Reserve retirement is sometimes called non-regular retirement.Members who accumulate 20 or more years of qualifying service areeligible for reserve retirement when they reach age 60 or, in somecases, a lesser qualifying age. There are two non-disability retirementplans currently in effect for reserve qualified retirees. These areFinal Pay plan, High-36 Month Average plan. There is no REDUX retirementplan under non-regular (reserve) retirement.
The basic retirement formula is:
Retired Pay Base X Multiplier %
Final Pay Plan
The retired pay base for a qualified reserve retirement under theFinal Pay plan is the monthly basic pay determined at the ratesapplicable on the day of retirement at the highest grade satisfactorilyheld during service. In other words, it is the rate of pay for themember's pay grade and years of service taken from the pay table ineffect on the date that retired pay begins, regardless of when themember stopped participation (i.e. went into the gray area).
The Final Pay plan uses a multiplier % that is 2½% times the years ofcreditable service. The creditable years of service for a reserveretirement calculation is determined by the sum of all accumulatedreserve points divided by 360.
High-36 Plan
The retired pay base for a qualified reserve retirement under theHigh-36 retirement plan is the total amount of monthly basic pay towhich the member was entitled during the member's high-36 months dividedby 36. This includes months to which the member would have beenentitled if the member had served on active duty during the entireperiod. Usually this will be the average of the 36 months for themember's pay grade and years of service taken from the pay tables ineffect for the 36 months immediately preceding the date that retired paybegins, regardless of when the member stopped participation (i.e. wentinto the gray area).
The High-36 retirement plan uses a multiplier % that is the same as the final pay plan.
Years of Service
There are 3 categories for determining years of creditable servicethat have applicability to the computation of reserve (non-regular)retired pay. One for determining when an individual is entitled toretired pay, one for determining the applicable active duty base payupon which to compute retired pay, and one for determining the retiredpay percentage multiplier. For reserve retirements these are generallydifferent.
The first category we shall call- Years of Service for RetirementEntitlement. This category of years of service includes each one yearperiod in which the person has been credited with at least 50 points, asfollows:
- 1 point for each day of active service
- 1 point for each attendance at a drill period
- 1 point for each day of performing funeral honors duty
- 15 points for each year of membership in a reserve component
Generally, a member retiring with a Reserve (non-regular) retirementmust have 20 years of service for entitlement and they will receive aletter from their Service advising when this criteria has been met.
The second category we shall call- Years of Service for Pay Base.When combined with pay grade, YOS for pay base, determines the activeduty pay entitlement by defining the appropriate pay table cell, e.g.E-4 over 6 years of service. This category of years of service includesall periods of active service and all periods of Reserve or NationalGuard service counted day for day. A unique feature of Reserveretirement is that the pay base is determined as though the reservemember were serving on active duty immediately prior to retirement, thusthe years of service continue to accumulate even after the member hasentered the retired reserve and continue until they actually beginreceiving such pay (usually age 60).
The third category we shall call- Years of Service for Retired PayPercentage Multiple. YOS for retirement percentage multiple determinesthe years of service for computing the retired pay multiplier. Thiscategory of years of service includes all periods of active service(counted as one point for each day) plus all points earned throughqualifying reserve duty, not exceeding annual limits, divided by 360.
Retirement Age
A member is generally not eligible for Reserve (non-regular) retiredpay until they reach age 6o. However, any member of the Ready Reservewho is recalled to active duty or, in response to a national emergency,is called to certain active service after January 28, 2008, shall havethe age 60 requirement reduced by 3 months for each cumulative period of90 days so performed in any fiscal year after that date.
Application
Members eligible for Reserve retirement must request retired pay fromthe military department in which they last served. Payment is not madeuntil requested.
