Title 10Armed ForcesRelease 119-73

§1596a Foreign language proficiency: special pay for proficiency beneficial for other national security interests

Title 10 › Subtitle Subtitle A— - General Military Law › Part PART II— - PERSONNEL › Chapter CHAPTER 81— - CIVILIAN EMPLOYEES › § 1596a

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Secretary of Defense can give extra pay to a DoD employee who is certified in a foreign language identified as needed for national security, uses it at work, and is not already paid under section 1596. Pay is set by the Secretary, capped at five percent of basic pay, added to other pay, and rules must be made.

Full Legal Text

Title 10, §1596a

Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Secretary of Defense may pay special pay under this section to an employee of the Department of Defense who—
(1)has been certified by the Secretary to be proficient in a foreign language identified by the Secretary as being a language in which proficiency by civilian personnel of the Department is necessary because of national security interests;
(2)is assigned duties requiring proficiency in that foreign language; and
(3)is not receiving special pay under section 1596 of this title.
(b)The rate of special pay for an employee under this section shall be prescribed by the Secretary, but may not exceed five percent of the employee’s rate of basic pay.
(c)Special pay under this section is in addition to any other pay or allowances to which the employee is entitled.
(d)The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe regulations to carry out this section.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2004—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 108–375 struck out “during a contingency operation supported by the armed forces” after “foreign language”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2004 Amendment Pub. L. 108–375, div. A, title XI, § 1102(b), Oct. 28, 2004, 118 Stat. 2072, provided that: “The amendment by this section [amending this section] shall take effect on the first day of the first month that begins after the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 28, 2004].”

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

10 U.S.C. § 1596a

Title 10Armed Forces

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73