[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 37USC205]
TITLE 37--PAY AND ALLOWANCES OF THE UNIFORMED SERVICES
CHAPTER 3--BASIC PAY
Sec. 205. Computation: service creditable
(a) Subject to subsections (b) and (c), for the purpose of computing
the basic pay of a member of a uniformed service, his years of service
are computed by adding--
(1) all periods of active service as an officer, Army field
clerk, flight officer, aviation midshipman, or enlisted member of a
uniformed service;
(2) all periods during which he was enlisted or held an
appointment as an officer, Army field clerk, or flight officer of--
(A) a regular component of a uniformed service;
(B) the Regular Army Reserve;
(C) the Organized Militia before July 1, 1916;
(D) the National Guard;
(E) the National Guard Reserve;
(F) a reserve component of a uniformed service;
(G) the Naval Militia;
(H) the National Naval Volunteers;
(I) the Naval Reserve Force;
(J) the Army without specification of component;
(K) the Air Force without specification of component;
(L) the Marine Corps Reserve Force;
(M) the Philippine Scouts; or
(N) the Philippine Constabulary;
(3) for a commissioned officer in service on June 30, 1922, all
service that was then counted in computing longevity pay and all
service as a contract surgeon serving full time;
(4) all periods during which he held an appointment as a nurse,
reserve nurse, or commissioned officer in the Army Nurse Corps as it
existed at any time before April 16, 1947, the Navy Nurse Corps as
it existed at any time before April 16, 1947, or the Public Health
Service, or a reserve component of any of them;
(5) all periods during which he was a deck officer or junior
engineer in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration;
(6) all periods that, under law in effect on January 10, 1962,
were authorized to be credited in computing basic pay; and
(7) all periods while--
(A) on a temporary disability retired list, honorary retired
list, or a retired list of a uniformed service;
(B) entitled to retired pay, retirement pay, or retainer
pay, from a uniformed service or the Department of Veterans
Affairs, as a member of the Fleet Reserve or the Fleet Marine
Corps Reserve; or
(C) a member of the Honorary Reserve of the Officers'
Reserve Corps or the Organized Reserve Corps.
Except for any period of active service described in clause (1) and
except as provided by subsections (b), (c), and (d) of section 1402 and
subsections (b), (c), and (d) of section 1402a of title 10, a period of
service described in clauses (2) through (7) that is performed while on
a retired list, in a retired status, or in the Fleet Reserve or Fleet
Marine Corps Reserve, may not be included to increase retired pay,
retirement pay, or retainer pay. For the purpose of clause (5), periods
during which a member was a deck officer or junior engineer in the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration includes periods during
which a member was a deck officer or junior engineer in the
Environmental Science Services Administration or the Coast and Geodetic
Survey.
(b) A period of time may not be counted more than once under
subsection (a).
(c) The periods of service authorized to be counted under subsection
(a) shall, under regulations prescribed by the Secretary concerned,
include service performed by a member of a uniformed service before he
became 18 years of age.
(d) Notwithstanding subsection (a), a commissioned officer may not
count in computing basic pay a period of service after October 13, 1964,
that the officer performed concurrently as a member of the Senior
Reserve Officers' Training Corps, except for service that the officer
performed on or after August 1, 1979, other than for training as an
enlisted member of the Selected Reserve may be so counted.
(e)(1) Notwithstanding subsection (a), a period of service described
in paragraph (2) of a member who enlists in a reserve component may not
be counted under this section.
(2) Paragraph (1) applies to the following service:
(A) Service performed while a member of a reserve component
under an enlistment under section 12103(b) or 12103(d) of title 10
before the member begins service on active duty under such section
(including a period of active duty for training) unless the member
performs inactive-duty training before beginning service on active
duty or active duty for training;
(B) Service performed while a member of a reserve component
under an enlistment under section 513 of title 10 (other than a
period of active duty to which the member is ordered under chapter
1209 of title 10 or another provision of law).
(f) Notwithstanding subsection (a), the periods of service of a
commissioned officer appointed under section 12203 of title 10 after
receiving financial assistance under section 16401 of such title that
are counted under this section may not include a period of service after
January 1, 2000, that the officer performed concurrently as an enlisted
member of the Marine Corps Platoon Leaders Class program and the Marine
Corps Reserve, except that service after that date that the officer
performed before commissioning (concurrently with the period of service
as a member of the Marine Corps Platoon Leaders Class program) as an
enlisted member on active duty or as a member of the Selected Reserve
may be so counted.
(Pub. L. 87-649, Sept. 7, 1962, 76 Stat. 458; Pub. L. 88-647, title II,
Sec. 202(1), Oct. 13, 1964, 78 Stat. 1070; Pub. L. 89-718,
Sec. 49(a)(1), (b), Nov. 2, 1966, 80 Stat. 1121; Pub. L. 90-623,
Sec. 3(3), Oct. 22, 1968, 82 Stat. 1314; Pub. L. 93-545, Sec. 2, Dec.
26, 1974, 88 Stat. 1741; Pub. L. 96-342, title VIII, Sec. 813(b)(3)(D),
Sept. 8, 1980, 94 Stat. 1104; Pub. L. 96-513, title IV, Sec. 402, title
V, Sec. 516(3), Dec. 12, 1980, 94 Stat. 2904, 2937; Pub. L. 98-525,
title VI, Sec. 607(a), Oct. 19, 1984, 98 Stat. 2538; Pub. L. 101-189,
div. A, title V, Sec. 501(c), Nov. 29, 1989, 103 Stat. 1435; Pub. L.
102-25, title VII, Sec. 702(b)(1), (2), (c), Apr. 6, 1991, 105 Stat.
117; Pub. L. 102-484, div. A, title V, Sec. 517(b), Oct. 23, 1992, 106
Stat. 2407; Pub. L. 103-35, title II, Sec. 204(a)(1), May 31, 1993, 107
Stat. 102; Pub. L. 103-337, div. A, title XVI, Sec. 1676(b)(2), Oct. 5,
1994, 108 Stat. 3019; Pub. L. 104-201, div. A, title V, Sec. 507(b),
Sept. 23, 1996, 110 Stat. 2512; Pub. L. 105-85, div. A, title X,
Sec. 1073(b), Nov. 18, 1997, 111 Stat. 1904; Pub. L. 106-65, div. A,
title V, Sec. 551(c), Oct. 5, 1999, 113 Stat. 614; Pub. L. 106-398,
Sec. 1 [[div. A], title V, Sec. 533(e)], Oct. 30, 2000, 114 Stat. 1654,
1654A-111.)
Historical and Revision Notes
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Revised section Source (U.S. Code) Source (Statutes at Large)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
205(a)................................ 37:233(a) (less words after 2d Oct. 12, 1949, ch. 681, Sec. 202
semicolon of clause (7)). (less proviso of (d)), 63 Stat.
37:233(b). 807; Apr. 30, 1956, ch. 223, Sec.
2, 70 Stat. 121.
205(b)................................ 37:233(a)(7) (words between 2d and
3d semicolons).
37:233(d) (less proviso).
205(c)................................ 37:233(a)(7) (words after 3d
semicolon).
205(d)................................ 37:233(c).
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In subsection (a), the introductory clause is substituted for
section 233(a) (introductory clause) of existing title 37. In clauses
(1) and (2), the word ``officer'' is substituted for the words
``commissioned officer, commissioned warrant officer, warrant officer''
to conform to the definition of ``officer'' in section 101(11) of this
revised title. In clause (1), the words ``Regular or Reserve component''
are omitted, since, under the definition of ``reserve component'' in
section 102(k) of the source statute, those words are defined to include
members without component status. Together, these categories compose the
entire structure of any uniformed service. In clause (2)(F), the words
``a reserve component of a uniformed service'' are substituted for the
words ``the National Guard of the United States, or in the Organized
Reserve Corps, or in the Officers' Reserve Corps, or in the Enlisted
Reserve Corps, or in the Medical Reserve Corps, or in the Medical
Reserve Corps of the Navy, or in the Dental Reserve Corps of the Navy .
. . or in the Naval Reserve . . .or in the Air National Guard of the
United States, or in the Air Force Reserve, or in the officers' section
of the Air Force Reserve, or in the enlisted section of the Air Force
Reserve, or in the Air Corps Reserve . . . or in the Marine Corps
Reserve, or in the Coast Guard Reserve, or in the Reserve Corps of the
Public Health Service,'' since all of the named organizations were or
are reserve components. In clause (4), the words ``as it existed at any
time before April 16, 1947'' are inserted for clarity, since the
reference is intended to apply to the corps established by law before
April 16, 1947. Service in the Army Nurse Corps or Navy Nurse Corps now
existing would be included under clause (1) or (2), since there is now
no legal distinction between the service of nurses and that of other
members of the Army and Navy. In clause (6), the date ``January 1,
1961,'' is substituted for the words ``the effective date of this
section,'' to reflect laws enacted after that effective date which
authorized certain service to be credited for pay purposes. See, for
example, Public Law 86-142. Clause (9) is substituted for section 233(b)
(less proviso) of existing title 37. The last sentence is substituted
for section 233(b) (proviso) of existing title 37.
In subsection (b), the first 33 words of section 233(d) of existing
title 37 are omitted as covered by the words ``are computed by adding''
in subsection (a). The words ``for any reason,'' in section 233(d) of
existing title 37, are omitted as surplusage.
In subsection (c)(3), the words ``chapter 67 of title 10'' are
substituted for the words ``title III of the Army and Air Force
Vitalization and Retirement Equalization Act of 1948,'' since that title
was repealed by section 53 of the Act of August 10, 1956, ch. 1041 (70A
Stat. 641), and is now codified as chapter 67 of title 10 by section 1
of that Act.
Amendments
2000--Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 106-398 substituted ``that the officer
performed concurrently as an enlisted member'' for ``that the officer
performed concurrently as a member'' and ``section 12203'' for ``section
12209''.
1999--Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 106-65 added subsec. (f).
1997--Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 105-85 substituted a comma for the period
after ``August 1, 1979''.
1996--Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 104-201 substituted ``for service that
the officer performed on or after August 1, 1979.'' for ``that service
after July 31, 1990, that the officer performed while serving on active
duty''.
1994--Subsec. (e)(2)(A). Pub. L. 103-337, Sec. 1676(b)(2)(A),
substituted ``12103(b) or 12103(d)'' for ``511(b) or 511(d)''.
Subsec. (e)(2)(B). Pub. L. 103-337, Sec. 1676(b)(2)(B), substituted
``chapter 1209'' for ``chapter 39''.
1993--Subsec. (a)(7)(B). Pub. L. 103-35 substituted ``the Department
of Veterans Affairs'' for ``the Veterans' Administration''.
1992--Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 102-484 amended subsec. (d) generally.
Prior to amendment, subsec. (d) read as follows: ``Notwithstanding
subsection (a), a commissioned officer may not count in computing his
basic pay any period of service after October 13, 1964, that he
performed concurrently as a member of a uniformed service and as a
member of the Senior Reserve Officers' Training Corps.''
1991--Subsecs. (a) to (c). Pub. L. 102-25 struck out ``of this
section'' and ``of this subsection'' wherever appearing.
1989--Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 101-189 amended subsec. (e) generally.
Prior to amendment, subsec. (e) read as follows: ``Notwithstanding
subsection (a) of this section, a period served by a member of a
uniformed service in a reserve component under an enlistment under
section 511 of title 10 before the member--
``(1) begins service on active duty under subsection (b) of that
section, or
``(2) begins an initial period of active duty for training under
subsection (d) of that section,
may not be counted under this section.''
1984--Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 98-525 added subsec. (e).
1980--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 96-513, Sec. 402(a), struck out in
introductory text reference to subsec. (d) of this section, struck out
cls. (7) and (8), which provided for the addition of four years for
medical and dental officers and one year in addition to the four years
for a medical officer who has completed one year of medical internship
or the equivalent, respectively, redesignated cl. (9) as (7), and in
text following cl. (7), as so redesignated, substituted ``subsections
(b), (c), and (d) of section 1402 and subsections (b), (c), and (d) of
section 1402a'' for ``section 1402(b)-(d) and section 1402a(a)-(d)'',
and ``clauses (2) through (7)'' for ``clauses (2)-(9)''.
Pub. L. 96-513, Sec. 516(3), substituted in cl. (5) ``National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration'' for ``Environmental Science
Service Administration'' and in provision following cl. (9) substituted
``National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration'' for ``Environmental
Science Service Administration'' and inserted ``Environmental Science
Service Administration'' before ``Coast and Geodetic Survey''.
Pub. L. 96-342 inserted reference to section 1402a(a)-(d) of title
10.
Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 96-513, Sec. 402(b), struck out provisions
relating to reduction of amount of service authorized to be credited
under cl. (7) or (8) of subsec. (a) of this section.
Subsecs. (c) to (e). Pub. L. 96-513, Sec. 402(c), redesignated
subsecs. (d) and (e) as (c) and (d), respectively. Former subsec. (c),
relating to limitations on service credited under cl. (7) or (8) of
subsec. (a) of this section, was struck out.
1974--Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 93-545 inserted ``aviation
midshipman,'' after ``flight officer,''.
1968--Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 90-623 substituted ``October 13, 1964,''
for ``the enactment of this subsection''.
1966--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 89-718 substituted ``Environmental
Science Services Administration'' for ``Coast and Geodetic Survey'' in
cl. (5) and inserted provision that, for the purpose of cl. (5), periods
during which a member was a deck officer or junior engineer in the
Environmental Science Services Administration includes periods during
which a member was a deck officer or junior engineer in the Coast and
Geodetic Survey.
1964--Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 88-647 added subsec. (e).
Effective Date of 1994 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 103-337 effective Dec. 1, 1994, except as
otherwise provided, see section 1691 of Pub. L. 103-337, set out as an
Effective Date note under section 10001 of Title 10, Armed Forces.
Effective Date of 1984 Amendment
Section 607(b) of Pub. L. 98-525 provided that: ``The amendment made
by subsection (a) [amending this section] shall apply to persons who
enlist under section 511 [now 12103] of title 10, United States Code, on
or after the first day of the third calendar month which begins after
the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 19, 1984].''
Effective Date of 1980 Amendment
Amendment by section 402 of Pub. L. 96-513 effective Sept. 15, 1981,
but the authority to prescribe regulations under the amendment by Pub.
L. 96-513 effective on Dec. 12, 1980, see section 701 of Pub. L. 96-513,
set out as a note under section 101 of Title 10, Armed Forces.
Amendment by section 516(3) of Pub. L. 96-513 effective Dec. 12,
1980, see section 701(b)(3) of Pub. L. 96-513.
Effective Date of 1968 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 90-623 intended to restate without substantive
change the law in effect on Oct. 22, 1968, see section 6 of Pub. L. 90-
623, set out as a note under section 5334 of Title 5, Government
Organization and Employees.
Transition Provision
Subsec. (f) of this section applicable to certain enlisted members
of the Marine Corps Reserve selected for training as an officer
candidate under section 12209 of Title 10, Armed Forces, before
implementation of a financial assistance program under section 16401 of
Title 10, see section 551(d) of Pub. L. 106-65, set out as a note und
