The Army will now reimburse soldiers up to $1,000 for costs associated with the relocation of their spouses’ businesses. (Pexels)
The Army will now reimburse soldiers up to $1,000 for costs associated with the relocation of their spouses’ businesses.
The new program covers all spouses who owned their businesses and were married to their soldier prior to a permanent change of station, or PCS, according to a May 20 memorandum.
The program is the latest Army effort to increase its support of soldiers’ families. A similar program first took effect in 2018 under an Army directive offering a maximum $1,000 reimbursement for spouses who transferred professional licenses to a new area because of a PCS.
The program has been updated several times since then, with the latest expanding coverage to include some business-related relocation fees.
“Support from spouses is essential for their Soldiers’ successful and continued service,” Army spokeswoman Ellen Lovett told Stars and Stripes in an email Friday. “The Army is committed to helping spouses achieve their career goals, which is part of our ongoing efforts to improve the quality of life and financial stability of our families.”
To take advantage of the new program, the soldier and spouse must submit required documents to their unit finance office, which will process the request.
The documents include a copy of the soldier’s PCS orders, a copy of the spouse’s previous professional license or certification or their previous business license or permit, a copy of their new license or certification and proof of fees paid for the new license, certification or recertification. If the spouse relocated a business, a copy of the business license from the new duty station must be provided to be reimbursed.
“The goal is to send reimbursements as soon as possible,” Lovett wrote. “The process will be expedited when Soldiers and units provide the required documents for the approving official.”
The program is not limited to moves within the United States. Soldiers who PCS to an overseas location with their spouses can be reimbursed for fees required for their spouses to get licensed and certified or operate their business in the host country so long as they held a valid U.S. version of that professional license or owned their business before the PCS.
“This program applies to all spouses, regardless of nationality or citizenship, as long as they were married to their service member prior to the PCS,” Lovett said.
