Guides
How to sign up, step by step.
Official portals only. Keep the matching video open if the form gets stubborn. Filter by soldiers, veterans, or getting out.
In service
How to sign up for Monthly official-door recut
21 Sep 2026 recut from TRICARE.mil, VA.gov, and BENEFEDS. Public dates and dollars only.
Open the guideIn service
How to sign up for TRICARE Reserve Select
Open season is for Prime and Select families. TRICARE Reserve Select is a purchase you can make any month you qualify.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for VA health care (10-10EZ)
VA health care does not enroll itself. 10-10EZ on VA.gov. No fee to apply. Other insurance does not block the application.
Open the guideGetting out
How to sign up for VGLI / SGLI conversion
If your VGLI is current, VA is skipping premiums November 2026 through January 2027. If you are still converting from SGLI, the deadline did not take a holiday.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for VA home loan Certificate of Eligibility
The guaranty can be used again if you still have entitlement. A Facebook realtor is not the door. The COE is.
Open the guideIn service
How to sign up for TSP Roth catch-up (2026)
If you are 50 or older and over the earnings line, extra catch-up may have to go Roth. Change it on TSP.gov any pay period.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for 38 CFR Part 4 rating schedule lookup
38 CFR Part 4 is the rating schedule VA actually uses. A paid “condition list” is optional. eCFR is not.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for GI Bill / education benefits
Apply on VA.gov. Compare schools on the GI Bill Comparison Tool. A stranger with your remaining months is not the certifying official.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for VA Health and Benefits app (debt / overpayment)
Overpayment details landed in the official Health and Benefits app. A random portal that wants a card number to “clear a hold” is still a scam.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for VALife (service-disabled veterans life insurance)
Service-disabled veterans can apply for VALife online. It is a different product from the SGLI conversion clock. Premiums go through Pay.gov.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for CHAMPVA (family health)
If the sponsor still has TRICARE, the family is usually on TRICARE. CHAMPVA is a different door for certain survivors and families of veterans who are permanently and totally disabled.
Open the guideGetting out
How to sign up for DD-214 / DD214-1 records
Guard and Reserve now get a Certificate of Uniformed Service addendum with points. It is not a substitute for a regular DD-214. Get both. Store both.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for Combined VA disability rating
Combined rating is remaining-efficiency math. Run it here for free, then read what VA.gov actually pays. A paid “explainer” is optional.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for GI Bill monthly enrollment verification
Verify enrollment on VA.gov at the end of each month. Miss two months on Post-9/11 and the housing money pauses. Montgomery does not pay that month at all.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for PACT Act / toxic exposure claims
The PACT Act list does not enroll you. Toxic-exposure veterans still submit a claim on VA.gov. VA.gov is the list. A commercial roundup is a pointer.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for Secondary service-connected disability claim
38 CFR 3.310 already defines a disability that follows from one you have. You still file. A private nexus letter is optional evidence, not a product you must buy.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for C-file and code sheet request (20-10206)
VA Form 20-10206 is free and online. Request the claims file and the claim exams. The code sheet is the rater’s map. Read it first.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for Public Disability Benefits Questionnaires
Public questionnaires live on VA.gov. Your own clinician can fill one. VA will not reimburse that bill. The exam they schedule is free.
Open the guideVeterans
How to sign up for VA claim exam (C&P)
If VA needs more, they schedule a C&P. A contractor may do it. Tests they order cost you nothing. Missing it can sink the file.
Open the guideIn service
How to sign up for AGR / full-time Guard-Reserve TRICARE
Full-time Guard and Reserve. Prime or Prime Remote. The Reserve card will send you to the wrong cash register.
Open the guideIn service
How to sign up for Military OneSource financial counseling
Military OneSource will put a counselor on the phone, on video, or in your town. Call 800-342-9647. A Facebook budget coach is not the benefit.
Open the guideReserve · Selected Reserve
Enroll in TRICARE Reserve Select
Selected Reserve healthcare is not automatic. You buy TRICARE Reserve Select in milConnect through Beneficiary Web Enrollment — CAC, DS Logon, or Login.gov.
Open the guideReserve · orders
What 30 days of orders does to TRS
Drill, AT, and orders of 30 days or less stay on the inactive door. More than 30 days is active-duty TRICARE from day one of the orders. Deactivating is a 90-day qualifying life event. Recut from TRICARE.mil. I will not file it.
Open the guideReserve · civilian job
USERRA and ESGR — the civilian job is a different door
USERRA is federal reemployment and anti-discrimination law for drill, AT, and activations. DOL VETS administers it. ESGR mediates for free and does not enforce the statute. Recut from DOL.gov and ESGR.mil. I will not file it.
Open the guideReserve · LOD
Line of duty care on drill and AT
On orders of 30 days or less, an injury, illness, or disease incurred or aggravated in the line of duty can be treated at government expense. Family is not on LOD. Recut from TRICARE.mil. I will not file the LOD.
Open the guideAGR · full-time Guard & Reserve
Enroll AGR TRICARE (Prime / Prime Remote)
AGR and FTNGD sit on active-duty TRICARE — not TRICARE Reserve Select. Confirm DEERS says active duty, use the Plan Finder, then enroll Prime or Prime Remote in milConnect. Zero premium for you. I will not file it.
Open the guideActive duty · Title 10
Enroll active-duty TRICARE
Regular-component active duty enrolls Prime, Prime Remote, or the overseas Prime options based on the duty station — not TRICARE Reserve Select. Confirm DEERS, run the Plan Finder, finish BWE. Zero premium for you. I will not file it.
Open the guideIdentity
Create your VA.gov account
Every VA website and the VA Health and Benefits app now signs in with Login.gov or ID.me. My HealtheVet and DS Logon passwords no longer open the door.
Open the guideIdentity
Install the VA Health and Benefits app
The same verified account that opens VA.gov also opens the official app: claims, appointments, refills, secure messages, letters, and payment history in your pocket.
Open the guideHub · teeth, eyes, life
Dental, vision, and life are three doors.
This is the map, not a fourth enrollment. TDP, FEDVIP vision, and SGLI each have their own walkthrough. Medical (TRS / Prime) does not enroll any of them.
Open the guidePay · TSP
TSP and the retirement stack
Under the Blended Retirement System the government will not finish the match for you. You have to turn the contribution on, and you do it at TSP.gov.
Open the guideHub · already out
Four VA applications. None of them file the others.
This is the map, not a fifth form. Login.gov first. Then health, the claim, GI Bill, and the home-loan COE are four different clicks. Keep this URL for old pastes — use the specialized walkthroughs to enroll.
Open the guideVision · BENEFEDS
Enroll in FEDVIP vision on BENEFEDS
Routine glasses and contacts are not a TRICARE default. FEDVIP vision is a separate purchase on BENEFEDS.gov — Login.gov, eligibility questions, then Self / Self+One / Family.
Open the guideDental · TDP
Enroll in the TRICARE Dental Program
Selected Reserve dental is not hiding inside TRICARE Reserve Select. TDP is a separate enrollment, usually through United Concordia / the official TRICARE dental door.
Open the guideReserve · 50-point year
Lock a qualifying retirement year
You need 20 years with at least 50 retirement points each. The year is your anniversary year, not the calendar year. 49 points is a lost year, not a close call.
Open the guideSoldier → Veteran
Start the claim before you take the uniform off
Benefits Delivery at Discharge, TAP, and the VA.gov account are the handoff. Waiting until you are a civilian is how evidence walks away.
Open the guideGetting out · TAMP
TAMP is 180 days of transitional TRICARE. Then a cliff.
If your service documents Transitional Assistance Management Program in DEERS, you get 180 days of TRICARE with no premium. Day 181 needs a next plan: TRS, TRR, VA health, or civilian.
Open the guideGray area
20-year letter, no paycheck yet.
Gray-area retirees have a Notification of Eligibility and have not started non-regular retired pay. No regular retiree TRICARE until 60 (or reduced age). You can still buy TRR and often FEDVIP dental.
Open the guideGray area · TRR
Buy TRICARE Retired Reserve in milConnect
TRR is premium-based coverage for Retired Reserve members under 60 who are not FEHB-eligible. 2026 published rates: $645.90 member / $1,548.30 family. Enroll through Beneficiary Web Enrollment.
Open the guideLife insurance
SGLI while you serve. VGLI on a 240-day clock.
Check SGLI, FSGLI, and the beneficiary in milConnect now. After separation, SGLI runs 120 days free. Apply for VGLI within 240 days with no health questions, or out to 1 year and 120 days with proof of health.
Open the guideVeterans · treatment
Enroll in VA health care with Form 10-10EZ
VA health care is a separate enrollment from a disability claim. Apply even if you have other insurance. No fee to apply. Priority group is VA’s decision after they see service and income.
Open the guideDental
TDP, FEDVIP, VA dental — pick one door
Active duty uses the clinic. Selected Reserve buys the TRICARE Dental Program. Gray-area and many retirees buy FEDVIP dental on BENEFEDS. VA outpatient dental is a limited class, not a default.
Open the guideVeterans · treatment
Community care and travel pay
After you enroll in VA health care, community care is how VA sends you to a community provider when they cannot see you in time or nearby. Travel pay reimburses eligible mileage. You file it.
Open the guideHousing
Get a VA home loan Certificate of Eligibility
The COE is the federal housing benefit. Homeowners, wind, and flood insurance are civilian policies you still shop. I do not sell USAA.
Open the guideIdentity · DEERS
Fix DEERS and get the right ID card
TRICARE, TAMP, TRR, and family enrollments read DEERS. If the roster is wrong, Beneficiary Web Enrollment will fail before the premium page loads.
Open the guideRetiree · paycheck started
Reenroll retiree TRICARE (Prime or Select)
Retirement disenrolls Prime. You have 90 days to enroll Prime, Select, or US Family Health Plan — recut from TRICARE.mil Retiring. Miss 90 days and you may request retroactive enrollment up to 12 months. This is not TRR. I will not file it.
Open the guideGetting out · after TAMP
Buy CHCBP when TRICARE ends
The Continued Health Care Benefit Program is a premium bridge for 18–36 months after you lose TRICARE or TAMP. You must buy it within 60 days. DD Form 2837 to Humana Military with 90 days paid up front. Recut from TRICARE.mil. I will not file it.
Open the guideRetiree · survivors
Elect the Survivor Benefit Plan
Retired pay stops when you die unless SBP is in force. The election is part of retirement processing — DD 2656 — with spouse concurrence rules. Recut from militarypay.defense.gov. I will not file it.
Open the guideVeterans · life insurance
Apply for VALife
Veterans Affairs Life Insurance is guaranteed-acceptance whole life up to $40,000 if you have a service-connected rating — even 0% — and you are age 80 or under. Two-year wait for full coverage. Not VGLI. Recut from VA.gov.
Open the guideGuard & Reserve · education
Apply for MGIB-SR (Chapter 1606)
Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve is the drill-status education benefit. Get DD 2384-1 from the unit, confirm the school is approved, then file 22-1990. Not Post-9/11. Recut from VA.gov.
Open the guideFamily · spouse school money
Apply for the SpouseWorks Scholarship (formerly MyCAA)
Up to $4,000 for a license, certification, or associate degree. Recut 2026: eligible spouses of active duty, Guard, and Reserve on qualifying Title 10 — across ranks. Portal on Military OneSource. I will not file it.
Open the guideAGR / active duty · healthcare FSA
Enroll in FSAFEDS (HCFSA / dependent care)
Uniformed services can buy a health-care flexible spending account on fsafeds.gov. Recut from FINRED / FSAFEDS: regular-component active duty and AGR. Drilling Selected Reserve is a different rule. Open season, or 60 days after you become eligible. I will not file it.
Open the guideGray area · survivors
Elect RC-SBP within 90 days of the 20-year letter
Reserve Component Survivor Benefit Plan is a 90-day clock from the Notification of Eligibility. If you do nothing and you have a spouse or child, the law enrolls Option C. Army recut 2026: submit DD 2656-5 in IPPS-A. I will not file it.
Open the guideIn service · education
Transfer Post-9/11 GI Bill in milConnect (TEB)
Transfer of Education Benefits is a sponsor election with a service obligation. milConnect, not VA.gov. The spouse cannot click it for you. Recut from milConnect. I will not file it.
Open the guidePay · myPay
Open myPay and fix direct deposit
LES, W-4, allotments, TSP from the paycheck. mypay.dfas.mil. Login.gov or CAC. A bad routing number is how the first paycheck vanishes. I will not file it.
Open the guideGray area · paycheck
Apply for Reserve retired pay
Retired pay does not start itself. Submit 9 months to 90 days before age 60 or your reduced-age date. Army: DD 108 + DD 2656 to HRC Gray Area Retirements. Work it with an RSO. Recut from Soldier for Life / HRC. I will not file it.
Open the guideHealthcare · Rx
Register TRICARE Pharmacy home delivery
Express Scripts runs the TRICARE pharmacy contract. Home delivery is usually cheaper than retail. Military pharmacy is still $0 for active duty. Recut from TRICARE.mil Rx. I will not file it.
Open the guideFamily · adult kids
Buy TRICARE Young Adult
Premium plan for unmarried adult children after they age off the sponsor plan — usually 21, up to 26. Not automatic. Recut from TRICARE.mil TYA. I will not file it.
Open the guideVeterans · claims
Submit an intent to file
VA Form 21-0966, or start the claim on a verified VA.gov login. Locks a potential effective date. One year to finish. Recut from VA.gov. I will not file it.
Open the guideFamily · caregiver
Apply for the VA family caregiver program
Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers. VA Form 10-10CG, filed with the veteran. Stipend, training, sometimes CHAMPVA. The veteran must be in VA health first. Recut from VA.gov. I will not file it.
Open the guideIn service · education
Use Credentialing Assistance / DoD COOL
Licenses and certifications. A different pot from tuition assistance and from GI Bill. COOL shows what the MOS maps to. The service CA office pays it. Recut from DoD COOL. I will not file it.
Open the guideFamily · child care
Request Military Child Care / fee assistance
The waitlist is the enrollment. CDC / CYS does not start because you have orders. Recut from Military OneSource. I will not file it.
Open the guideVeterans · need-based
Apply for Veterans Pension
Need-based monthly pay for wartime Veterans with limited income and net worth. Not disability compensation. Recut from VA.gov. I will not file it.
Open the guideNational Guard · orders
Title 10, Title 32, or State Active Duty
The statute on the order decides TRICARE, VA days, and who cuts the check. Recut from TRICARE.mil Guard/Reserve pages and VA.gov. I will not file it.
Open the guideNational Guard · technician
Dual-status technician: FEHB, not TRS
Title 32 dual-status technicians are federal employees. Recut from TRICARE.mil: FEHB-eligible members do not qualify for TRICARE Reserve Select. That lockout is written through 1 January 2030.
Open the guideNational Guard · education
State Guard school money vs FTA vs GI Bill
Three pots. The state tuition waiver is not Federal Tuition Assistance and not Chapter 1606. Recut from National Guard Bureau education pages and VA.gov.
Open the guideNational Guard · records
NGB-22, NGB-23, and the DD-214 you actually have
Still in: NGB-23 / RPAM is the points statement. Title 10 stretch: DD-214. Leaving the Guard: NGB-22. Recut from National Archives and VA records doors. NPRC does not hold current Guard jackets.
Open the guide