Is BAH based on where I'm stationed at or where my future ex wife is living?

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 27 Oct 2020 16:19:17 -0400

We are getting a divorce and my wife did not come to to new duty station. Is the BAH based on her location or mine?

Response by LTC Kevin B. made Oct 27 at 2020 4:29 PM

LTC Kevin B. — Tue, 27 Oct 2020 16:29:01 -0400

It's based on your duty station.

Response by Patricia Overmeyer made Oct 27 at 2020 5:03 PM

Patricia Overmeyer — Tue, 27 Oct 2020 17:03:14 -0400

Your BAH is always based on your duty station, not where your STBX is living. However, you will find that judges will base living standards on the state where the divorce is filed. So if you have a higher BAH at your new duty station due to higher rents/housing, the judge will not usually take the higher cost of housing at your new duty station into consideration. All states allow judges in calculating child support and spousal maintenance to use the BAH as part of the gross income if the BAH reduces living expenses. You will want to discuss this issue with your attorney because of the ramifications that come with an increase or decrease in BAH.
Case in point, my client was transferred in South Korea not long after the divorce was filed. His STBX was asking for child support and spousal maintenance. Her attorney urged the judge to use my client's higher South Korea BAH against him. However, I was able to show (lots of pictures, internet searches for apartments in South Korea, etc.) that the standard of living in South Korea was so high that the BAH rate reduced him to living in a basically a bread box. I argued that the correct BAH to use was what he had when he was stationed in AZ. On the flip side, I represented a spouse that remained here in AZ and the other spouse was stationed in England. I was able to argue that the higher BAH in England allowed that spouse to have a better place to live and still have money left over. Again, I used photos of the new house, internet searches for rentals, etc. The judge used the BAH in calculating child support.

Response by MAJ Javier Rivera made Oct 27 at 2020 5:49 PM

MAJ Javier Rivera — Tue, 27 Oct 2020 17:49:09 -0400

Duty station

Response by SSgt Christophe Murphy made Oct 27 at 2020 6:48 PM

SSgt Christophe Murphy — Tue, 27 Oct 2020 18:48:22 -0400

BAH is based on duty locaiton.

https://www.defensetravel.dod.mil/site/bahCalc.cfm

BAH Calculator

Response by MSG John Duchesneau made Oct 28 at 2020 1:11 AM

MSG John Duchesneau — Wed, 28 Oct 2020 01:11:21 -0400

Your location because it is presumed that's where you will be living.

Response by SFC Dan Thomsen made Oct 28 at 2020 9:30 AM

SFC Dan Thomsen — Wed, 28 Oct 2020 09:30:23 -0400

Assuming of course your not Guard or Reserve? if you are, then it is based on Home of Record. If your regular Army, Duty Station is the answer.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 29 at 2020 12:19 AM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 00:19:32 -0400

It’s where you are stationed at of you are in the states. The army don’t care if your wife is somewhere else in the states