The spouse of a service member may receive certain benefits if the spouse has been married a certain number of years while his/her spouse was in the military. The “10/10” rule requires a minimum 10-year marriage which also includes a minimum of 10 years of active military service. A spouse who meets this test may be entitled to a portion of the servicemember’s future retirement benefits directly from the military.
Under the 20/20/20 rule, a spouse who has been married at least 20 years, the military servicemember served 20 years or more, and the parties were married 20 years during the servicemember’s active duty, is entitled to Tricare Health care just as if the parties were still married, which is extremely cheap. The spouse would also be entitled to all military benefits and access to benefits on base. If there is a 20-year marriage, 20 years of service, but only 15 years of overlap, the divorced spouse is entitled to 1 year of Tricare.