Deployment Guide for Military

As you know, deployment is a fact of life in the military. The best time to prepare for deployment is long before you receive your orders. Once you receive your orders, you may not have time to do much more than pack and go. It makes sense to make arrangements for your financial affairs ahead of time.

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Since you are responsible for your household bills while you are deployed, you should make arrangements to appoint your spouse with a Power of Attorney so he/she can handle your finances while you are deployed. (A Power of Attorney is a legal designation where you grant another the authority to execute documents in your absence).

Before you leave Financial Checklist:

• Review your financial arrangements, and if necessary, make sure all financial accounts are shared with your spouse.


• Record financial account numbers and bring that record with you when you deploy.


• Review your financial needs now and make arrangements for any loans that may be needed.


• Set up automatic deposit and payment options. and set up as many of your bills in advance as possible.


• Make a budget for home and deployment expenses.


• Make a budget for home and deployment expenses.


• Review budgets, expenses, and financial arrangements with your spouse so that your finances can be handled in your absence.

Suggested Guidelines for Deployment Budgets:

1. Review past expenses to estimate expenses during deployment.


2. Consider any changes in your income, spending, and savings that will be caused by the deployment.


3. Set realistic spending and savings goals that will allow you to balance your income and expenses during deployment.


4. Consider opening a special savings account to cover any unforeseen expenses during deployment.


5. Decide how your credit cards (if any) will be used during deployment. Decide who
   will use them, how they will be used and how much the spending limit will be.


6. Create a household budget with your spouse, so that financial affairs can be taken care of in your absence.
   

You can also set up automatic transfers with many merchants, such as your utility providers. This way, funds are automatically deducted from your accounts when the payment is due. Direct deposit is the fastest and most convenient way to receive pay while you are deployed. With direct deposit, your pay is automatically credited to your account . If you have access to the Internet while you are away, you can keep up with your accounts through your free Internet home banking service.

If your accounts are in your name only, your spouse’s name only, or just the name of whoever is handling your accounts, you may have difficulty dealing with financial issues that arise in your absence.You may want to consider putting all of your accounts in two names, either you and your spouse or a trusted friend or family member.