Get an Early Start to Tax Season

Tax season will be here before you know it. The first step in preparing for tax season is to make sure you have an active myPay account and your mailing address is up-to-date. If you do not have a myPay account, now is the perfect time to get started.

Use myPay to your advantage

myPay is a user-friendly way to manage your pay account. You can easily manage your account using the web browser on your computer or with a connected device like your smartphone or tablet.

You will able to access your 1099-R tax statement much sooner in myPay than through postal mail. 1099-Rs generally become available in myPay in late December, while paper copies aren’t mailed until mid-to-late January. You can also download or print your current year tax statement, as well as prior year 1099Rs (up to four prior years for retirees and up to two prior years for annuitants).

While you’re in myPay, you can also easily check to make sure we have your correct mailing address. Make sure you keep your address updated if you travel to warmer weather in January and February.

Please don’t wait until January, February, or March to check access to your myPay account; check now so you can be prepared for tax season.

Log on to myPay
https://myPay.dfas.mil

Getting Started with myPay

If you’re not yet using myPay, it’s easy to get started. We have a handy step-by-step, downloadable “Get Started with myPay” guide available at: https://www.dfas.mil/RetiredMilitary/manage/mypay/

You can request in initial password on the myPay homepage using the “Forgot or Need a New Password” link. The password will be mailed to the address you have on file with DFAS and you will receive it in about 10 business days.

Once you receive your password in the mail, you can return to the myPay homepage and log in with your social security number and the password you received in the mail to create your myPay profile.

If you are new to myPay, there is a link “Read how new accounts are added” in the “New User Section” to find out more about how myPay accounts are created.

myPay also offers a video tutorial in the “New User” section that will walk you through the steps to create an account.

Reactivating your myPay account

We know that some of you only use myPay once a year to get your 1099-R during tax season. Then, when you do try to access your account, you discover that your password is expired, lost or forgotten. If this sounds like something that has happened to you, please update your password now, before the tax season starts. Waiting to update your password might mean longer wait times and potential delays in receiving your tax documents.

If your myPay account is in an inactive status because your password has expired, you can follow the simple steps below to reactivate your account.

Go to https://myPay.dfas.mil in your web browser on a computer or connected device

1. Click on the “Forgot or Need a Password?” link and enter your Login ID or Social Security Number

2. Choose to send a temporary password to your email or mailing address of record

3. When you receive the temporary password, go back to myPay and log in to reactivate your account.

Check your tax withholding

Now is also a good time to check and adjust your tax withholding

Use the IRS Tax Withholding Estimator

The IRS has an online Tax Withholding Estimator to help you determine how much tax you need to have withheld. The calculator helps taxpayers estimate if the right amount is being withheld from their income to cover their tax liability. The estimator uses a simple, six-step question-and-answer format using information like marital or filing status, income, withholding, adjustments, deductions and credits.
www.irs.gov/individuals/tax-withholding-estimator