US air force denies early retirement for transgender service members

The Guardian

11 hours ago

The US air force is denying early retirement to all transgender service members with 15-18 years of military service, opting instead to force them out with no retirement benefits, according to a memo seen by Reuters.
These longer-serving transgender service members will have the same choice as more junior ones: quit or be forced out, with corresponding lump-sum payments as they walk out the door, the 4 August memo says.
The move is the latest escalation by Donald Trump's administration as it seeks to bar transgender people from joining the US military and remove all who are serving. The Pentagon says transgender people are medically unfit, something civil rights activists say is untrue and constitutes illegal discrimination.
'After careful consideration of the individual applications, I am disapproving all Temporary Early Retirement Authority (Tera) exception to policy requests in tabs 1 and 2 [sections of the documents] for members with 15 to 18 years of service,' the memo said.
It was signed by Brian Scarlett, who is performing the duties of the assistant secretary of the air force for manpower and reserve affairs. The memo has not been previously reported.
Multiple service members had already been approved for early retirement, but those approvals were rescinded, advocates say. An air force spokesperson said a subset of applications were 'prematurely approved'.
'It's devastating,' said Shannon Minter of the National Center for LGBTQ Rights. 'This is just betrayal of a direct commitment made to these service members.'
The air force's decision follows a policy detailed in a 23 May memo, which stated that air force service members with 15-18 years of service could request early retirement.
When asked by Reuters about the decision, the air force noted that it approved early retirement for more senior members who self-identified as transgender and had 18-20 years of service. Regular retirement happens after 20 years.
In a statement to the Guardian, an air force spokesperson said: 'Although service members with 15-18 years of honorable service were permitted to apply for an exception to policy, none of the exceptions to policy were approved.
'In lieu of Tera, members are eligible for voluntary separation, with eligibility for voluntary separation pay at twice the amount of involuntary separation pay. Service members will not have to repay any bonuses received prior to 15 May 2025.'
The Guardian asked the air force how many transgender service members it had in the 15-18 service years category. The spokesperson said: 'Approximately a dozen service members between 15 and 18 years of service were prematurely notified that their TERA applications under the gender dysphoria provision had been approved, but higher level review was required under the DoD gender dysphoria policy for those members (between 15 and 18 years of service).'
In an internal question-and-answer fact sheet seen by Reuters, the air force provided potential answers to the question: 'How do I tell family we're not getting retirement benefits?'
The answers were:
'Focus on the benefits you do retain (GI Bill, VA benefits, experience)'
'Emphasize this doesn't reflect on your service or character'
'Military & Family Readiness can provide counseling resources'