The single most expensive mistake in this transition is comparing a GS salary against your military base pay. BAH and BAS are tax-free and TRICARE has real value — leave them out and almost any federal offer looks like a raise when it may not be. The calculator below puts both sides on the same footing.
I Why there is no conversion chart
Charts mapping E-7 to GS-9 and O-4 to GS-13 circulate widely. OPM does not publish one, and no agency is bound by any of them.
The reason is structural rather than bureaucratic. A GS grade describes the complexity, scope and organisational impact of a position — not the seniority of the person filling it. Two veterans who separated at the same rank can qualify at very different grades depending on what they actually did, how large the teams and budgets were, and what the outcomes were.
How your documented experience maps onto the qualification requirements in the announcement. That makes the federal résumé the operative document — and it is a different artefact from a civilian one, long and specific by design, with hours, dates, supervisors and accomplishments matched to the announcement. See the federal résumé. Comparison charts are useful for orientation and useless for negotiation.
II Three components, three rules
This is the table to memorise, because almost every misunderstanding in this transition sits inside it.
| Does military service count toward… | Answer | What you must do |
|---|---|---|
| Annual leave accrual rate | Yes | Nothing — automatic on appointment |
| Within-grade step increases | No | Nothing will change this |
| FERS retirement | Only if you pay | Make the service deposit |
III Leave — automatic and immediate
Creditable active duty counts toward your annual leave accrual rate from your first day, with no deposit and no application.
| Creditable service | Accrual per pay period | Roughly per year |
|---|---|---|
| Under 3 years | 4 hours | 13 days |
| 4+ years military | 6 hours | 20 days |
| 12+ years combined | 8 hours | 26 days |
A veteran with four years of service starts at the six-hour rate a new graduate reaches only after three years of federal employment — worth roughly a week and a half of additional leave, every year, immediately. The wider leave framework is in annual leave strategy.
Step increases are the opposite case. Within-grade increases are earned by time in your current step under 5 U.S.C. 5335 — 52 weeks for steps 1 to 3, 104 for steps 4 to 6, 156 for steps 7 to 9 — plus an acceptable level of competence. Military service shortens none of it. See step increases.
IV Retirement — only if you pay
Post-1956 military service is creditable toward FERS retirement if you make a deposit of 3 percent of your military basic pay. Without it, the time generally does not count toward your annuity computation at all.
Interest accrues after an initial grace period, so the deposit gets more expensive every year you leave it. Four years of service bought for a few thousand dollars adds four years to the multiplier in your annuity computation — paid every year for the rest of your life. It is the highest-return financial decision most veterans face on entering federal service, and the one most commonly deferred until it costs substantially more. The full mechanics, including the interest clock, are in the military buyback and can be modelled in the buyback calculator.
V Military vs GS Offer Comparison
Both sides on the same footing. Enter your military components and the GS offer, and the calculator grosses up the tax-free allowances so the comparison is honest.
Is the Federal Offer Actually a Raise?
Estimates only. TRICARE, the retirement contribution and FEHB differ in value by household — this compares cash.
VI The hiring authorities
Several routes exist, and they bypass different obstacles. Using the wrong one means competing when you did not have to.
| Authority | What it does | Limit |
|---|---|---|
| VRA | Non-competitive appointment into the excepted service | GS-11 and below, or WG equivalent |
| 30% or more disabled | Direct hire, no competition | No grade cap |
| VEOA | Access to announcements otherwise limited to current federal employees | Preference eligibles |
| Veterans' preference | 5 or 10 points in competitive examining | Qualifying service or disability |
A VRA appointment converts to permanent competitive service after two years of satisfactory performance. The 30 percent authority is the most powerful of the four because it carries no grade ceiling.
Without the DD-214, the SF-15 where applicable, and the VA letter where a rating is involved, preference does not count — regardless of what you are entitled to. Start the VA claim early enough that a rating is in hand when you apply. Active duty members expecting an honorable discharge can claim preference before separation under 5 U.S.C. 2108a. Application strategy is in USAJOBS strategy.
VII What else carries across
Military leave under 5 U.S.C. 6323(a) is available to any full-time federal civilian employee whose appointment is not limited to one year, for certain active or inactive duty in the National Guard or as a Reserve. It is prorated for part-time career employees and those on an uncommon tour of duty.
Disabled veteran leave under the Wounded Warriors Federal Leave Act of 2015 is available to federal employees hired on or after 5 November 2016 who are veterans with a service-connected disability rating of 30 percent or more, for treatment of that disability, during the first twelve months of employment. It does not roll over — see disabled veteran leave.
VIII The playbook
| Situation | What to do |
|---|---|
| Looking at conversion charts | Use them for orientation only. No agency applies one. |
| Weighing a GS offer | Compare total compensation, not base pay. BAH and BAS are tax-free. |
| Just appointed | Your leave rate should already reflect military service. Check your first LES. |
| Expecting service to speed step increases | It does not. Not by one day. |
| Post-1956 service | Make the deposit decision now. Interest makes waiting expensive. |
| Applying at GS-11 or below | Ask HR explicitly about VRA. It skips the competitive queue. |
| 30% or more disabled | Direct hire authority has no grade cap. Use it. |
| Announcement says current employees only | VEOA may get you in. Check whether you are preference eligible. |
| Still on active duty | You may be able to claim preference before separation under 5 U.S.C. 2108a. |
| Any application | DD-214, SF-15 and VA letter. Without them, preference does not count. |
Making the transition
- Add up your military total compensation including tax-free BAH and BAS before comparing anything.
- Write a federal résumé from scratch — do not reuse a civilian one.
- Map your actual scope and outcomes onto the announcement's qualification requirements.
- Start your VA claim early enough for a rating to be in hand.
- Assemble the DD-214, SF-15 and VA letter before you apply.
- Ask which hiring authorities the agency will use for your situation.
- Check your first LES confirms the correct leave accrual rate.
- Request your estimated earnings for the military deposit computation.
- Make the deposit decision in your first year, before interest builds.
- If you have a 30 percent rating and were hired after November 2016, use the disabled veteran leave in year one.
Frequently asked questions
None, and OPM does not publish an official conversion chart. GS grades are set by the complexity, scope and organisational impact of the specific federal position, not by prior military rank. Two veterans who separated at the same rank can qualify at very different GS levels depending on what they actually did. Informal comparison charts circulate widely and are useful for orientation, but no agency is bound by them and no HR specialist will apply one. What determines your grade is how your documented experience maps onto the qualification requirements in the announcement.
Yes, and this is the one benefit that is automatic. Creditable active duty service counts toward your annual leave accrual rate immediately on appointment. With four or more years of military service you start accruing at six hours per pay period rather than four. With twelve or more years of combined military and civilian federal service you accrue at eight hours per pay period. That is worth up to roughly two additional weeks of annual leave a year from your first day, and it requires no deposit and no application.
No. Within-grade increases are earned by time served in your current step under 5 U.S.C. 5335 — 52 weeks for steps 1 through 3, 104 weeks for steps 4 through 6, and 156 weeks for steps 7 through 9 — together with an acceptable level of competence. Military service does not shorten any of those waiting periods. A retiring senior NCO and a new graduate starting at the same grade and step reach step 2 on exactly the same date.
Only if you pay the deposit. Post-1956 military service is creditable toward FERS retirement if you make a deposit of 3 percent of your military basic pay, with interest accruing after an initial grace period. Without the deposit the time generally does not count toward your annuity computation at all. This is the single highest-value financial decision most veterans face on entering federal service, and it gets more expensive the longer it is left because of the interest.
Several, and they bypass different obstacles. A Veterans Recruitment Appointment allows non-competitive appointment to positions at GS-11 and below or the wage grade equivalent, into the excepted service, converting to permanent competitive service after two years of satisfactory performance. The 30 percent or more disabled veteran authority allows direct hire with no competition and no grade cap. The Veterans Employment Opportunities Act gives preference eligibles access to announcements that would otherwise be open only to current federal employees. Veterans' preference itself adds 5 or 10 points in competitive examining.
As early as you are entitled to, and always with documentation. Preference is usually claimed after separation, but active duty members expecting an honorable discharge can claim it before separation under 5 U.S.C. 2108a. The critical practical point is documentary: without the DD-214, the SF-15 where applicable, and the VA letter where a disability rating is involved, the preference does not count regardless of your eligibility. Start the VA claim early enough that a rating is in hand when you apply.
Total compensation against total compensation, not base pay against salary. Military basic pay excludes BAH and BAS, both of which are tax-free, along with TRICARE and the retirement contribution. Total military compensation commonly runs roughly 1.3 to 1.5 times base pay. Because BAH and BAS are untaxed, a civilian salary has to be meaningfully higher to match them in take-home terms. Comparing a GS salary against military base pay alone will make almost any federal offer look better than it is.
Military leave under 5 U.S.C. 6323(a) is available to full-time federal civilian employees whose appointment is not limited to one year, for certain active or inactive duty in the National Guard or as a Reserve, and is prorated for part-time employees. Separately, disabled veteran leave under the Wounded Warriors Federal Leave Act of 2015 is available to federal employees hired on or after November 5, 2016 who are veterans with a service-connected disability rating of 30 percent or more, for treatment of that disability, in the first twelve months of employment.