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Request InformationA financial checklist for military separation runs on deadlines: the SBP election before your retirement date, TRICARE within 90 days, and VGLI within 240 days without health questions. Many people assume most of these items can wait until after the last day in uniform, but 3 deadlines close for good: the SBP election, the TRICARE enrollment window and the no-health-questions window for VGLI.
The question usually lands about a year out, when the terminal leave dates firm up and a spouse asks what happens to the paycheck. It comes up again in first conversations at First Command Financial Services, almost always in the same order: what do we sign, what do we buy, and when does the money start. This article follows that order, from month 12 to the first civilian paycheck and beyond.
Everything here is general education, not individual advice. Dates and forms vary with your service, so confirm each one with your finance office.
By Elena Rodriguez, CFA — Portfolio Manager | Reviewed by Marcus Thompson, CFAI tell households to sort the checklist by what can't be undone. The SBP election and the VGLI window go first, because a missed date there can't be fixed later.
Marcus Ellery, Senior Financial Planner at First Command Financial Services
Keep the first months of civilian cash needs in cash. If a market drop hits in year one, you shouldn't have to sell TSP shares to pay movers.
Dana Whitfield, CPA, Tax Director at First Command Financial Services
The Transition Assistance Program (TAP) must begin no later than 365 days before your expected separation date. So month 12 is the latest start, not an early one. Use it to pull your current Leave and Earnings Statement (LES), your TSP statement, your SGLI coverage amount and the SBP election form, DD Form 2656.
Start with a downside quick test: anything that can't be reopened later goes to the top of the list. That means the SBP election, TRICARE enrollment and the VGLI health-question window. Items you can redo, like the TSP fund mix or a rollover, wait until the family is settled.
Say a hypothetical Marine has $520,000 in the TSP. Before First Command Financial Services discusses moving any of it, it maps the cash the household needs for the move and the first civilian months. That way nothing gets sold in a down market just to pay movers.
The VGLI window without health questions is now 240 days after separation. It used to be 120 days, so a written plan built on older briefing notes may set the deadline too early or treat it wrongly.
SGLI now goes up to $500,000, and VGLI can match the SGLI amount you hold at separation. A family that last priced life cover at a lower SGLI ceiling should recount the gap.
The TSP now allows several partial withdrawals and lets separated members choose installments more flexibly. Older plans that assumed a single partial withdrawal, or a forced full rollover, can be revisited. If you're weighing that, our TSP rollover service covers it.
For 2026, catch-up contributions must be Roth when prior-year FICA wages topped $150,000, and ages 60 to 63 get a higher catch-up of $11,250. Required minimum distributions (RMDs) start at age 75 for people born in 1960 or later. None of this is urgent at age 42. But a written plan drafted years ago may assume the old rules.
The Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) election has to be on paper and signed ahead of your retirement date. If a married member elects anything below full spouse coverage, the spouse must give written, notarized consent. Book that talk for month 6, not the last week.
Now the county HR office. Ask whether the plan is a governmental 457(b), a 401(k) or a 401(a). Ask how many times salary group life pays, whether it can be raised without medical questions, and whether health coverage has a waiting period.
Two answers should worry you. One is group life of 1 times salary that can only be raised with medical underwriting. The other is 457(b) enrollment allowed only at an open enrollment months after the start date.
The spouse has homework too. Ivy checks her school district benefits: whether she can add the children or Terrence to her health plan, and how much supplemental life she can buy without health questions at her next enrollment. The Survivor Benefit Plan election has its own service page if you want the pricing detail.
Your TSP contribution election keeps running through your final regular paycheck. Ask the finance office whether it also covers final pay items, such as a lump-sum leave payment. Count the year's deferrals against the IRS 2026 limit of $24,500. A governmental 457(b) at the county has its own separate $24,500 limit, while a 401(k) would share the same limit as the TSP.
Waiting 5 years to start saving at the new job leaves about $69,000 less at age 62, even though it saves $30,000 in contributions. Here is how that works for a hypothetical household. Terrence (42) and Ivy (40) weigh when to start saving at his new county job, which pays $62,000. The plan is $500 each month into the county 457(b), or $6,000 each year, until he turns 62.
The steps are short. Start now: 20 years × $6,000 = $120,000 contributed. Start 2 years later: 18 × $6,000 = $108,000. Start 5 years later: 15 × $6,000 = $90,000. The growth figures assume 5% a year for illustration, with contributions made at the end of each year.
The 2-year delay costs about $30,000 at age 62 for $12,000 less saved. The 5-year delay costs about $69,000 ($198,000 minus $129,000) for $30,000 less saved.
People wait for an honest reason: two kids under 12 and a pay cut from active duty. The fix is to cap the first-year deferral at an amount the pension already covers, not to skip the deferral.
These growth figures are illustrations, not forecasts. Investments can lose value, and the account could be worth less than what Terrence put in.
| Start | Total contributed | Value at age 62 | Monthly cash strain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age 42 (now) | $120,000 | About $198,000 | $500 for 20 years |
| Age 44 (+2 years) | $108,000 | About $169,000 | $500 for 18 years |
| Age 47 (+5 years) | $90,000 | About $129,000 | $500 for 15 years |
Put the dates in calendar order. TRICARE Prime or Select enrollment is due within 90 days of the retirement date. SGLI stays free for 120 days. VGLI can be bought without health questions through day 240, and with health questions until 1 year and 120 days. After that, the VGLI option is gone.
Ivy's spouse coverage under Family SGLI also ends 120 days after Terrence separates. She can convert it to an individual policy within that window.
Five if-then rows cover most households, and the day 240 row is the one that can't be repaired.
We often see two smaller errors show up as a pair. The family lets the 240-day VGLI window pass, and it treats the county's 1-times-salary group life ($62,000) as a stand-in for a $500,000 SGLI policy. A household with two kids under 12 ends up covered for $438,000 less. Many find out only after a health change has made new coverage costly.
The quick test: apply for VGLI before day 240 unless you already hold replacement life coverage, approved in writing, at least equal to your SGLI amount. You can drop VGLI later. After day 240 you can't get it back without health questions.
| If this is true | Then do this | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Choosing less than full spouse SBP | Spouse signs notarized written consent | Before retirement date |
| County group life is 1× salary ($62,000) | Apply for VGLI up to $500,000 | Day 240, no health questions |
| Day 240 has passed | Apply with health questions | 1 year and 120 days |
| County plan is a 457(b) | Use its own $24,500 limit | Before first paycheck |
| TRICARE not yet chosen | Enroll in Prime or Select | 90 days after retirement date |
A 20% drop in the first civilian year is when people sell C Fund shares to cover moving costs. Hold the terminal leave pay and the first pension checks in cash for those months, and leave the TSP alone until month 6 or later. A sale made in a down month costs a family more than picking the G Fund over the C Fund ever will.
Health can change the picture. A diagnosis at month 10 turns VGLI into a medically underwritten purchase, and private term insurance may become expensive or unavailable. That is why the VGLI decision belongs before day 240, even if the household later drops the policy.
SBP is hard to undo. Between the 25th and 36th month after retired pay starts, it can be ended with spouse consent, but premiums already paid are not refunded, and coverage can't be added back later.
The law moves too. Contribution limits, catch-up rules and RMD ages have changed several times. Keeping the TSP intact for now leaves both the stay and roll options open until the rules and the new job are clear. Our military retirement planning and Blended Retirement System pages go deeper.
Not through the county. TSP contributions come through a federal payroll, so they stop when you leave one. You can keep the money in your TSP account. If your next employer is a federal agency, contributions can resume. Otherwise, use the county's 457(b) or 401(k) for new savings.
The Transition Assistance Program must begin no later than 365 days before your expected separation date, or 12 months out. That is the latest start. Beginning earlier gives you more time to pull your LES, TSP statement, SGLI amount and the SBP form.
Generally not without health questions. VGLI is set by the SGLI amount you hold at separation. Raising it later is not the usual path, so decide the amount before day 240. If needs grow, you may need new private coverage, which depends on your health.
Usually the 457(b) is the account you fund, since it takes your own deferrals up to $24,500 for 2026. A 401(a) is often funded by the employer with set contributions. Ask HR which accounts accept your money, then cap the first-year amount your cash flow can handle.
SGLI stays free for 120 days after separation. After that you pay premiums through VGLI. You can buy VGLI without health questions through day 240, so use the free 120 days to compare it with any replacement coverage.
She should ask whether she can add the children or you to her health plan, and when that coverage starts. She should also ask how much supplemental life she can buy without health questions at her next enrollment. Written answers help you compare against TRICARE and VGLI.
TRICARE enrollment, the TSP election on final pay and the county deferral form are tasks you can finish alone with the dates in this article. The SBP level and the VGLI amount trade monthly cash against your family's protection for decades, and they can't be cleanly reversed. First Command Financial Services can price those choices side by side in a written plan during a first conversation, held by video or phone wherever you live. This sequence fits a married High-3 retiree moving straight into a civilian job; reservists, medically retired members and those joining a federal agency face different dates.
This article is general financial information only, not investment advice tailored to your circumstances. Investing involves risk, including loss of principal. Before making any financial decision, consult a qualified professional about your specific situation.