WASHINGTON –
Starting June 1, Airmen deployed to several locations will see significant changes to pay programs.
The biggest change includes the discontinuation of imminent danger pay, or IDP, in multiple countries.
The DoD-wide announcement impacts Airmen deployed to 15 countries.
"The IDP recertification process is an assessment that includes input from combatant commands, the joint staff and the military services," said Lt. Col. Kevin Naman, Air Force Compensation and Travel Policy Division. "The resulting discontinuation of IDP at a certain location by no means diminishes the hard work and sacrifices our Airmen make at these locations daily."
Locations where IDP designation is discontinued include:
- The six land areas and the airspace above Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Serbia and Montenegro
- The nine land areas of East Timor, Haiti, Liberia, Oman, Rwanda, Tajikistan, United Arab Emirates, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan
- The water and air space above the Persian Gulf
The IDP changes will not impact deployed members' combat zone tax exclusion status except for Airmen serving in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Personnel serving in these locations will no longer be eligible for the CZTE, which includes pay exclusion from gross income and extension of most tax action deadlines.
Reductions in IDP will be offset somewhat by increases in Hardship Duty Location Pay (HDP-L). HDP-L monthly rates will increase to $150 in East Timor, Haiti, Liberia, Montenegro, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The HDP-L rate for Airmen serving in Bahrain will be established at $50.
Members deployed to the impacted locations cannot be grandfathered into the previous pay entitlements.
"These adjustments are going to be effective on 1 June 14 so the best way to prepare is to know how your location will be impacted," said Naman.
Airmen deployed in the following locations will see no changes June 1, and will continue to receive IDP. Those include: Afghanistan, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Burundi, Chad, Colombia, Cote d'Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Greece (Athens only), Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kenya, Kosovo, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Yemen, Mediterranean Sea and Somalia Basin.
If Airmen have any questions about their pay, Naman encourages them to visit their local financial services office.
The virtual Finance page on the AF Portal is also a great resource for Airmen. You will find links to all of the Air Force's Military Pay & Travel websites, the latest news on all matters financial, a helpful database of Frequently Asked Questions (Financial Services Knowledge Base), and much, much more.