In our last post, we covered the basics of military pay: base pay, BAH, and BAS. But your Leave and Earnings Statement (LES) tells a fuller story. It also shows what comes out of your pay before it ever hits your bank account, and understanding that side of the equation is just as important for staying on top of your budget.
Entitlements, Deductions & Allotments
- Entitlements: What you earn, including base pay, BAH, BAS, and any special or incentive pays.
- Deductions: Amounts withheld automatically, such as federal and state taxes, Social Security, Medicare, SGLI premiums, and TSP contributions.
- Allotments: Voluntary, pre-set payments you have authorized, like a car loan payment, savings transfer, or insurance premium for a spouse.
Your net pay is your entitlements minus your deductions and allotments. When that number looks different than expected, the answer is almost always somewhere in these two sections.
Your LES also tracks your leave balance, accruing at 2.5 days per month, or 30 days per year, with up to 60 days carrying over into the next fiscal year. Keeping an eye on this can help you plan time off and avoid losing leave you have already earned.
Your Monthly LES Checklist
Reviewing your LES every pay period takes just a few minutes and can catch errors before they cost you money:
- Compare entitlements to your current rank, dependency status and duty station
- Confirm SGLI coverage and TSP contributions match where you elected
- Review tax withholdings and allotments for accuracy
- Track your leave balance so you don’t lose the days that you have earned
For a closer look, there are online resources that walk through your LES line by line, helping you decode specific entries and catch common errors before they become bigger problems.
Now That You Know Your LES, What’s Next?
Decoding your pay statement tells you exactly where every dollar is going, and that clarity is powerful. But even with a perfectly understood LES, some months still call for a little extra flexibility, whether it is catching up after an allotment change or simply giving yourself room to breathe before the next paycheck lands. And when you need it, Omni’s personal loans are built to give military families exactly that kind of flexibility.
