Military Will & Estate Planning: The Documents You Need Before You Deploy
JAG prepares wills for free. The SGLI beneficiary form takes ten minutes. A Healthcare POA is one appointment. Most service members never do any of it — and the families left behind pay the price.
This guide covers everything: free JAG legal services, the five documents every service member needs before deployment, the SGLI and TSP beneficiary traps, what happens without a will, and what a will cannot do.
Why Military Members Need Wills Now — Not Someday
The average American in their 20s has a life expectancy long enough to justify putting estate planning off for another decade. That calculation does not apply to you. Military service — particularly combat deployments, aviation, special operations, and maritime assignments — carries mortality risk that makes estate planning an operational necessity, not a distant future task.
The intestacy default is not a plan
Without a will, your state’s intestacy laws control where your assets go. Those laws were written for the average person in the average situation. They do not know that you want your long-term partner to have your truck. They do not know that you want your parents to get the savings account, not your estranged sibling. They do not know who you trust to raise your children. The state provides a default — and the default is rarely what you would have chosen.
Military-specific assets have their own rules
SGLI, TSP, and Survivor Benefit Plan proceeds do not flow through your will. Each has its own beneficiary designation system, and whoever is listed on those forms receives the money — regardless of what your will says. A service member with a comprehensive, well-drafted will can still have $500,000 of SGLI go to the wrong person because they never updated a form they filled out at age 18.
Who makes medical decisions if you are incapacitated?
If you survive a combat casualty, a vehicle accident, or a training injury but cannot communicate your medical wishes, hospitals default to next-of-kin in a legal hierarchy. Your girlfriend, boyfriend, or long-term partner is not on that list. Your estranged parent may be. Without a Healthcare Power of Attorney executed before deployment, someone you would not have chosen may be making life-altering medical decisions for you. A Healthcare POA fixes this in one JAG appointment.
The cost of doing nothing
A will costs nothing. A JAG appointment takes an hour. The SGLI beneficiary form takes ten minutes. The cost of not doing these things — paid by your family, not you — includes probate court fees, attorney fees, family conflict, delayed payouts, and assets going to the wrong people. The math is not complicated.
Free JAG Legal Services — The Most Underused Benefit on Any Installation
Every installation has a legal assistance office staffed by licensed attorneys. Their services are free to active duty service members and, at most installations, to eligible dependents. The will preparation service alone — which would cost $300 to $800 at a civilian attorney — is available at no charge, with no appointment backlog if you plan ahead.
Distributes your property, designates guardians for minor children, nominates an executor. Legally valid in all 50 states.
Broad financial authority for your designated agent. Remains valid even if you become incapacitated.
Narrow authority for a specific transaction — sell a car, complete a real estate closing, sign a specific form.
Names who makes medical decisions when you cannot. Covers incapacitation from any cause.
Your explicit wishes on life-sustaining treatment, organ donation, and end-of-life care. Guides your healthcare agent.
JAG ensures all documents are executed properly for service members deploying or stationed overseas.
- —Before any deployment or extended TDY
- —After getting married or divorced
- —After the birth or adoption of a child
- —After a significant change in assets or finances
- —When your beneficiary designations change
- —At every PCS (recommended, not required)
- —When any major life change affects who you trust
- —Search "legal assistance office" on your installation's official website
- —Ask your unit's first sergeant or S1
- —Search "JAG legal assistance [installation name]" online
- —Call the installation operator and ask for the Staff Judge Advocate office
- —Most require an appointment — call at least 1-2 weeks before deployment
The Five Documents Every Service Member Needs Before Deployment
This is not a theoretical exercise. These are the specific documents that prevent real harm to real families. Three come from JAG. Two come from your unit admin or milConnect. All five should exist and be current before you deploy — every time you deploy.
Last Will and Testament
Distributes your property after death. Designates guardians for minor children. Nominates the person responsible for carrying out your wishes (executor). Without a will, your state's intestacy statute controls everything — and the intestacy statute does not know your family, your relationships, or your wishes. Guardianship for your children, in particular, is something only a will can address directly. Get this document executed. Update it when your life changes.
SGLI Beneficiary Designation — SGLV Form 8286
This single form determines who receives your $500,000 SGLI payout. Your will has no effect on this money. The form on file controls — and if the form on file names your ex-spouse, your ex-spouse receives $500,000. Update this form after every major life event. Review it before every deployment. Log in to milConnect or visit your unit admin. Ten minutes of work today protects your family from a devastating outcome.
General Power of Attorney
Authorizes your spouse or designated agent to manage finances, pay bills, access accounts, handle vehicle transactions, sign government forms, and take care of the hundreds of administrative tasks that cannot wait when you are unreachable. Without this document, a deployed service member's spouse can be legally locked out of financial accounts that are only in the service member's name. A General POA eliminates that problem entirely. Revoke it when it is no longer needed.
Healthcare Power of Attorney
Designates a specific person to make medical decisions on your behalf if you are incapacitated. This is not covered by the General POA — healthcare decisions require a separate designation. Your unmarried partner, your best friend, your sibling — none of them have any legal authority to make medical decisions for you unless you name them in this document. Hospitals follow a legal next-of-kin hierarchy, and your chosen person may not be on it. One JAG appointment fixes this permanently.
Living Will / Advance Medical Directive
Records your explicit wishes for specific medical situations: what life-sustaining treatment you want or do not want, under what conditions. This document guides whoever holds your Healthcare POA. Without it, your healthcare agent must make critical decisions with no guidance — decisions that can haunt them for years. An advance directive removes that burden. It tells your loved ones what you actually want, in writing, with legal authority.
The SGLI Beneficiary Trap — The Most Common & Most Preventable Mistake
SGLI proceeds — up to $500,000 — do not go through your will. They go to whoever is listed on SGLV Form 8286, the SGLI beneficiary designation form. If you never updated that form after a divorce, your ex-spouse receives $500,000. Courts have repeatedly upheld this. The form controls.
Service members have died in combat with outdated SGLI beneficiary designations, resulting in $500,000 paid to an ex-spouse instead of a current spouse and children. Federal courts have consistently upheld these payments because the beneficiary form is a federal contract that state divorce decrees and personal wills cannot override. Update your SGLI beneficiary today. Then check TSP. They are separate forms.
Result: Parents receive $500,000. Spouse and children receive nothing from SGLI.
Result: Ex-spouse receives $500,000. This has been litigated and courts uphold the form, not the relationship.
Result: A minor cannot legally receive insurance proceeds directly. A court appoints a guardian of the estate — slow, public, expensive — and may not choose who you would have chosen.
Result: Proceeds go through probate. Creditors can make claims. Family may wait 12+ months. A specific person beneficiary avoids probate entirely.
Result: If the spouse predeceases you, proceeds revert to VA default order. Designate contingent beneficiaries to control the backup.
The default order protects most families in most situations — but it does not protect the unmarried partner, the estranged sibling you do not want involved, or the custom distribution you intended. Filing the form takes ten minutes.
TSP Beneficiary Designation — The Second Form Everyone Forgets
Your Thrift Savings Plan balance is controlled by Form TSP-3, not by your will. TSP operates under federal law and pays whoever is designated on file — regardless of what your will says, regardless of a divorce decree, and regardless of who your current spouse is.
TSP follows its own statutory order: spouse first, then children, then estate. If you are married, your spouse receives the account balance automatically — even without a TSP-3. If you are unmarried with no TSP-3, it flows to children, then your estate.
If you filed a TSP-3 naming your ex-spouse and never updated it, your ex-spouse receives your TSP balance. Unlike SGLI, TSP has some provisions that interact with divorce decrees — but relying on those interactions instead of simply updating the form is a dangerous gamble.
- 1.Log in to My Account at tsp.gov
- 2.Navigate to “Beneficiaries” under the “My Account” menu
- 3.Complete Form TSP-3 online or download and submit the paper form
- 4.Note: If you are married, changing from spouse as primary beneficiary requires spousal consent
- 5.Confirm the update is reflected in your account before deployment
Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) — What Retirement-Eligible Members Must Know
SBP is separate from SGLI and separate from your will. It is a retirement election that provides a monthly annuity to a designated survivor — typically a spouse or dependent child — if you die after reaching retirement eligibility. The decisions you make about SBP at retirement are largely irrevocable. Understand them before you are standing in front of a retirement officer being asked to sign.
A monthly annuity equal to 55% of your designated base amount — up to 55% of your full retirement pay — paid to your surviving spouse or dependents for life.
Premium deducted from retirement pay: 6.5% of the base amount elected. After 30 years of participation and age 70, premiums stop but coverage continues.
You must elect SBP at retirement. If you are married and decline, your spouse must consent in writing. You cannot add a spouse to SBP after retirement without a qualifying life event.
An SBP declination at retirement is irrevocable except during congressionally authorized open seasons. These are rare. If you decline and later want coverage, you may have no path back.
SGLI is a lump sum paid on death, for any service member. SBP is a monthly annuity for retirement-eligible members who die after reaching 20 years of service. They serve different purposes and are additive.
SBP can be elected to cover a former spouse — typically as part of a divorce settlement or by court order. The election rules are specific and time-limited after divorce. Consult JAG if this applies to you.
If you are not yet retirement-eligible, SBP is not immediately relevant to your estate planning. Focus on SGLI, TSP-3, and the five core documents. SBP becomes a critical decision point when you approach 20 years of service. The SBP Decoded guide and SBP Calculator on this platform cover the retirement election in detail.
Power of Attorney Guide — Types, Uses, and Risks
Military spouses use POAs constantly — to buy and sell vehicles, manage base housing paperwork, handle banking, sign government forms, and manage finances during deployment. Understanding what each type covers — and where each type can be abused — is essential before you sign one.
General POA
Broad authority across most legal and financial matters
Deployment — lets spouse manage everything
Broad authority means broad risk if misused. Revoke immediately if relationship changes.
Expires on stated date or when revoked. Does not auto-expire at return from deployment.
Special (Limited) POA
One specific transaction or purpose
Sell a specific vehicle, sign a specific contract, complete a specific government form
Minimal — limited to stated purpose only
Typically issued for a specific transaction and expires when complete or on stated date.
Durable POA
Remains in effect even if you become incapacitated
Financial management when incapacity is a risk (medical, combat injury)
Authority continues during incapacity — requires trusted agent
Survives incapacity. Revocable while competent.
Healthcare POA
Medical decisions only
Designate who makes medical decisions when you cannot
Ensure your agent knows your wishes before deployment — the form alone is not enough
Typically valid until revoked or on stated expiration.
Springing POA
Activates only upon a triggering condition
Activates only on deployment or incapacity — limits authority when home
Requires clear definition of the triggering condition
Active only while triggering condition is in effect.
A General POA grants broad authority. If the person holding it acts in bad faith — withdrawing funds, taking on debt, entering disadvantageous contracts — you bear the legal consequences. Military divorce proceedings include cases where a deployed service member returned to find their POA had been used to clean out joint accounts or incur significant financial obligations. Choose your POA holder carefully. Revoke the POA immediately if the relationship changes.
POAs expire on their stated date. JAG-issued POAs for deployment typically carry 1-year terms. If your deployment extends, your POA may expire while you are still downrange. Your spouse may not realize it has expired until they try to use it. Review expiration dates before departure and build in margin. A new POA can be issued by a JAG attorney embedded with your unit if needed while deployed.
Base facilities — housing offices, DMV equivalents, finance offices, PX/BX management — often have their own internal requirements for POA acceptance. Some require JAG-issued POAs specifically. Some have their own forms. Before your spouse tries to use a POA at a specific base facility, call ahead and ask what they require. Discovering a POA is not accepted in the format you have when you are already deployed and unreachable is a preventable problem.
Intestacy — What Actually Happens If You Die Without a Will
Dying without a will is called dying “intestate.” When you die intestate, your state’s intestacy statute controls how your probate estate is distributed. Every state is different. The results are often not what the person would have wanted.
Partner receives nothing. Assets go to parents. If parents are deceased, to siblings. Your partner of five years has no legal claim to anything — no matter how long you were together or how much of the household finances they managed.
Depends on state law, but in many states, the ex-spouse's bequests are revoked by divorce automatically — the assets then pass as if the ex-spouse predeceased. However, minor children's interests may conflict with new family members, and guardianship provisions may be unresolved.
A court appoints a guardian. That guardian may not be who you would have chosen. Your parents and in-laws may contest it. The court process is slow, public, and expensive — legal fees come out of the estate before it reaches the children.
Without a will, community property goes to surviving spouse. Separate property goes by state intestacy statute. If unmarried, separate property typically goes to parents then siblings. The state rules may not align with your intent.
In most states, divorce revokes bequests to the ex-spouse. However, the new spouse may have elective share rights that conflict with what the will intended. Children from the first marriage may be inadvertently excluded or have competing claims. Update the will after every marriage.
In most states (common law property), property you own individually passes by your will — or by intestacy if you have none. Your spouse has no automatic ownership of individually titled property and may receive a forced share of the estate, but it may be less than you intended.
In community property states (CA, TX, AZ, NV, WA, ID, LA, NM, WI, and AK by election), assets acquired during marriage are owned 50/50 by both spouses automatically. This changes intestacy outcomes significantly and affects how a will should be structured. PCS to a community property state changes how your assets are characterized.
What a Military Will Cannot Do
A will is powerful, but it has limits. Understanding what a will cannot do is as important as understanding what it can do — especially for service members with military-specific assets.
Override SGLI beneficiary designation
SGLI proceeds are governed entirely by the SGLV 8286 form on file. Your will has zero effect on where this money goes. A will that says "I leave all life insurance to my spouse" does not change SGLI payment to a designated ex-spouse.
Override TSP-3 beneficiary
Your TSP account balance is controlled by Form TSP-3 independently of your will. TSP follows federal law, not state probate law. Your will cannot redirect these funds.
Distribute property you do not own
You can only bequeath what you own at the time of your death. If you bequeath "my car" and the car was sold before you died, the bequest fails. Specific bequests should reference categories, not specific items, when possible.
Override SBP election rules
The Survivor Benefit Plan operates under federal statute. You cannot use a will to extend SBP to a non-eligible beneficiary, and a spouse's SBP rights cannot be eliminated through a will without spousal consent.
Disinherit a spouse completely in most states
Most states grant a surviving spouse an "elective share" of the estate — typically one-third to one-half — regardless of what the will says. A will leaving everything to someone other than your spouse does not necessarily hold in full.
Name a guardian who overrides a biological parent
A living biological parent has parental rights that a will cannot extinguish. If your co-parent is alive, your designation of a different guardian is advisory, not binding. Courts will consider your wishes but are not obligated to follow them over a living parent's rights.
Deployment Legal Readiness Checklist
Complete before every deployment. Review at every major life event. The cost of completing this list is a few hours. The cost of not completing it is paid by your family.
Review / update SGLI beneficiary — SF-2823 / SGLV 8286
This overrides your will. Whoever is on this form receives $500,000. Update it after every major life event — marriage, divorce, birth of child. Log in to milConnect or see your unit admin. Takes ten minutes.
Review / update TSP beneficiary — TSP-3
Your TSP account balance goes to whoever is on Form TSP-3, regardless of what your will says. If you never filed a TSP-3, TSP follows its own default order. Log in to tsp.gov to update.
Last Will and Testament
Distributes your property. Designates guardians for minor children. Without it, your state's intestacy laws decide everything — and they do not know your family or your wishes.
General Power of Attorney for spouse or designee
Lets your spouse pay bills, manage accounts, sell the car, sign base housing forms, and handle government paperwork while you are unreachable. Without this, a deployed service member's spouse can be legally frozen out of financial accounts.
Healthcare Power of Attorney
Designates who makes medical decisions if you are incapacitated. Your girlfriend, boyfriend, or long-term partner has NO legal authority to make these decisions unless you put it in writing. Hospitals will defer to family of record.
Living Will / Advance Medical Directive
Records your wishes on life-sustaining treatment. If you survive a casualty event but cannot communicate, this document guides what happens. Do not leave this decision to a distraught family member who does not know your wishes.
Leave document copies with spouse and family
Copies of all documents should go to your spouse or nearest relative. Keep originals in a fireproof location and leave the location clearly stated. A will your family cannot find is a will that does not help.
Verify VGLI eligibility window awareness
SGLI ends 120 days after separation. If you expect to ETS within the next year, understand the VGLI conversion window now — not after you are already out. Missing it can make you uninsurable at standard rates.
Keep originals of all documents in a fireproof location. Leave copies with your spouse or nearest relative. Tell them explicitly where the originals are stored. A will nobody can find is a will that does not help. A POA your spouse cannot locate is a POA that does not work. Store, communicate, and confirm.
Post-Separation & Retirement — What Changes at ETS
Separation changes your insurance coverage, your benefit eligibility, and in some cases the legal context for your existing documents. These changes require attention — not a decade from now, but in the weeks around your ETS date.
SGLI coverage continues for 120 days after separation at no cost. After 120 days, it terminates. During those 120 days, you can convert to VGLI (Veterans’ Group Life Insurance) without a medical exam — regardless of any health conditions you have developed. Miss that window, and you lose the no-exam conversion right permanently.
Young, healthy veterans with no significant service-connected conditions should compare VGLI rates against private term life insurance before the window closes — private term may offer lower rates. Veterans with service-connected conditions that affect insurability should seriously consider converting to VGLI during the window, since they are guaranteed acceptance regardless of health status.
Family SGLI (FSGLI) covers your spouse up to $100,000 and dependent children at $10,000 each. It terminates automatically when your SGLI terminates. A military spouse who has been covered by FSGLI for years may face difficult civilian insurance underwriting if they have developed health conditions during that time. Evaluate your spouse’s coverage needs before separation — not after the coverage is already gone.
At retirement, you will be asked to make an SBP election. This is separate from anything in this guide above — it is a retirement-point decision, not a deployment-prep decision. However, the stakes are high: the election is largely irrevocable, requires spousal consent to decline, and will determine whether your surviving spouse receives a monthly annuity. Do not sign an SBP election form without understanding what you are electing. The SBP Decoded guide covers this in full.
Once separated, the JAG legal assistance benefit for free will preparation may no longer apply to you (though VA legal services and VSO assistance remain available). Your estate planning needs may also become more complex after separation — civilian assets, business interests, non-military retirement accounts, and a different legal context. A civilian estate attorney becomes more relevant after separation, particularly for veterans with significant assets or complex family situations.
The military-specific documents you executed before separation — wills, POAs, healthcare directives — remain legally valid as civilian documents. However, they should be reviewed by a civilian attorney within a year of separation to ensure they address your post-military situation appropriately.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is JAG will preparation really free?
Yes. Legal assistance at every installation provides Last Will and Testament drafting at no cost to active duty service members and, at most installations, eligible dependents. There are no hidden fees, no billing, and no obligation to use the attorney for anything else. The service is funded by the Department of Defense. The only cost is your time — typically one appointment to gather information and one appointment to sign the executed documents. If you have been quoted a fee by an installation legal office for a standard will, escalate to the Staff Judge Advocate.
Do I need a civilian lawyer for a military will?
For the vast majority of service members, JAG legal assistance is entirely sufficient. JAG attorneys are licensed attorneys — they are not paralegals or clerks — and they draft documents that are legally valid in all 50 states. A civilian attorney becomes appropriate when your situation involves complex business interests, significant non-military assets, non-citizen spouses, trusts requiring specialized structuring, or when you are retiring and want comprehensive estate planning beyond a basic will. For a junior enlisted member deploying with standard assets, JAG is the right answer and costs nothing.
What happens to my SGLI if I am single with no beneficiary designated?
If you die with no beneficiary on file for SGLI, the proceeds follow VA default order: spouse first, then children, then parents, then siblings, then your estate. If you are single with no children and your parents are deceased, the $500,000 goes through your estate and through probate under your state's intestacy laws. This can be slow, expensive, and may result in assets going to people you would not have chosen. The solution takes ten minutes: file SGLV Form 8286 through your unit and name a specific person.
Can I leave my military retirement to someone other than my spouse?
Retirement pay itself is controlled by your will — you can leave your estate to anyone. However, the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) has specific election rules that limit who can be a covered beneficiary: a current spouse, former spouse, or dependent children. You cannot elect SBP coverage for a non-spouse partner or a sibling. Additionally, if you are married at retirement, your spouse must consent in writing to any election that does not provide them full SBP coverage. SBP is an election, not a will provision — the two systems operate separately.
Does my will need to be updated when I PCS?
It is strongly recommended but not legally required. A will executed in one state remains legally valid when you move to another state. However, state law affects how your will is interpreted, what rights a surviving spouse has, and how probate works. If you PCS from a common law property state to a community property state (California, Texas, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Idaho, Louisiana, New Mexico, Wisconsin, and Alaska by election), the character of assets you acquire may change in ways your existing will does not address. Review your will at every PCS — the JAG office on your new installation can review it at no cost.
What is a SCRA will?
A "SCRA will" refers to a will executed in compliance with the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act and its provisions related to legal proceedings and document execution while deployed or stationed overseas. In practice, it means the will was properly witnessed and executed under conditions that recognize the service member may not be at their home state installation. JAG legal assistance offices are well-versed in SCRA-compliant execution. If you executed a will in a combat zone or on a vessel at sea, JAG can confirm its validity and ensure it will be recognized in your state of legal domicile.
What is the difference between a General POA and a Special POA?
A General Power of Attorney grants broad authority to act on your behalf across most legal and financial matters — paying bills, managing bank accounts, selling vehicles, signing contracts, and handling government forms. A Special (Limited) Power of Attorney grants authority for one specific purpose only, such as "sell vehicle VIN XXXXXXXX" or "complete BAH paperwork for PCS move." For deployment, most service members execute a General POA for their spouse. For a specific transaction (like a car sale while you are in the field), a Special POA is more appropriate and carries less risk of misuse.
The 120-day trap, beneficiary mistakes, TSGLI claims almost nobody files, and what happens when you separate.
The Survivor Benefit Plan election you cannot undo — what it costs, what it pays, and how to decide.
Run the numbers on SBP vs. term life before your retirement briefing.
Contribution strategies, fund selection, and the civilian 401k comparison nobody does for you.
Deeper coverage of deployment legal prep, SCRA interactions, and complex estate situations.
USFSPA, retirement division, SBP elections in divorce, and custody across PCS moves.