Reference & AI
Military Money Guides
Written from active dutyThe decisions behind the calculators. PCS moves, deployment pay, and retirement elections, explained in plain English by someone who lives them.
Reviewed by Guilherme Correia, active-duty U.S. Air Force
Our calculators give you the number. These guides give you the decision. Should you do a PPM? How do you capture every dollar on a deployment? Should you take the BRS lump sum? They’re written from inside the military, not from a corporate desk, and every figure traces to an official 2026 source. No fluff, no "10 money tips," just the real math and the gotchas nobody warns you about.
Showing the 8 guides that cite SGLI / VGLI Calculator. See all guides
Guides for the SGLI / VGLI Calculator
8 publishedVeterans Benefits
VGLI Premium Holiday, November 2026 to January 2027: Who Pays Nothing and What Bill-Pay Users Must Do
VA is skipping three months of VGLI premiums. It is automatic for most policyholders, but bank bill-pay users have to stop their own payments, new enrollees still pay a first month, and SGLI, FSGLI and VALife are not part of it. Here is what the holiday is worth by age and coverage, from VA's own premium table.
6 min readRetirement & Transition
SGLI After Retirement: 120 Free Days, Then VGLI Priced by Your Age
Retiring does not let you keep SGLI. It runs free for 120 days after your retirement date and then stops. What replaces it is VGLI, and at the ages people retire from the military its premium climbs every five years. Here is the timeline, the premium table, and what $500,000.00 of VGLI costs against a 20-year retired check by grade.
6 min readVeterans Benefits
The Trump VA Benefits Update, Sorted: What Is Signed, What Pays Out, and What Is Still a Bill (October 2026)
Searches for a "Trump VA benefits update" are rising, and most of the coverage mixes a signed executive order, a VGLI premium holiday, a claims report and two unpassed bills into one story. Here is each item with its document, its status and its dollar value.
7 min readFamily & Spouse
SGLI Family and Spouse Coverage (FSGLI): What $100,000 Costs at Each Spouse Age, and Who Is Not Covered Automatically
Family SGLI insures a service member's spouse for up to $100,000.00 and each dependent child for $10,000.00. The child coverage is free. The spouse premium is set by the spouse's age, runs from $4.00 to $40.00 a month for the full amount, and comes out of the member's pay. Here is the VA table, priced against 2026 basic pay by grade.
7 min readFamily & Spouse
SGLI and the $500,000 Decision You Make When You Get Out
While you serve, you have up to half a million dollars of life insurance you barely think about. When you separate, you get one short window to keep it, and missing it can cost your family the coverage entirely.
6 min readFamily & Spouse
Texas Is Investigating TriWest Over TRICARE Claim Denials. If "Other Health Insurance" Is on Your Denial, Here Is What to Check
On September 1, 2026 the Texas Attorney General opened an investigation into TriWest, the TRICARE West Region contractor, over claims denied on the ground that the patient had other health insurance. An investigation is not a finding. But the rule behind those denials is real, it is written on TRICARE's own site, and one wrong entry in your record is enough to trigger it.
5 min readVeterans Benefits
The VA Disability Claim: How the Process Actually Works
A VA disability claim is one of the most valuable things you can do before and after you separate, and one of the most misunderstood. Here is how the process really works, from filing to a rating.
8 min readRetirement & Transition
The Survivor Benefit Plan: The Retirement Decision Nobody Prepares You For
Your military pension stops the day you die. The Survivor Benefit Plan is the one chance you get to keep part of it flowing to your spouse, and you decide at retirement, often without much warning.
7 min readHow these guides are sourced
Every figure comes from a primary 2026 source: the Joint Travel Regulations, DoD Financial Management Regulation, DFAS pay tables, IRS publications, or U.S. Code. Each guide lists exactly which. Worked examples are clearly labeled illustrations, never real-person claims. Read more about our research methodology and update cadence.
REF: Military Toolkit Guides, effective 2026
Official 2026 DoD, DFAS, DTMO, IRS, and VA sources
Results are estimates. Always verify with your finance office.
Reviewed by Guilherme Correia · Military Toolkit editorial