Retention Bonus Question

[ArmyDoctorBonusQuestion]

Hello,
hoping someone could answer questions for me about the retention bonus in the Army. I'm an Active Duty Army attending physician, active duty residency-trained and board-certified, at just over 8-years of active duty service including residency. I have just under 1-year left of AD obligation. I'm planning to stay in for an extra 2-years of active duty past my obligation.

My question is: if I sign a 2-year retention bonus now, will I get the bonus starting now and then every 12-months thereafter until I ETS? Or do you only start to get the bonus once you finish the current AD commitment?

I've read the rules that I could find and copied relevant info:
"(a) Bonus Authorized.-
(1) A medical officer described in subsection (b) who executes a written agreement to remain on active duty for two, three, or four years after completion of any other active-duty service commitment may, upon acceptance of the written agreement by the Secretary of the military department concerned, be paid a retention bonus as provided in this section.
(2) The amount of a retention bonus under paragraph (1) may not exceed $75,000 for each year covered by a four-year agreement. The maximum yearly retention bonus for two-year and three-year agreements shall be reduced to reflect the shorter service commitment.
(b) Eligible Officers.-This section applies to an officer of the armed forces who-
(1) is an officer of the Medical Corps of the Army or the Navy or an officer of the Air Force designated as a medical officer;
(2) is in a pay grade below pay grade O–7;
(3) has at least eight years of creditable service (computed as described in section 302(g) of this title) or has completed any active-duty service commitment incurred for medical education and training; and
(4) has completed initial residency training (or will complete such training before September 30 of the fiscal year in which the officer enters into an agreement under subsection (a));"

"(g) Determination of Creditable Service.
-For purposes of this section, creditable service of an officer is computed by adding-
(1) all periods which the officer spent in medical internship or residency training during which the officer was not on active duty; and
(2) all periods of active service in the Medical Corps of the Army or Navy, as an officer of the Air Force designated as a medical officer, or as a medical officer of the Public Health Service."

So it seem like I am eligible to sign a RB contract because I've completed 8-years of creditable service even though I haven't completed my current AD obligation. It also seems like I would be paid once the written agreement is accepted, which presumably would be shortly after submission.

https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title37-section301d&num=0&edition=prelim

https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=(title:37%20section:302%20edition:prelim)%20OR%20(granuleid:USC-prelim-title37-section302)&f=treesort&num=0&edition=prelim

Thank you for your help in advance and let me know if this post is unclear on any details,

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[Mace1370]

I don't have a RB, but my understanding is that you start getting paid immediately. However, there would be a period towards the end of your service commitment where it would "run out" and you wouldn't get the bonus.

 

[pgg]

My question is: if I sign a 2-year retention bonus now, will I get the bonus starting now and then every 12-months thereafter until I ETS? Or do you only start to get the bonus once you finish the current AD commitment?

Unless they've changed things in the last couple years, it is possible to begin a RB and get that pay immediately, if you have an existing ADSO. Then there's a tail of obligated service when you're paying off the extra time but not getting the RB pay. I still owed two years on my education ADSO when I signed my first contract extension, so for my last two years of active duty I did not get any RB pay. (Well, for a year they screwed things up and partially overpaid me, which they never completely straightened out, and I actually came out ahead, but that's another story.)

It may be rational to do this if you're sure you want to stay in for that total duration, because (in general) money now is worth more than money later. The risk you take is that if they raise the RB amounts a year later, you're stuck with the rate you got. When I got out, there was talk of making it harder to renegotiate an existing contract by signing a new one of the same/longer duration, but I didn't pay close attention and I'm not sure if anything came of that. I think they also altered the requirements for eligibility to make it a little harder to do.

 

[SirGecko]

Unless they've changed things in the last couple years, it is possible to begin a RB and get that pay immediately, if you have an existing ADSO. Then there's a tail of obligated service when you're paying off the extra time but not getting the RB pay. I still owed two years on my education ADSO when I signed my first contract extension, so for my last two years of active duty I did not get any RB pay. (Well, for a year they screwed things up and partially overpaid me, which they never completely straightened out, and I actually came out ahead, but that's another story.)

It may be rational to do this if you're sure you want to stay in for that total duration, because (in general) money now is worth more than money later. The risk you take is that if they raise the RB amounts a year later, you're stuck with the rate you got. When I got out, there was talk of making it harder to renegotiate an existing contract by signing a new one of the same/longer duration, but I didn't pay close attention and I'm not sure if anything came of that. I think they also altered the requirements for eligibility to make it a little harder to do.

At least in the Navy they did take away the ability to renegotiate RB contracts from a few specialties a couple of years ago. As of right now I think it applies to Obgyn, Ophtho, ENT, path, radiology, peds, family medicine and internal medicine. These specialties also can’t enter into a RB contract if they haven’t already paid off their education commitments.