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The 10/10 Check
Confirming whether the marriage and service overlap enough to qualify for direct pay.
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OfficesFairfax | Manassas
Military Divorce / DFAS Orders
DFAS Orders · Virginia
The 10/10 rule decides who writes the check.
The 10/10 rule determines whether the Defense Finance and Accounting Service pays a former spouse's retirement share directly. It is widely misunderstood as deciding whether a spouse gets a share at all. It does not. We prepare orders the pay center will actually honor.
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The Short Answer
The 10/10 rule determines whether the Defense Finance and Accounting Service pays a former spouse's share of retirement directly. It generally requires at least 10 years of marriage overlapping at least 10 years of creditable service. Not meeting it does not eliminate the share; it just changes who sends the payment.
How It Works
Method of payment, not the right to it.
No rule in military divorce is misunderstood more often than the 10/10 rule, and the misunderstanding costs people money. The rule is real and it matters, but it answers a narrow question: who actually sends the former spouse their share of the retirement. It does not decide whether the spouse is entitled to a share in the first place. Keeping those two questions separate is the whole point of this page.
What the 10/10 rule is
The 10/10 rule determines whether the Defense Finance and Accounting Service will pay a former spouse's share of retired pay directly to them. It generally requires at least 10 years of marriage that overlap at least 10 years of creditable military service. When that overlap exists and the order is correct, DFAS sends the share straight to the former spouse each month, on its own, without the service member acting as the middleman.
What it is not
Here is the misunderstanding, stated plainly: the 10/10 rule does not decide whether a spouse is awarded a share of the retirement. A spouse married for fewer than 10 overlapping years can still be awarded a share under Virginia's equitable distribution. What changes is the mechanism. Without 10/10, DFAS will not pay the spouse directly, so the service member pays the share instead. The right to the share comes from the divorce; the 10/10 rule only governs how it gets delivered.
Why direct pay matters
Direct pay is valuable precisely because it removes the service member from the middle. When DFAS pays the former spouse directly, there is no monthly reliance on the member to forward the money, no risk of late or missed payments, and no need to chase enforcement if cooperation breaks down. For a former spouse, direct pay is a meaningful protection. For the service member, it can be cleaner too, since it takes an ongoing obligation off their plate.
Why DFAS rejects orders
Meeting the 10/10 rule is necessary for direct pay, but it is not sufficient. DFAS will only act on an order that meets its own requirements for language, identifying information, and how the award is expressed. An order a court approves can still be rejected by the pay center if it does not satisfy those requirements, and a rejected order means no direct payment until it is fixed. Drafting the order to the pay center's standard is what turns eligibility into an actual monthly deposit.
The 10/10 ruleAt least 10 years of marriage overlapping 10 years of creditable service.
What it decidesWhether DFAS pays the former spouse's share directly.
What it does notIt does not decide whether a spouse is awarded a share at all.
Without 10/10The share still exists; the service member pays it instead of DFAS.
Direct payRequires meeting 10/10 and an order that satisfies DFAS requirements.
Two Different Questions
Whether a spouse gets a share and whether DFAS pays it directly are separate. The divorce decides the share. The 10/10 rule decides only the delivery. Confusing the two is the most expensive mistake in this area.
Note: The 10/10 rule and DFAS direct-pay requirements are federal and fact-specific; confirm the current rules before relying on them.
Corrie Sirkin, Esq.Founding Partner
Attorney Insight
A few honest things about the 10/10 rule.
"I have had spouses tell me they were not married ten years, so they assumed they got nothing. That is simply wrong, and it can cost them dearly."
This is the conversation I find myself having over and over. Someone hears about the ten-year rule and concludes they have no claim to the retirement, or a service member assumes a shorter marriage means they owe nothing. Both are misreading what the rule does. The share comes from the divorce; the 10/10 rule just decides whether the pay center sends it directly or whether the member does. When direct pay is available, I push hard for it, because it protects the former spouse from having to chase a check every month. And I always draft to the DFAS standard, because an order that does not meet their requirements will not pay, no matter how clean it looks to the court.
Questions Families Ask
Plain answers about DFAS and the 10/10 rule.
These are the questions service members and spouses ask most about direct pay. If yours is not here, we are happy to answer it directly.
Have a specific question?
Call 571.260.0999 or send us a message.
What is the 10/10 rule for military divorce?
The 10/10 rule determines whether the Defense Finance and Accounting Service will pay a former spouse's share of retirement directly. It generally requires at least 10 years of marriage overlapping at least 10 years of creditable military service. Meeting it means DFAS pays the share directly; not meeting it does not eliminate the share, it just changes who sends the payment.
Does the 10/10 rule decide if a spouse gets retirement?
No. This is the most common misunderstanding. The 10/10 rule only decides the method of payment, whether DFAS pays the former spouse directly. A spouse who does not meet the rule can still be awarded a share of the retirement; the service member simply pays it instead of the pay center.
Why does DFAS reject some division orders?
DFAS will only act on an order that meets its specific requirements for language, identifying information, and how the award is expressed. An order a court approves can still be rejected by DFAS if it does not meet those requirements. Drafting the order to the pay center's standard is what makes direct payment actually happen.
What is direct pay from DFAS?
Direct pay means the Defense Finance and Accounting Service sends the former spouse's share of retired pay straight to them, rather than routing it through the service member. It is available when the 10/10 rule is met and the order satisfies DFAS requirements, and it removes the need to rely on the member to forward payment each month.
When You Are Ready
Get the share paid the right way.
Tell us about the marriage and the service, and we will determine whether direct pay applies and prepare an order the pay center will honor. Three offices across Northern Virginia, one phone number.