Due to recent adjustments to the law, military retirees will experience changes in their benefits if they decide to remarry after divorcing. There are several scenarios that retired armed forces members face, and being familiar with family law mandates can help individuals decide how to organize their finances before remarrying. If you live in Florida, here are some important things to keep in mind.
Survivor Benefit Plan
If a retiree is getting married again, but his or her former spouse is the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) holder, a legal change must be made to the divorce document so that the SBP will belong to the retiree again. If the former spouse passes away, family law dictates that the SBP will be returned to the retiree. If either of these situations occurs, the retiree can then transfer the SBP to his or her current spouse. However, the former spouse and current spouse cannot be covered by the benefit plan at the same time.
When a surviving spouse wishes to remarry
If a military retiree passes away, and the surviving spouse wants to get married again, the age of the surviving spouse will affect the benefits he or she receives. If the surviving spouse is 55 years of age or older, family law indicates that SBP and Dependent and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) payments will still be awarded to widow or widower of the military retiree after he or she remarries. Spouses who are under 55 years old will no longer receive SBP and DIC payments after marrying again. However, if the remarriage ends in divorce, the payments could resume.
Surviving spouses who marry another military retiree will still receive all the military benefits they received during their first marriages, including access to retail facilities on military bases with an ID card and TRICARE health insurance.
