Blended Retirement System (BRS)
(2018>)

The new military retirement system called the Blended Retirement System (BRS) went into effect 2018.   It is a combination of the existing annuity provision for those who retire after 20 or more years of service, PLUS the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP).  The TSP is a government run 401(K) for which you contribute to and get matching funds from the government. 

To calculate your BRS retirement pay it uses the average of the service member’s highest 36 months of basic pay times 2.0% of their years of service.  All members are automatically enrolled into the TSP after 60 days of service and a 5% contribution is taken from your pay.  The government contribution equals to 1% of your base pay.  After two years of service, the government will match the member’s contributions up to an additional 4%. 

So, after two years of service, members can get up to a 5% government matching contribution on top of what they contribute each month.  If you leave service before 20 years you can still keep your TSP and take it to the next job.  When you reach age 60 you can take monthly payments or lump sum payments. 

See the BRS CALCULATOR