Getting military retired pay abroad: DFAS rules and paperwork

August 23, 2026MoneyGlobalBy the OCONUS Veterans team

Your retired pay follows you wherever you live. DFAS pays retirees in Manila, Chiang Mai, Okinawa, Guadalajara and Lisbon every month. What changes when you move abroad is the paperwork: how the money reaches you, how DFAS reaches you, and which forms you need to keep current from a long way off.

This guide covers the DFAS rules that matter most for retirees overseas. For the wider picture on life as a retiree abroad, including base access and TRICARE, see our military retirees overseas page.

Your two payment options

DFAS lays out the choices for retirees overseas in its guidance on the end of paper checks:

• International direct deposit (IDD): If the country you live in has an agreement with the U.S. Treasury, DFAS can deposit your pay in a financial institution in that country.
• A U.S. account: If your country does not have an agreement, open an account at a U.S. financial institution, have DFAS deposit there, and transfer the money internationally yourself. DFAS adds that you should make sure the U.S. institution can process international transfers to your overseas bank.

DFAS also lists the Direct Express debit card as an electronic option. Paper checks are now the exception, not the rule, as explained below.

Where DFAS offers international direct deposit

DFAS's IDD list is much longer than the one VA publishes. DFAS says the countries chosen for IDD have met Federal Reserve Bank requirements, meaning their banks have systems compatible with transfers from the U.S. A sample of countries where our readers live:

Check the full, current list on the DFAS International Direct Deposit page before you plan around it. Note that Vietnam and Cambodia are on DFAS's list but not on the 30-country IDD list VA publishes on its Foreign Medical Program page. Ask VA before you assume your compensation can follow your retired pay, because you may end up with retired pay going to a local bank and VA compensation going to a U.S. account. That's fine. See our guide to VA payments abroad for the VA side.

DFAS says IDD deposits arrive on the first business day of the month.

How to enroll in IDD with DFAS

1. Open your local account and confirm it can receive incoming international payments. Get the bank's full name and address, your account number, and the bank's SWIFT or other routing code.
2. Complete the International Direct Deposit Enrollment form. DFAS's IDD page calls it the SF 1199-I, and its forms library lists it as OF1199-I. It's the same enrollment form. DFAS notes it is not a DFAS-owned form, so read its instructions carefully.
3. Type it if you can. DFAS says typed forms are preferable, and that incorrect or incomplete forms are returned unprocessed, which delays your enrollment. Sign it.
4. Submit it through askDFAS. DFAS calls the askDFAS online upload tool the most convenient way. Retirees choose the category "Retiree - Form Upload Tools" and the subcategory "General Retiree Documents - Upload."
5. Or mail or fax it. Mail to Defense Finance and Accounting Service, U.S. Military Retired Pay, 8899 E 56th Street, Indianapolis IN 46249-1200, or fax to 800-469-6559. From overseas, mail is slow, so upload if you possibly can.
6. Wait 45 to 60 days. That is DFAS's stated processing time.
7. Do not close your stateside account until you see a deposit in your international account. DFAS warns that if you close it early, your pay is returned to DFAS, which causes more delay.

To change from one U.S. account to another, you can use myPay or DFAS's Direct Deposit Authorization for Retired and Annuitant Pay. The same 45 to 60 day timeline and the same "keep the old account open" rule apply.

Paper checks: rarely an option now

On March 25, 2025, Executive Order 14247 directed the federal government to move payments to electronic methods, and DFAS encourages anyone still getting a monthly check to switch. DFAS's forms library still has a form to request payment by mailed check (FS Form 1201W-DFAS), but it warns there are stringent eligibility requirements.

If you do receive a mailed check at a foreign address, you have an extra annual task: the Retiree Foreign Address Update for Mailed Check (FAUMC). DFAS says this verification is due the first day of your birthday month. If your pay is suspended, DFAS has a Retiree Restart Pay Confirmation form to restart it. Electronic payment avoids all of that.

Keep DFAS able to reach you

An address that is out of date is the root of many overseas pay problems: missed letters, missed verifications, and tax forms sent to an old house. DFAS gives you three ways to update your mailing address:

• The askDFAS online tool
• myPay
• DD Form 2866, Retiree Change of Address Request/State Tax Withholding Authorization

DFAS also reminds retirees to update VA and other government agencies when their address changes. Do it on the same day so you don't forget.

Get myPay working before you leave

myPay is the easiest way to manage your account from anywhere: direct deposit, address, tax withholding, allotments, and your 1099-R. If you have never set it up, DFAS's process starts with a temporary password mailed to the address on file, which DFAS's guidance for SBP annuitants says arrives in about 10 business days. Expect a similar wait as a retiree. That is easy in the States and slow from overseas. Set up myPay and confirm you can log in from abroad before you move.

Taxes on retired pay abroad

Living overseas does not by itself change how the IRS treats your retired pay. DFAS says whether part or all of your retired pay is subject to federal income tax depends on your individual circumstances, that choosing no withholding does not change whether the pay is taxable, and that the IRS ultimately determines what you owe.

Practical points from DFAS:

• Change federal withholding in myPay or with the current year IRS W-4.
• If you claim exemption from withholding, the IRS requires a new W-4 at the start of every year.
• DFAS can only withhold income tax for one state at a time, and only for states with a withholding agreement with DoD. If you have left a state, review whether you still need state withholding.

Your host country may also want to tax your retired pay, depending on its law and any tax treaty with the U.S. This is an area for a tax professional who works with Americans abroad. See taxes and voting abroad and our planned guide on U.S. taxes abroad for veterans.

Two beneficiary designations you need to check

Retirees overseas often assume that their Survivor Benefit Plan election covers everything. It doesn't.

• Arrears of pay (AOP): This is your last, pro-rated retired pay payment after death. You designate the AOP beneficiary on DD Form 2894 or in myPay. DFAS says your AOP beneficiary is separate from your SBP beneficiary, and that the SBP election does not entitle the SBP beneficiary to AOP.
• The foreign bank catch: DFAS says arrears of pay cannot be deposited to an international bank account. International AOP payments are issued by mailed check. If your spouse only has a local account, they will be waiting on a check in the mail.

Our guide to SBP and retiree paperwork abroad goes through the full survivor checklist, including how a death gets reported and why joint accounts cause trouble.

Other things to handle from abroad

• Allotments: Start, stop or change them in myPay or with DD Form 2558. DFAS says changes can take 30 to 60 days. Some allotments, such as TRICARE premiums, are set by the program, not by you.
• Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC): You apply to your branch of service with DD Form 2860, not to DFAS, and DFAS says you must have a VA disability rating that is combat-related first.
• Debts: If DFAS says you owe money, DD Form 2789 is the waiver request. DFAS notes recoupment and debt are different, and recoupment cannot be waived.
• Powers of attorney: DFAS has a page on powers of attorney and third-party representatives for retirees. If you want someone in the States to deal with DFAS for you, set that up early.

Example (hypothetical): A retired Air Force master sergeant moving to Da Nang sets up myPay and confirms his login works from a hotel network before he leaves. Once he has a Vietnamese bank account, he uploads a typed SF 1199-I through askDFAS and leaves his U.S. account open. About two months later his first IDD deposit arrives on the first business day of the month. His VA compensation stays in the U.S. account, because Vietnam is not on the IDD country list VA publishes. He updates his DD Form 2894 so his wife is his arrears of pay beneficiary, and they talk through the fact that a final payment would come to her as a mailed check.

How to reach DFAS

The (317) number is a regular U.S. number, which is often easier to dial from overseas than an 800 number. Have your Social Security number and recent account details ready when you call.

If your country has a Retiree Activities Office or a nearby installation, it can be a good place to get help with DFAS paperwork. See Space-A and base access for more on what retirees can use overseas.

OCONUS Veterans is not affiliated with DFAS or DoD. This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Confirm details with DFAS before you act.

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Published August 23, 2026. Information only, not legal, tax, immigration or medical advice. Confirm with the official sources.