MAY 23, 2019 – To support the summer Permanent Change of Station (PCS) season, Navy Personnel Command (NPC) is taking action to improve the PCS move experience for Sailors and their families.
Sailors who have already completed at least one PCS move, know the process can be quite complex – from the household goods shipment to budgeting for potential out-of-pocket expenses. NPC is working with numerous partners across the Navy and Department of Defense to rapidly field numerous customer oriented improvements to simplify the process for hardworking Sailors and their families. The new MyPCS Checklist, a tailored and interactive checklist to assist in move preparation and execution, is available now via MyNavy Portal at https://my.navy.mil.
The MyPCS Checklist provides a comprehensive timeline for action beginning six months prior to the scheduled move date and takes a Sailor and family through the entire process to include critical post-check-in items. This is available for use by all active and Reserve Sailors.
Chief Mass Communication Specialist Dustin Kelling, assigned to NPC and in receipt of PCS orders, has accessed the MyPCS Checklist for his upcoming transfer.
“MyPCS Checklist works,” Kelling said. “It produced a tailored timeline based on my desired transfer date and has been an invaluable planning tool for my spouse and me. The timeline is editable as things change and I can download it in a PDF form. That way my spouse and I can both keep up with all the things we have to do.”
The MyPCS Checklist currently requires command access card (CAC) access; however, it will ultimately be available for protected use via the web and mobile devices for spouses as well without requiring the use of a CAC.
To reduce the up-front financial burden, Sailors are encouraged to request applicable advance travel entitlements that vary depending on whether the PCS is within the continental U.S. (CONUS) or outside the continental U.S. (OCONUS). The options include dislocation allowance (DLA), monetary allowance in lieu of transportation (MALT) for mileage reimbursement, per diem for military member and dependents, and lodging and per diem expenses during training en route.
Sailors should contact their Command Pay and Personnel Administrator (CPPA) to facilitate these advance travel entitlement requests. The MyNavy Career Center (MNCC) Contact Center is also an option – 24/7, and may be contacted via email – askmncc@navy.mil or by phone at (833) 330-MNCC/6622.
As part of the Navy’s ongoing pay and personnel transformation efforts, the recently released NAVADMIN 103/19 announced that next month a new policy is slated for release allowing reimbursement of employment licensure or certification costs for spouses, up to $500, arising from PCS moves.
In early August, the MyPCS Mobile Solution is scheduled for delivery to the fleet. This provides a modern and simplified means for Sailors to manage their PCS move on a mobile device.
The MyPCS Mobile Solution initially will include mobile access to the MyPCS Checklist and allow Sailors to apply for housing and childcare at their next duty station.
Two upgrades will shortly follow that will provide the ability for Sailors to view their orders (both in a more user friendly “lean” format and in the full text format) and provide the ability to complete a travel voucher on their mobile device.
“This mobile solution will provide Sailors simplified access to the self-service they desire,” said Capt. Carol Kushmier, NPC future operations officer, Pay and Personnel Management Department. “It will give Sailors a single place to access PCS information, resources and actions, all on their mobile device. The MyPCS mobile solution will bring greater transparency, accessibility and convenience to Sailors throughout the PCS process.”
There are even more PCS improvements and entitlements in the works, including an intuitive application that consolidates a Sailor’s request for both transfer and advance entitlements, replacing two separate request forms that were difficult to understand. Additionally, efforts are underway to gain approval to provide Sailors the full entitlement rates up-front for PCS moves.
“Simplifying PCS for Sailors is one of the key priorities of the overall Navy Transformation efforts,” said Ann Stewart, NPC director, Pay and Personnel Management Department, “All of these new services are a direct result of what we are hearing from Sailors and their families during numerous fleet engagements. We’re listening and doing our best to make things better for Sailors so they can focus on enhancing readiness and lethality and improving their life/work balance.”
Story by Cmdr. Karin Burzynski
Navy Personnel Command