Active Duty Retirement (MMSR-2)

Also referred to as time-in-grade (TIG). Marines must meet the applicable Service in Grade requirements below:

CONUS

Marines must complete 2 years TOS, except for those returning from overseas (including Alaska and Hawaii) which require 1 year TOS, based on the Geo-location Date the Current Tour Began (GEO DCTB) as established in MCTFS. Use the original GEO DCTB for officers reassigned within the same geographical area. Whenever PCS orders are issued (no cost, low cost, or fully funded) and those orders result in a change of geo-location, the member incurs the requisite obligated TOS requirement per MCO 1300.8(See paragraph 2004.3). TOS requirement for Permanent Change of Assignment (PCA) is based on needs of the Marine Corps (consult your monitor).

Overseas/Prescribed Tour Length

Marines serving overseas or on tours whose length is prescribed by MCO 1300.8, Marine Corps Personnel Assignment Policy, must complete a full tour.

Marines Assigned to Hawaii have a TOS obligation of 3 years

Schools

Marines attending school under various programs or who receive special training or assignment in compliance with official orders must complete the additional service obligation incurred.

Note: All service obligation begins upon completion of the school. The service requirement is applicable to any officer who fails to complete any such school and will start on the date of transfer from the course.

Education Programs

Additional service obligation incurred incident to education programs are as prescribed by the appropriate Marine Corps directive in effect at the time of selection for the College Degree Program, Special Education Program, Advanced Degree, Funded Law Education Program, Excess Leave Program (Law), or other full-time, funded schooling.

Tuition AssistancE

Service requirement for officers is 2 years from the date of completion of any course for which tuition assistance is provided. Commanders are responsible for identifying to CMC (MMSR and MR) all officers having incurred a tuition assistance service obligation that request separation or retirement. Officers subject to this obligation may be considered for retirement if a request for waiver is submitted, and the officer pays back at a prorated rate the tuition assistance used. Officers subject to mandatory retirement are no longer obligated to pay back a prorated rate of any tuition assistance used. For further information contact CMC (MR) at (703) 784-9550.

Note: If you have been identified as owing TA and you know the monetary amount, you may send a certified check or money order made payable to: Treasurer of the United States and mail it to:

Commanding Officer (Code N8115)
Marine Corps Group
NETPDTC
6490 Saufley Field Road
Pensacola, Florida 32509-5241

Special Tours

A two-year service obligation is incurred upon completion of duty in an aviation or aviation ground exchange tour with a foreign military service or another branch of the US military service. These tours include but are not limited to USAF exchange tours, the Navy Flight Demonstration Team tour, Royal Navy exchange tours, Royal Australian Air Force exchange tours, Spanish Navy exchange tours, Italian Navy exchange tours, and Canadian Navy exchange tours.

Voluntary requests for retirement or transfer to the FMCR may be disapproved if the needs of the Marine Corps require continued service of the applicant.

Use the following procedure to determine monthly gross retired/retainer pay for Marines in this category:

Step 1
–Retirement and Transfer FMCR. To determine the retired pay multiplier (RPM) for all officers and enlisted Marines with 20 years or more of active service, multiply the Marine’s years (include fractional portions of a year) of active service by 2.5% (.025). The RPM cannot exceed 75%.
–Example 1: A Marine with 23 years and 8 months of active service. The 8 months constitute a fractional year which must be converted to a decimal equivalent and added to the 23 years. To convert a fractional year, divide the number of months by 12 (i.e., 8 months divided by 12 = .66). Accordingly, 23 years and 8 months = 23.66 for this Marine’s number of years and fractional year of active service. Multiply this figure by 2.5% (.025) to get the RPM (i.e., 23.66 X .025 = .5915).

Step 2
–Multiply the RPM by the monthly basic pay in the grade the Marine is serving when transferring to the Retired List or the FMCR. .5915 (RPM) X basic pay = retired/retainer pay
–Note: Remember to convert percentages to decimal equivalents by moving the decimal point two places to the left before multiplication.

The Department of Defense Authorization Act of 1981 implemented a second method of calculating retired/retainer pay for any member of the Armed Forces who first became a member on or after 8 September 1980. The Defense Authorization Act of 2000 amended the retired pay system to include in this method of calculation, Marines who first became a member on or after 1 August 1986 and who have not elected a 15 year career status bonus. This method computes retired/retainer pay on the basis of the highest three years of basic pay and is commonly referred to as the “High-3” method. Use the following procedure to compute gross retired/retainer pay for Marines in this category.

Step 1
–To determine the RPM, multiply the Marine’s years (include fractional portions of a year) of active service by 2.5% (.025). This factor cannot exceed 75%. To compute a fractional year, see Example 1 above.

Step 2
–To determine average monthly basic pay received during your highest 3 years (36 months) of active duty, add the 36 months of base pay in which your monthly basic pay was highest (normally your last 3 years of active duty) and divide by 36. This will give the “High-36 Average.”

Step 3
–Multiply the high-36 average by the RPM.

Retired/retainer pay for those who first became members of the Armed Forces on or after 1 August 1986, and who have taken the 15 year career status bonus, will be computed under a system established by the Military Reform Act of 1986. The career status bonus is contingent upon the Marine serving 20 active years. Failure to serve 20 years requires reimbursement of any unserved portion of the bonus. This is accomplished by computing retired/retainer pay using a two-tier system. The first tier provides a reduced amount of retired/retainer pay for those who retire or transfer to the FMCR with less than 30 years of active service. The second tier recomputes the retired/retainer pay for those with less than 30 years of active service when they reach the age of 62. Marines who retire under this system with 30 years of active service will still be entitled to retired pay based on 75% of their basic pay. Use the following procedure to compute gross retired/retainer pay.

Step 1
–To determine the RPM start with a base of 40% for 20 years of active service. 

Step 2
–For each additional full year of active service add 3.5% (.035). For each additional whole month between full years, add .3% (.003). The RPM cannot exceed 75%. –Example 2: To determine the retired pay multiplier for 23 years and 3 months of active service:      40% + 3.5% + 3.5% + 3.5% + .3% + .3% + .3% = 51.4%

Step 3
–Determine the average monthly basic pay received during the highest 3 years (36 months) of active duty.

Step 4
–Multiply high-36 average amount by the retired pay multiplier. .5140 X average basic pay = retired/retainer pay.

Step 5
–To determine retired pay at age 62, recompute the retired pay amount by using Method 2 above.

–FICA (Social Security and Medicare) is not withheld from retired pay.

–Federal income tax is withheld from retired pay.

–State income tax is not automatically withheld. You must request state withholding by letter to DFAS Cleveland Center or on DD Form 2656. The monthly amount must be at least $10 and in even dollar amounts which will be automatically withheld from your retired pay. Missouri, Colorado, and New Jersey do not have an agreement with DoD for voluntary withholding of state income tax. Residents of these states must pay any taxes owed at the end of the year. According to the “Retired Military Almanac” the following states have no tax on earned income:
Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, Wyoming

Note: A number of states may exempt retired pay from state income tax. Please consult with your tax advisor regarding the amount of state income tax that you should withhold. It would be in your best interest to check with the state where you are going to reside, after retirement, to determine if that state exempts retired pay from state income tax.

MCTFS is programmed to reject retirement/FMCR transfer requests outside the 4-14 month window. Requests outside the window should be submitted via separate correspondence (i.e. AA form, letter, or MSG) with justification for the request. MSGs are usually received the next day.

DOD has put out a web page that explains the pro’s and con’s of the REDUX plan. By visiting the site you can compare the HIGH THREE and the REDUX plans side by side. Visit the DoD Retirement Choice Site.

After your application has been approved, look on the (Marine Corps Total Force) MCTFS RT02 screen and you will find:

     –ACTIVE SVC= Active Service (read: years, months, days)
     –CONSTRUCTIVE SVC= Constructive Service
     –TOT SVC= Total Service (read: years, months, days)
     –RET PAY MULT SVC= Retired Pay Multiplier Service (read: years, months, days)
     –INACDU POINTS= Inactive Duty Points

Your admin office should have access to MCTFS (Marine Corps Total Force System). On the RT01 page is where you can find most of the information you are going to need.     
 
–APPLDATE= Application date      
–AFADBD= Armed Forces Active Duty Base Date      
–PEBD= Pay Entry Base Date      
–DOEAF= DIEMS= Date of Initial Entry Military Service      
–PDD= Planned Detachment Date      
–PRR= Planned Retirement Reenlistment (date)      
–RER= Retirement Reenlistment Flag
 

Your RER flag will indicate the current status of your package.

In order to have certain service requirements waived, you must submit your request to us via AA form, letter, or Naval Message (Unit Diary entry is not an option). Be sure to include justification. Endorsements are required for letters and AA forms. Once the request is received, the waiver is then routed through the proper channels. Approval of the the waiver is based on the needs of the Marine Corps.