD Form 1172-2." Under par. 2.19, children born outside of marriage, dependent parents and certain incapacitated children over 21 cannot be added "until the dependency determination is approved and completed." A family member missing from the order is a correction to ask for before travel, not after.

Travel: travel days, MALT and per diem

Driving is paid by the official distance, not the miles on your odometer. JTR par. 050205-A allows 1 travel day for 400 miles or less; above that, divide by 350, and a remainder of 51 or more adds a day. Table 5-4 row 1 pays MALT Plus, the standard CONUS per diem of $181.00 ($113.00 lodging plus $68.00 meals and incidentals for FY2027), for each authorized travel day, plus MALT per mile. Table 5-6 pays dependents traveling with the member 75 percent at age 12 or older and 50 percent under 12. A second POV is allowed for a member authorized dependent travel (par. 050203-B).

Lodging: TLE in the United States, TLA overseas

Temporary lodging expense covers days when per diem is not paid. JTR par. 050601-B-2 authorizes "either 7 or 21 days": Table 5-13 gives 21 days for a move to a CONUS station, and 7 days at the old station when the move goes overseas from the CONUS. Par. 050601-B-5-b caps the member and family at "a maximum of $290 per day." The days can be split between the old and new stations, so a family that spends 10 nights at the old station still has 11 to use near the new one. Price them in the TLE Calculator; overseas, the lodging allowance is TLA, compared in our TLE vs. TLA guide.

Shipping a car overseas

Under JTR par. 053001-A, "A Service member on a PCS order to or from a PDS OCONUS is authorized to ship one POV" at Government expense. That paragraph turns on the overseas station named on the order; a move between two stateside bases is paid under the MALT rules above instead.

What the Navy and Air Force tell members to check

The MyNavy HR PCS Guide 2026 (version 4.0, March 10, 2026) says to "Verify your personal information including report dates, duty location, and family member entitlements" and to "Identify action items including mandatory training, required obligated service, and special instructions." It adds: "Unless your orders say otherwise, you can take up to 30 days of leave between duty stations," and that leave is charged automatically when the new command gains you.

The Air Force order is the DAF Form 899, Request and Authorization for Permanent Change of Station, completed by the MPF's order processing official (DAFMAN 36-2102 par. 2.20, Change 4, March 4, 2026). Approved dependent travel to a designated place goes in the remarks section (par. 2.20.6). Proceed time is not authorized "unless the member actually relocates dependents or household goods" (par. 2.21.3). Under the Accelerated Orders Program, members "MUST have both Part 1 (PCS Order) and Part 2 (Amendment)" before leaving for the new base (par. 2.27.2.1).

Work the move week by week with the PCS checklist and add up the whole move in the PCS Calculator. Rates are the 2026 DLA table, FY2027 per diem and July 1, 2026 MALT. Always verify with your finance office before making financial decisions.