Military Special Pays & Allowances

Every DFAS special and incentive pay, with the rate tables, tax treatment, and effective dates. Flight pay, sea pay, and submarine pay all vary by branch, grade, or years of service — the figures below are the published tables, not averages.

Calculate your own pay

Read the effective dates. Special and incentive pays do not change with the annual basic pay raise. DFAS still publishes career sea pay effective 2014 and most aviation pay tables effective 2017–2020. Those are the current rates — they simply haven't been re-issued.

Aviation Incentive Pay (AvIP)

Officer only, and keyed on years of aviation service — not total time in service. Each service publishes its own table, and they genuinely differ: at 12 years of aviation service an Army aviator draws $1,000, an Air Force aviator $700, and a Navy aviator $650.

Army · eff. 2020-01-01

Years of aviation serviceMonthly
2 or less$125
Over 2$200
Over 6$700
Over 10$1,000
Over 22$700
Over 24$400

Air Force / Space Force · eff. 2017-10-01

Years of aviation serviceMonthly
2 or less$150
Over 2$250
Over 6$700
Over 12$1,000
Over 22$700
Over 24$450

Navy · eff. 2018-04-01

Years of aviation serviceMonthly
2 or less$125
Over 2$156
Over 3$188
Over 4$206
Over 6$650
Over 14$840
Over 22$585
Over 23$495
Over 24$385
Over 25$250

Marine Corps · eff. 2018-03-01

Years of aviation serviceMonthly
2 or less$125
Over 2$156
Over 3$188
Over 4$206
Over 6$650
Over 8$800
Over 10$1,000
Over 17$840
Over 22$585
Over 23$495
Over 24$385
Over 25$250

Coast Guard rates are published by the USCG Pay & Personnel Center, not DFAS, and are not shown here. Members not drawing AvIP receive Hazardous Duty Incentive Pay for flying instead: $250/month for crew members and $150/month for non-crew (Army, Navy, and Air Force), or a years-of-service band from $150 to $240 in the Marine Corps.

Hazardous Duty Incentive Pay

Flat monthly rates, all taxable, prorated by qualifying service in the month. Most services cap how many you can draw at once — commonly three.

DutyMonthly
Military Free Fall (HALO/HAHO)$240
Demolition Duty$150
Flight Deck Duty$150
Toxic Fuels / Propellants$150
Toxic Pesticides$150
Chemical Munitions$150
Dangerous Viruses / Bacteria$150
Experimental Stress Duty$150
Maritime VBSS$150
Polar Region Flight Operations$150
WMD Civil Support Team$150
Parachute duty, static lineArmy pays an elevated rate through 2029-05-20$150Army $200

Effective 2026-03-05. DFAS hazardous duty pay table

Career Sea Pay — Navy & Marine Corps

By paygrade and cumulative years of sea duty. The Army and Air Force publish separate, materially different tables — an Army O-6 tops out at $380 where the Navy's reaches $669.

Grade≤1>1>2>3>4>5>6>7>8>9>10>11>12>13>14>16>18>20
O-6100100100394400400419450463494506525544544569594625669
O-5100100100394394394394400431438456463463463500525550594
O-4100100100325331350356375388388394394419419475494506525
O-3100100100263281325331344356375394394419419456475494506
O-2100100100263281325331344356375394394419419438456475494
O-1100100100263281325331344356375394394419419438456475494
W-5210210210263300506544544544544613656700700750750750750
W-4210210210263300506544544544544613656700700750750750750
W-3210210210263300475494500506544613656700700744744750750
W-2210210210263300456463463475544594594656656700700700700
W-1180190195263300306350438475525569569594594631656656656
E-9135135160381400438438469688700700713725750750750750750
E-8135135160381400438438469688700700713725750750750750750
E-7135135160381400438438469688700700713725750750750750750
E-6135135160350375394406438638656656656675694713731750750
E-57080160350375394406438638638638638638638638638638638
E-47080160350363363363363488488488488488488488488488488
E-35060100125125125125125125125125125125125125125125125
E-2506075949494949494949494949494949494
E-1505050636363636363636363636363636363

Effective 2014-05-01. DFAS career sea pay table. Career Sea Pay Premium adds $200/month after more than 36 consecutive months of sea duty — but it is not payable to E-5 through E-9 with over 8 years of cumulative sea duty, because it is already built into their base rate.

Submarine Duty Incentive Pay

By paygrade and total years of service — not years of submarine service.

Grade≤2>2>3>4>6>8>10>12>14>16>18>20
O-10355355355355355355355355355355355355
O-9355355355355355355355355355355355355
O-8355355355355355355355355355355355355
O-7355355355355355355355355355355355355
O-6660660660660660660660660660660950950
O-5655655655655655655655655880930950950
O-4400400400580655805880880880880880880
O-3390390390560655805805805805805805805
O-2335335335335335335335335470470470470
O-1255255255255255255255255470470470470
W-5320420420475475475475475475475475475
W-4320420420475475475475475475475475475
W-3320420420475475475475475475475475475
W-2320420420475475475475475475475475475
W-1320420420475475475475475475475475475
E-9450450450450450450450450450450600600
E-8450450450450450450450450450450550550
E-7445445445445445445445445445445445445
E-6175190190335370430430430430430430430
E-5155170170275315315315315315315315315
E-490105110270270270270270270270270270
E-390100105105105105105105105105105105
E-285100100100100100100100100100100100
E-1858585858585858585858585

Effective 2021-10-01. DFAS submarine duty pay table

Diving Duty Pay

Depends on your qualification, not simply on being dive-qualified.

Under instruction (dive school) · Army enlisted$110
Master Diver · Army enlisted$340
Diver First Class · Army enlisted$215
Salvage Diver · Army enlisted$175
Diver Second Class · Army enlisted$150
Combat Diver · Army enlisted$215
Under instruction (dive school) · Army officer$110
Marine Diving Officer (ASI 5V) · Army officer$240
Combat Diver · Army officer$215
Diving Medical Officer · Army officer$215
Under instruction (dive school) · Navy enlisted$150
Master Diver (MMDV) · Navy enlisted$340
Master Underwater Construction Diver (B18A) · Navy enlisted$340
First Class Diver (M1DV) · Navy enlisted$315
Second Class Diver (M2DV) · Navy enlisted$215
SCUBA Diver (839A/840A) · Navy enlisted$150
UCT Advanced (B16A) · Navy enlisted$215
UCT Basic (B17A) · Navy enlisted$150
Basic/Senior/Master EOD Technician (M02A–M04A) · Navy enlisted$215
EOD Apprentice (M00A/M01A) · Navy enlisted$150
Ordnance Clearance Diver (M06A) · Navy enlisted$215
NSW Enlisted Operator (O19A–O29A) · Navy enlisted$215
Under instruction (dive school) · Navy officer$150
Diving Officer (SCUBA) · Navy officer$150
Diving Officer · Navy officer$240
EOD Officer (114X/119X/648X) · Navy officer$240
SEAL Officer (113X/715X) · Navy officer$240
Undersea Medical Officer (6UD–6UM) · Navy officer$240
Under instruction (dive school) · Marines enlisted$150
Combatant Diver (0324/0326/8024/8026) · Marines enlisted$215
Under instruction (dive school) · Marines officer$150
Combatant Diver (8024/8026) · Marines officer$240
SCUBA Diver · AirForce/SpaceForce enlisted$110
Pararescue Diver · AirForce/SpaceForce enlisted$150
Assigned to diving duty · AirForce/SpaceForce officer$150

Foreign Language Proficiency Bonus

Per modality (listening, reading, speaking) by ILR skill level. Capped at $4,583/month across three modalities and $55,000 per rolling 12 months.

ILR 1$50
ILR 1+$80
ILR 2$100
ILR 2+$200
ILR 3$300
ILR 3+$350
ILR 4 or higher$400

Effective 2026-05-18. Where DFAS lists more than one amount for a level, your service chooses based on whether the language is designated critical. DFAS FLPB table

Combat Zone Tax Exclusion

  • Enlisted members and warrant officers exclude 100% of military pay from federal income tax, with no dollar ceiling.
  • Commissioned officers (O-1 and above) are capped at the highest enlisted basic pay plus maximum hostile fire pay — $11,391.90 per month for 2026. Pay above that stays taxable.
  • Any part of a month in the zone exempts the whole month.
  • Social Security and Medicare are still withheld from basic pay — the exclusion removes federal income tax only.
  • A reenlistment bonus is fully excluded if the entitlement accrued in a qualifying month, even if it is paid later.

Every pay we model

All of these are selectable in the calculator, where amounts resolve to your branch, grade, and years of service.

Deployment & Combat

Combat zone, danger, and hardship entitlements. Turning on CZTE changes how everything else is taxed.

  • Combat Zone Tax ExclusionCZTETax-freesource
  • Hostile Fire PayHFPTaxablesource
  • Imminent Danger PayIDPTaxablesource
  • Hardship Duty Pay — LocationHDP-LTaxablesource
  • Hardship Duty Pay — MissionHDP-MTaxablesource
  • Hardship Duty Pay — TempoHDP-TTaxablesource
  • Family Separation AllowanceFSATax-freesource

Aviation

Flight pay. Rates depend on your branch and years of aviation service, not total time in service.

  • Aviation Incentive PayAvIPTaxablesource
  • Aviation Incentive Pay — milestone billetAvIPTaxablesource
  • Flying Duty — crew memberHDIPTaxablesource
  • Flying Duty — non-crew memberHDIPTaxablesource
  • Career Enlisted Flyer Incentive PayCEFIPTaxablesource
  • Aviation BonusAvBTaxablesource

Hazardous Duty

Hazardous duty incentive pays. Most services cap the number you can draw at once.

  • Parachute Duty (static line)HDIPTaxablesource
  • Military Free Fall (HALO/HAHO)HDIPTaxablesource
  • Demolition DutyHDIPTaxablesource
  • Flight Deck DutyHDIPTaxablesource
  • Toxic Fuels / PropellantsHDIPTaxablesource
  • Toxic PesticidesHDIPTaxablesource
  • Chemical MunitionsHDIPTaxablesource
  • Dangerous Viruses / BacteriaHDIPTaxablesource
  • Experimental Stress DutyHDIPTaxablesource
  • Maritime VBSSHDIPTaxablesource
  • Polar Region Flight OperationsHDIPTaxablesource
  • WMD Civil Support TeamHDIPTaxablesource
  • Diving Duty PayTaxablesource

Sea & Submarine

Sea and submarine duty. Career Sea Pay depends on cumulative years of sea duty.

  • Career Sea PayCSPTaxablesource
  • Career Sea Pay (Army / Air Force)CSPTaxablesource
  • Career Sea Pay PremiumCSP-PTaxablesource
  • Submarine Duty Incentive PaySUBPAYTaxablesource

Special Duty & Skills

Assignment and skill-based pays. Amounts are largely set by your service.

  • Special Duty Assignment PaySDAPTaxablesource
  • Assignment Incentive PayAIPTaxablesource
  • Foreign Language Proficiency BonusFLPBTaxablesource

Allowances

Housing, cost-of-living, and travel allowances. Most are tax-free — CONUS COLA is the exception.

  • Overseas COLAOCONUS COLATax-freesource
  • CONUS COLATaxablesource
  • Overseas Housing AllowanceOHATax-freesource
  • Per DiemTax-freesource
  • Dislocation AllowanceDLATax-freesource
  • Clothing Replacement AllowanceTax-freesource

Rates are transcribed from DFAS, the DoD Financial Management Regulation Volume 7A, and DTMO. Special pay amounts are set by your service within DoD ceilings and can differ from the DoD maximums shown. Confirm against your LES and your finance office before relying on these figures. See our methodology.