Family Separation Allowance (FSA) is paid at the rate of $250.00 per month or prorated at $8.33 per day.
The purpose of FSA is to compensate qualified members serving inside or outside the United States for added expenses incurred because of an enforced family separation. FSA is payable to service members with dependents assigned away from their permanent duty station continuously for more than 30 days in a TDY or TCS status when all of the member’s dependents are not residing at or near the temporary station.
FSA has three different categories: FSA R, FSA S, and FSA T. Members are eligible for
- FSA R if transportation of dependents, including dependents acquired after effective date of orders, is not authorized at Government expense and the dependents do not live in the vicinity of the member’s permanent duty station.
- FSA S applies to members serving on ships away from the home port continuously for more than 30 days.
- A member is eligible for FSA T if the member is on TDY away from the permanent station continuously for more than 30 days and the member’s dependents are not residing at or near the TDY station. This includes members required to perform a period of the TDY before reporting to their initial station of assignment.
FSA continues or stops as follows:
- Entitlement continues to accrue to the member if one or more, but not all, dependents visit at or near the TDY/TCS station for more than 30 days, if the member is otherwise entitled on behalf of the dependent(s) who are not visiting the member.
- Entitlement stops when all of the member’s dependents visit at or near the TDY/TCS station for 30 days or longer (stops effective on the 31st day).
- Entitlement stops on the day prior to getting PCS’d to new permanent duty station.
- Entitlement stops on the day prior to returning to home station.
