Did You Know?

We recognize the laws and regulations governing military annuity pay are complex and can be difficult to understand. In each issue of the DFAS Survivor SBP Newsletter, we will share a few helpful tips and tidbits for survivors.

Survivor Benefit Plan Coverage

• Did You Know: The Special Survivor Indemnity Allowance (SSIA) will no longer be paid once the offset for receiving Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) from the VA is eliminated in January 2023.
• Did You Know: There is only one Survivor Benefit Program (SBP) annuity. It is paid either to the spouse or to the child/children. If paid to the children, the annuity is split into equal shares.
• Did You Know: Spouse and child coverage means the spouse receives the annuity unless the spouse passes away or marries prior to age 55. Only then does the eligible child (or children) receive the annuity payment.
• Did You Know: Your Annuitant Account Statement (AAS) now shows your current gross SBP benefit at the bottom of the statement. Your AAS is available in myPay.

School Certifications

• Did You Know: High school and college students 18 and over do not need to maintain a minimum grade point average to remain annuity-eligible. The only criteria is they remain unmarried and enrolled in school full-time.
• Did You Know: For high school and college students turning 18 and over 18, we can now use your completed, annual DD 2788 School Certification form as your Certificate of Eligibility (COE) instead of sending you a separate COE to submit each year.
• Did You Know: As stated in the “Turning 18” article in the April 2022 DFAS Survivor SBP Newsletter, DFAS Retired and Annuitant Pay is now accepting “Turning 18” Letters to ensure payments go to the correct payment address when a child annuitant turns 18. Please read the Turning 18 article here for more information.

Direct Deposit

• Did You Know: If you are currently receiving a paper check, you can easily start having your pay conveniently direct deposited by using myPay, or by sending us a completed direct deposit form, or by calling our Customer Care Center.

Third Party Representation

• Did You Know: DFAS recognizes various types of third party representation for those annuitants needing help in managing their account. A detailed explanation of third party representation can be found at: https://www.dfas.mil/annthirdparty

Keep in mind, DFAS is not authorized to recognize a Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA) for annuitants. Currently DFAS is authorized by law to accept a DPOA only for retiree accounts. We will update you if the situation changes.

Did You Know? DFAS Webpages for Survivors

•    Manage your SBP annuity: https://www.dfas.mil/managesbp
•    Understanding SBP, DIC, SSIA: https://www.dfas.mil/sbpdicssia
•    SBP-DIC offset phased elimination: https://www.dfas.mil/sbpdicnews
•    SBP 2023 Active Duty/Line of Duty child option reversion: https://www.dfas.mil/sbp2023childoptrev
•    School Certifications: https://www.dfas.mil/schoolcerts
•    Claim retiree Arrears of Pay: https://www.dfas.mil/retireeaop
•    Start an SBP annuity: https://www.dfas.mil/startsbp
•    AskDFAS: https://www.dfas.mil/AskDFAS
•    DFAS Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DFASOfficial
•    myPay: https://mypay.dfas.mil