Service-by-service overview
All services share the basic structure of MINIMUM TIS + MINIMUM TIG, but the specific numbers and competitive processes differ:
- Army (AR 600-8-19): Promotion to PV2, PFC, and SPC is automatic on attaining eligibility — the commander may deny it before the eligibility date. E-5/E-6 semi-centralized board with promotion points against monthly cutoff scores. E-7/E-8/E-9 HRC centralized board (MILPER messages).
- Air Force (AFI 36-2502, 2 Jul 2026): E-1 to E-3 on time-in-grade alone (6 months to Amn, 10 months to A1C). SrA (E-4) is a fully qualified promotion at 36 months TIS + 20 months TIG, or 28 months TIG alone — whichever occurs first. WAPS testing starts at E-5. SrA Below-the-Zone is a single board look six months before that point: 30 months TIS / 14 months TIG, or 22 months TIG for Airmen on the 28-month path.
- Space Force (SPFI 36-2502, 11 Sep 2024): The Space Force has its own instruction — AFI 36-2502 states it does not apply to the USSF. Specialist 2 at 6 months TIG, Specialist 3 at 10 months TIG, Specialist 4 at 36 months TIS + 20 months TIG or 28 months TIG (the same phase points as the Air Force), with a Spc4 Below-the-Zone program run on Space Force boards. Sergeant through Chief are TIG-only — 6 / 24 / 25 / 17 / 24 months — because Table 2.1 Note 12 removed TAFMSD as an eligibility requirement for Guardians.
- Marines (MCO 1400.31D, MCO P1400.32D): Composite Score system for promotion to Cpl and Sgt (rifle + PFT + CFT + proficiency/conduct marks + TIG + TIS + bonus points, MCO P1400.32D para 2501). Composite scores are computed quarterly; the CMC announces cutting scores per MOS. E-6+ centralized board.
- Navy: Navy-Wide Advancement Exam (NWAE) + rate quota. Advancement is quota-controlled and varies by rating. Selection board for Chief (E-7) and above.
- Coast Guard (CIM 1000.2C): Service-Wide Exam (SWE) competition for advancement to E-5 through E-8; active-duty E-9 selections go through the Master Chief Advancement Panel (COMDTINST M1000.2C Ch. 5).
Below-the-Zone (BTZ) — accelerated promotion
Some services let top performers be considered BEFORE the standard minimum TIS/TIG. The best known is the Air Force Senior Airman BTZ and its Space Force twin, Specialist 4 BTZ. AFI 36-2502 para 2.3.1 and SPFI 36-2502 para 2.3.1 both define it as a one-time consideration six months prior to the fully qualified phase point in para 2.2.1 — and that phase point is 36 months TIS + 20 months TIG or 28 months TIG, whichever occurs first. So BTZ falls at 30 months TIS / 14 months TIG for a typical four-year enlistee, but at 22 months TIG for someone on the 28-month path — usually a six-year enlistee promoted to A1C/Spc3 straight out of technical training. A flat "30/14" answer is late by several months for those Airmen.
The cycle is quarterly (AFI Table 2.7, SPFI Table 2.6). Eligibles are identified in two processing months, the board meets in the third, and selectees pin on during the following quarter: nominations in January/February for a March board and an April–June sew-on; April/May → June → July–September; July/August → September → October–December; October/November → December → January–March. In practice your package moves three to five months before your BTZ date, which is why this calculator shows the board month rather than a "window opens" date — once the board has met, the look is over. Central base board quotas are 15 percent of the TIS/TIG-eligible population (para 2.3.5); large units of seven or more eligibles board their own.
Space Force status (verified September 2026): Spc4 BTZ is still in force. SPFI 36-2502 (11 Sep 2024) carries the full program at para 2.3, Guardians compete among Spc3 peers only on boards separate from the Air Force, and base personnel calendars publish Space Force BTZ board dates each quarter. The July 2026 announcement that the Space Force is moving Sergeant through Master Sergeant selection to a fully qualified system does not touch Spc4 BTZ.
Caveats: members eliminated from ROTC or the Academy who were given credit toward their date of rank are not BTZ-eligible, and A1Cs with an adjusted date of rank for prior service make SrA at 28 months TIG (with one year on extended active duty) but are excluded from BTZ (AFI 36-2502 para 2.3.4.4.2; SPFI 36-2502 para 2.3.4.2 for Academy disenrollees). Non-selection carries no penalty: the Airman still promotes at the fully qualified phase point, which needs no board. The Army runs a different model — a standing secondary zone for E-4 to E-5 at 16 months TIS / 4 months TIG and for E-5 to E-6 at 46 months TIS / 6 months TIG (AR 600-8-19 Table 3-1) that stays open until the primary zone.
Waivers and exceptions
Minimum TIS and TIG can sometimes be reduced under special circumstances:
- Commander / promotion-authority waivers: Can advance some junior enlisted promotions by 2 to 6 months. In the Army the waiver floors are PV2 at 4 months TIS, PFC at 6 months TIS / 2 months TIG, and SPC at 18 months TIS / 3 months TIG (AR 600-8-19 para 2-2b). Regular Army waiver promotions are also capped by unit allocation percentages (para 2-3).
- Overturned reductions: In the Army, a Soldier restored to a grade after a successful appeal of the reduction gets the original grade entry date — the TIG clock — back (AR 600-8-19 para 1-17).
- STEP: The Air Force Stripes for Exceptional Performers program lets commanders promote a limited number of exceptional performers to SSgt or TSgt outside the normal promotion cycle (AFI 36-2502 para 2.9).
- Accelerated advancement: Navy Recruit Training Command may advance the top 10 percent of each recruit-training graduating class — and training-school commanding officers their top "A" school graduates — to E-2/E-3 with time-in-rate requirements waived (MILPERSMAN 1430-010).
Waivers are not embedded in this calculator. Talk to your career counselor or first sergeant if you believe you qualify for a TIS or TIG waiver.
After eligibility — what determines promotion?
Meeting minimum TIS/TIG just makes you ELIGIBLE for consideration. Actual promotion depends on:
- Evaluations (EPB / NCOER / FITREP) — the core of the record that centralized boards score
- Board scoring — for centralized boards (Army E-7+, AF E-8+, etc.), board members score and rank-order the eligible records
- Quota / vacancy — even outstanding records can be passed over if the rate/MOS has no vacancy
- Awards and decorations — earn promotion points in point-based systems (e.g., Army promotion points, AR 600-8-19 Table 3-5)
- PT scores, weapons quals, professional development — varies by service
- Education / PME completion — required for many senior NCO promotions (SNCOA, etc.)
- Disciplinary history — Article 15s, LOCs, civilian arrests can disqualify or delay
Promotion vs increased basic pay
Even without promotion, your basic pay automatically increases at TIS milestones built into the DFAS pay table: over 2 years, over 3 years, over 4 years, over 6 years, etc. These "longevity raises" happen within a paygrade.
At the senior NCO / senior officer level, longevity raises within a single paygrade can be substantial — on the 2026 table an E-7 over 22 years ($6,475.20/month) earns about 26% more than an E-7 over 8 years ($5,135.70/month).
Use the Basic Pay tables to look up the exact rate for your current rank + TIS, and the Promotion Pay Raise calculator to see the raise for your next promotion.