The Deployment Money Checklist

The short version

Deployment is one of the few times the military hands you a genuine financial edge: tax-free pay, a guaranteed 10 percent savings program, and a legal cap on old interest rates. But none of it works if your bills bounce while you're gone. Before you leave: set up the right power of attorney, automate every payment, request your SCRA rate reduction, check your SGLI beneficiary, and plan what happens to the car. Downrange: fund the Savings Deposit Program and push extra tax-free pay into TSP. And when you get home, don't let six months of discipline evaporate in one month of celebration spending.

Before you go: paperwork and autopilot

The goal is simple: nothing at home should need you to be reachable.

• Get the right power of attorney, not the biggest one: a special (limited) POA covers specific things: file taxes, register the car, handle the lease. A general POA hands someone your entire financial life; legal assistance usually steers you to the narrowest one that works. The legal office does them free.
• Automate everything with a due date: rent, insurance, phone, credit card minimums: set autopay or allotments from your pay. Late payments don't take deployments as an excuse.
• Give a trusted person visibility: whether it's a spouse or a parent, someone should be able to see accounts and act on your POA if a bill breaks loose. Set expectations in writing about what they can spend.
• Check SGLI and your will: confirm your coverage amount and, more important, that your beneficiary is actually who you want. Do the will at the same appointment as the POA.

Source: Military OneSource

Claim the deployment-only money

Three benefits only exist while you're deployed. Use all three.

• Combat Zone Tax Exclusion (CZTE): pay earned in a designated combat zone is federally tax-free for enlisted members and warrant officers, with a cap for officers. The mechanics are in IRS Publication 3 and our CZTE explainer.
• Savings Deposit Program (SDP): a guaranteed 10 percent annual return on up to $10,000 while deployed to a designated area. Eligibility generally starts after 30 consecutive days in theater, and interest keeps accruing for 90 days after you return. No savings account at home pays that.
• TSP bump: tax-free combat-zone pay contributed to Roth TSP goes in untaxed and comes out untaxed, the rare double win. Even a temporary 5-point bump in your contribution rate while your expenses are low compounds for decades.

Deployed pay plus deleted expenses is the fastest wealth-building window of your career.

Source: DFAS

Cap the old debt and park the car

• SCRA 6 percent cap: interest on debt you took on before entering active duty (car loan, credit cards, student loans, mortgage) must be reduced to 6 percent while you serve, and the excess is forgiven, not deferred. You have to request it in writing with a copy of your orders. Guard and Reserve members activating for the deployment: this is aimed at you. More in our SCRA guide.
• Put the car to sleep properly: stored and not driven, you can usually drop to comprehensive-only (storage) coverage and cut the premium hard, but don't cancel entirely if your state requires insurance on registered vehicles. Disconnect the battery, fill the tank, and leave the POA-holder a key.
• Pause the subscriptions: phone plans, streaming, gym: many offer military suspensions. Ten minutes of calls can save hundreds.

Source: CFPB

While you're gone (and when you're back)

• Watch the account monthly: even on autopilot, check the LES and the bank when you have connectivity. Pay problems and fraud are much easier to fix at 30 days than at 200.
• Beware downrange spending traps: loose cash and boredom fund a lot of regrettable online purchases. Give the deployment money a job before it arrives.
• The re-entry trap is real: the biggest leak isn't during deployment. It's the 90 days after, when "I earned this" meets a five-figure balance. Decide before you land what the money is for: debt payoff, the emergency fund, a car paid in cash. Spend a defined slice, not a percentage of whatever's left.

Do this now

1. Book legal assistance: POA and will in one visit, at least two weeks before departure.
2. Set autopay on every recurring bill: then have someone else confirm the first month posted.
3. Mail the SCRA letters: written request plus orders to every pre-service lender.
4. Calendar SDP enrollment: eligibility typically starts after 30 days in theater. Set a reminder to sign up through your finance office.
5. Bump TSP and check SGLI: raise your contribution while expenses are low; verify your beneficiary in milConnect.

FAQ

Do I need a general power of attorney for my spouse?

Usually not. A special POA covering the specific tasks likely to come up (taxes, vehicle, housing) protects both of you. A general POA is hard to limit and hard to revoke from 7,000 miles away. Take legal assistance's advice on scope.

Is the Savings Deposit Program really 10 percent?

Yes: 10 percent annually, compounded quarterly, on up to $10,000 in deposits per deployment, and it keeps earning for up to 90 days after you leave theater. Withdraw promptly after that window, because the interest stops.

My SCRA request only applies to old loans. What about debt I take on during deployment?

The 6 percent cap covers obligations from before you entered active duty. New debt is covered instead by the Military Lending Act's 36 percent MAPR cap. See our MLA explainer. Better yet, deployment is for stacking cash, not payments.

Sources & links

• DFAS, DoD Savings Deposit Program: dfas.mil
• Military OneSource, The Savings Deposit Program: militaryonesource.mil
• CFPB, Interest rate limits for servicemembers: consumerfinance.gov
• IRS, Publication 3, Armed Forces' Tax Guide: irs.gov