Braxton Taylor
Military retirees and disabled veterans will receive 2.5% increases to their monthly paychecks for 2025, thanks to the annual Cost of Living Adjustment, or COLA, tied to inflation.
While 2.5% may look low compared to recent years’ COLA adjustments of 3.2% (2024), 8.7% (2023) and 5.9% (2022), it’s still close to the average of about 2.6% for the past decade.
The Social Security Administration announced the COLA increase Thursday. Most government disability and retirement payments are required by law to increase annually by the same amount to account for the rate of inflation.
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The Department of Labor determines the annual COLA by measuring the Consumer Price Index, or CPI, a measurement of a broad sampling of the cost of consumer goods and expenses. The CPI is compared to the previous year; if there is an increase, there is a COLA. If there is no increase, there is no COLA, and benefits remain the same — they don’t decrease.
Military Retirees
For 2025, retired military members will receive a $25 increase for each $1,000 of military retirement pension they receive each month.
Retirees who entered military service on or after Aug. 1, 1986, and opted for the Career Status Bonus (CSB/Redux retirement plan) will have any COLA increases reduced by a percentage point, so they will receive a smaller increase of $15 per $1,000 in 2025.
Survivors receiving Survivor Benefit Plan payments will receive increases to their payments by the same amount as retirees.
Service members who retired in 2024 will receive a slightly reduced COLA in 2025. Their COLA is prorated based on which quarter they retired in (January-March, April-June, etc.). The prorated amount may also be adjusted based on when a member entered the service and which retirement plan they elected.
Disabled Veterans and Survivors
Disabled veterans will also receive increases to their benefit payments in the upcoming year. VA disability checks will go up about $4.28 per month for those with a 10% rating and $93.45 for those rated at 100% who don’t have dependents.
Here are the 2025 VA disability compensation rates.
Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, or DIC, benefits for surviving spouses of disabled veterans also increase in 2025. Here are the VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation Rates for 2025.
Other Federal Retirees and Beneficiaries
Military retirees and VA beneficiaries aren’t the only ones who benefit from the COLA increase. Civil Service retirees and Social Security recipients will also receive the 2.5% bump in their monthly checks.
For Social Security recipients, the increase will mean about an extra $50 per month for the average beneficiary, according to the administration.
Related: Here’s the 2024 Pay Raise for Vets and Military Retirees
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