Title 10, Armed ForcesRelease 119-110
§12739 Computation of Retired Pay
Title 10 › Subtitle E — Reserve Components › PART II — PERSONNEL GENERALLY › CHAPTER 1223 — RETIRED PAY FOR NON-REGULAR SERVICE › § 12739
Summary
It explains how to figure monthly retired pay. Start with the retired pay base and multiply it by 2.5% times the number of years of creditable service. If an enlisted person is officially credited with extraordinary heroism, add 10% of that amount. The total pay normally cannot be more than 75% of the retired pay base, but someone who retires after December 31, 2006 with more than 30 years can get up to 75% plus extra pay for certain kinds of service during a period the Secretary of Defense names. Round any dollar amounts down to the next whole dollar. If a Retired Reserve member is recalled to active Selected Reserve duty and completes at least two years, their retired pay must be recalculated; the Secretary can cut that to one year in certain adjutant general cases. For people who first return to reserve service on or after January 1, 2018 (or who make the special election), the formula uses 2% per year instead of 2.5% and the maximum becomes 60% instead of 75%. Those serving on December 31, 2017 with under 12 years could choose, during 2018, to accept the lower multipliers in exchange for Thrift Savings Plan contributions, with limited extension and reentry rules; no TSP contributions are made before the election date. The Secretaries must write rules to run this system.
Full Legal Text
Title 10, §12739
Armed Forces, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)The monthly retired pay of a person entitled to that pay under this chapter is the product of—
(1)the retired pay base for that person as computed under section 1406(b)(2) or 1407 of this title; and
(2)2½ percent of the years of service credited to that person under section 12733 of this title.
(b)If a person entitled to retired pay under this chapter has been credited by the Secretary concerned with extraordinary heroism in the line of duty and if the highest grade held satisfactorily by that person at any time in the armed forces is an enlisted grade, the person’s retired pay shall be increased by 10 percent of the amount determined under subsection (a). The Secretary’s determination as to extraordinary heroism is conclusive for all purposes.
(c)(1)Except as provided in paragraph (2), the total amount of the monthly retired pay computed under subsections (a) and (b) may not exceed 75 percent of the retired pay base upon which the computation is based.
(2)In the case of a person who retires after December 31, 2006, with more than 30 years of service credited to that person under section 12733 of this title, the total amount of the monthly retired pay computed under subsections (a) and (b) may not exceed the sum of—
(A)75 percent of the retired pay base upon which the computation is based; and
(B)the product of—
(i)the retired pay base upon which the computation is based; and
(ii)2½ percent of the years of service credited to that person under section 12733 of this title, for service under conditions authorized for purposes of this paragraph during a period designated by the Secretary of Defense for purposes of this paragraph.
(d)Amounts computed under this section, if not a multiple of $1, shall be rounded down to the next lower multiple of $1.
(e)(1)If a member of the Retired Reserve is recalled to an active status in the Selected Reserve of the Ready Reserve under section 10145(d) of this title and completes not less than two years of service in such active status, the member is entitled to the recomputation under this section of the retired pay of the member.
(2)The Secretary concerned may reduce the two-year service requirement specified in paragraph (1) in the case of a member who—
(A)is recalled to serve in a position of adjutant general required under section 314 of title 32 or in a position of assistant adjutant general subordinate to such a position of adjutant general;
(B)completes at least one year of service in such position; and
(C)fails to complete the minimum two years of service solely because the appointment of the member to such position is terminated or vacated as described in section 324(b) of title 32.
(f)Modernized Retirement System.—
(1)Reduced multiplier for full tsp members.—
Notwithstanding subsection (a) or (c), in the case of a person who first performs reserve component service on or after January 1, 2018, after not having performed regular or reserve component service on or before that date, or a person who makes the election described in paragraph (2) (referred to as a “full TSP member”)—
(A)subsection (a)(2) shall be applied by substituting “2 percent” for “2½ percent”;
(B)subparagraph (A) of subsection (c)(2) shall be applied by substituting “60 percent” for “75 percent”; and
(C)subparagraph (B)(ii) of such subsection shall be applied by substituting “2 percent” for “2½ percent”.
(2)Election to participate in modernized retirement system.—
(A)In general.—
Pursuant to subparagraph (B), a person performing reserve component service on December 31, 2017, who has performed fewer than 12 years of service as of December 31, 2017 (as computed in accordance with section 12733 of this title), may elect, in exchange for the reduced multipliers described in paragraph (1) for purposes of calculating the retired pay of the person, to receive Thrift Savings Plan contributions pursuant to section 8440e(e) of title 5.
(B)Election period.—
(i)In general.—
Except as provided in clauses (ii) and (iii), a person described in subparagraph (A) may make the election described in that subparagraph during the period that begins on January 1, 2018, and ends on December 31, 2018.
(ii)Hardship extension.—
The Secretary concerned may extend the election period described in clause (i) for a person who experiences a hardship as determined by the Secretary concerned.
(iii)Persons experiencing break in service.—
A person returning to reserve component service after a break in reserve component service in which falls the election period specified in clause (i) shall make the election described in subparagraph (A) within 30 days after the date of the reentry into service of the person.
(C)No retroactive contributions pursuant to election.—
Thrift Savings Plan contributions may not be made for a person making an election pursuant to subparagraph (A) for any pay period beginning before the date of the person’s election under that subparagraph by reason of the person’s election.
(3)Regulations.—
The Secretary concerned shall prescribe regulations to implement this subsection.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
Prior Provisions
Provisions similar to those in this section were contained in formula 3 of the table in section 1401(a) of this title, prior to amendment by Pub. L. 103–337, § 1662(j)(2).
Amendments
2017—Subsec. (f)(2)(B)(iii). Pub. L. 115–91 substituted “within 30 days after the date of the reentry” for “on the date of the reentry”. 2015—Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 114–92 added subsec. (f). 2009—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 111–84 added subsec. (e). 2006—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 109–364 designated existing provisions as par. (1), substituted “Except as provided in paragraph (2), the” for “The”, and added par. (2). 2002—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 107–314, § 632(a)(2), added subsec. (b). Former subsec. (b) redesignated (c). Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 107–314, § 632(a)(1), (b), redesignated subsec. (b) as (c) and substituted “total amount of the monthly retired pay computed under subsections (a) and (b)” for “amount computed under subsection (a)”. Former subsec. (c) redesignated (d). Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 107–314, § 632(a)(1), redesignated subsec. (c) as (d).
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 2017 Amendment Pub. L. 115–91, div. A, title VI, § 623(b), Dec. 12, 2017, 131 Stat. 1429, provided that: “The amendment made by subsection (a) [amending this section] shall take effect on January 1, 2018, immediately after the coming into effect of the amendment made by section 631(b) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 (Public Law 114–92; 129 Stat. 843) [amending this section], to which the amendment made by subsection (a) relates.”
Effective Date
of 2015 Amendment; ImplementationAmendment by Pub. L. 114–92 effective Jan. 1, 2018, with certain implementation requirements, see section 635 of Pub. L. 114–92, set out as a note under section 8432 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.
Effective Date
of 2002 Amendment Pub. L. 107–314, div. A, title VI, § 632(c), Dec. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 2572, provided that: “The
Amendments
made by subsections (a) and (b) [amending this section] shall take effect on October 1, 2002, and shall apply with respect to retired pay for months beginning on or after that date.”
Effective Date
Section effective Dec. 1, 1994, except as otherwise provided, see section 1691 of Pub. L. 103–337, set out as a note under section 10001 of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
10 U.S.C. § 12739
Title 10, Armed Forces
Last Updated
Sep 22, 2026
Release point: 119-110