Military pay, including active duty pay and allowances and retired pay, stops upon a Soldier's death. The Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) is a program through which the Department of Defense provides monthly, cost-of-living-adjusted income to eligible survivors of Soldiers who die on Active Duty in the line of duty, including Reserve Soldiers and National Guard Soldiers who die on Federal Active Duty in the line of duty and Retired Soldiers who choose to continue participating in the program after they retire.
Soldiers who retire due to a service-connected disability incurred while on active duty, whether Regular or Reserve, may participate in SBP.
Reserve and National Guard Soldiers may participate in the Reserve Component Survivor Benefit Plan (RCSBP) when they complete 20 years of qualifying service for non-regular retirement.
The following table illustrates which program applies to whom, depending on one's duty status and retirement eligibility:
Soldier Status | Survivor Benefit Plan Eligible For |
Regular Army on active duty | SBP. Benefits calculated as if retired with 100% disability. Death must be in the Line of Duty unless retirement-eligible. If retirement eligible and found not in the Line of Duty, benefits based on years of active service. SBP coverage provided at no cost and beneficiaries determined by law. |
Regular Army retired | SBP, if they enroll upon retirement. Line of Duty determination not applicable. If coverage elected must choose SBP beneficiary category and pay part of the coverage cost. |
Reserve and National Guard Soldiers in non-drilling status with less than 20 years of service who die in a non-duty status | No SBP or RCSBP. |
Reserve and National Guard Soldiers on Inactive Duty for Training | RCSBP. Benefits calculated as if retired with 100% disability. Death must be in the Line of Duty. If retirement eligible and found not in the Line of Duty, benefits based on what retired pay would have been calculated as a non-regular retirement. Coverage provided at no cost if found in the Line of Duty and beneficiaries determined by law. |
Reserve and National Guard Soldiers on Federal Active Duty, regardless of years of service | SBP. Benefits calculated as if retired with 100% disability. Death must be in the Line of Duty. If retirement eligible and found not in the Line of Duty, benefits based on years of active service. SBP coverage provided at no cost and beneficiaries determined by law. If retirement eligibility based on 20 creditable years toward non-regular retirement and found not in the LOD, RCSBP coverage applied with beneficiaries determined by law. |
Reserve and National Guard Soldiers in non-drilling status with at least 20 years of service | RCSBP. Only if they enrolled with Option B or Option C when they received 20-Year Letter; or received the 20 year letter, are within the 90 day period, but have not made an RCSBP election; or should have received a 20 year letter. Death does not need to be in the Line of Duty. |
Reserve and National Guard Soldiers at age 60 who had enrolled in RCSBP with Options B or C | At age 60 RCSBP for non-regular Retired Soldiers becomes SBP. Line of Duty determination not applicable. Must pay RCSBP and SBP premiums starting at non-regular retirement. |
Reserve and National Guard Soldiers at age 60 who had not enrolled in RCSBP (elected Option A) | SBP. Only if they enroll in SBP upon receipt of retired pay. Line of Duty determination not applicable. Must pay SBP premiums if SBP coverage elected. |
Reserve and National Guard Soldiers over age 60 who had not enrolled in either RCSBP or SBP | No SBP or RCSBP. Retired pay stops at the death of the Retired Soldier. |
SBP premiums are deducted from retired pay and since April of 2018, DFAS will deduct SBP premiums from Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) when retired pay is not sufficient to cover the full amount of the premiums. This deduction is due to a change in the law which requires DFAS to deduct SBP premiums from CRSC. Click here for more information.
