You get your LES by going to the MyPay website:
https://mypay.dfas.mil/mypay.aspx
After you login, you can select your LES from a drop-down menu. It'll look something like this:
You read it like this:
Block 1: Your name.
Block 2: Your Social Security Number
Block 3: Your paygrade. If you are frocked or selected, remember that this isn't updated until you actually promote.
Block 4: Pay Date. It's the date that you entered active duty, and is used for determining how many years of service you are entitled to. Speaking of which...
Block 5: Years of Service. Used to determine what you get for base pay. Pay charts can be found here:
http://www.dfas.mil/militarymembers/payentitlements/militarypaytables.html
Block 6: ETS. This is your EAOS (for enlisted) or is all 8s (for officers).
Block 7: Branch. Which service you are in (e.g. Navy).
Block 8: ADSN/DSSN. A code for which distributing office manages your account.
Block 9: Period Covered. Which month is covered.
Block 10: Entitlements. What you are being paid. This will have BASE PAY, Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS), Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH), and Special pays (like FLY PAY, SUB PAY, etc.).
Block 11: Deductions. What is automatically deducted from your paycheck, such as taxes, Service Group Members Life Insurance (SGLI), Thrift Savings Plan (TSP), and Mid-Month Pay (since you get paid every two weeks, you get half your pay deducted so that you don't get paid double).
Block 12: Allotments. You'll likely see Tricare Dental if you have dependents signed up. I have Privatized Housing listed, since I live on base. Also, you can setup allotments so that money is automatically moved to a savings or checking account. You can setup allotments using a DD 2558: http://www.dfas.mil/retiredmilitary/manage/allotments.html.
Block 13: AMT FWD. Amount of all unpaid pay and allowances due from prior LES. Hopefully it's zero.
Block 14: TOT ENT. Add everything in Block 10.
Block 15: TOT DED. Add everything in Block 11.
Block 16: TOT ALMT. Add everything in Block 12.
Block 17: NET AMT. Add 14, 15 and 16.
Block 18: CR FWD. Dollar value of all unpaid pay and allowances due to reflect on the next LES as Block 13.
Block 19: EOM PAY. End of Month Pay. What you actually get paid!
Block 20, 21 and 22: The totals from Blocks 10, 11 and 12.
Block 23: DIEMS.Date initially entered military service. Used for your retirement plan. If it's not right, contact your detailer for how to get it fixed.
Block 24: RET PLAN. What retirement plan you have. If you have less than 15 years of service, this probably says CHOICE, as you haven't selected whether to do REDUX or HIGH-3.
Block 25: BF BAL. The amount of leave brought forward from the beginning of the fiscal year, or when you joined the service.
Block 26: ERND. Cumulative amount of leave earned this fiscal year. You should get 2.5 days per month.
Block 27: USED. How much leave you've used this fiscal year. Realize this sometimes takes one month to catch up.
Block 28: CR BAL. How much leave you have at the end of the month the LES covers.
Block 29: ETS BAL. The projected amount of leave you have at your ETS (Block 6). For officers, it probably says 0.
Block 30: LV LOST. If you have over 60 days at the end of the fiscal year, you lose whatever is over 60. It used to be 75 days, but as of 1 October 2013, you can't have more than 60.
Block 31: LV PAID. If you sell back leave. Likely zero.
Block 32: USE/LOSE. What you are projected to lose if you don't use it by the end of the fiscal year. You should ask your sailors what this block says, and ensure they use up leave before that.
Block 33: WAGE PERIOD. What wages you had that were taxed. Likely just your base pay.
Block 34: WAGE YTD. How much taxable wages you made up to that point in the calendar year.
Block 35: M/S. Whether you have married or single withholding.
Block 36: EX. Number of exemptions. The more exemptions, the lower you pay in taxes, but you may owe money come tax time.
Block 37: ADD'L TAXES. If you ask, you can have additional money withheld to pay taxes. I recommend not.
Block 38: TAX YTD. How much you've paid in Federal taxes to date.
Block 39: FICA YTD. How much of your wages were subjected to FICA tax.
Block 40: SOC WAGES. How much of your wages were subjected to Social Security taxes.
Block 41: SOC TAX YTD. How much Social Security has been withheld this calendar year.
Block 42: MED WAGES YTD. How much of your wages are Medicare taxable.
Block 43: MED TAX YTD. How much you've paid into Medicare taxes.
Block 44: ST. What state you have as your home of record. When you provide your LES for proof that you don't need to pay a state's personal property tax, you should highlight this block.
Block 45: WAGE PERIOD. Amount of money your state sees that is taxable. Can be zero. For example, I'm a Michigan resident, but since I'm not stationed in Michigan, I don't have to pay Michigan taxes. Check your state rules to see what you owe.
Block 46: WAGE YTD. What wages you are taxed on this calendar year.
Block 47: M/S. Married or single withholding for your state.
Block 48: EX. State exemptions.
Block 49: TAX YTD. State taxes you have paid to date.
Block 50: BAQ, or Basic Allowance for Quarters. Whether you get single or with dependents (W/DEP) for your BAH.
Block 51: BAQ DEPN. What kind of dependents you claim. Could list your parents or foster children. Likely says SPOUSE.
Block 52: VHA ZIP. What zip code your BAH is calculated using. Should match the zip code where you are living at. VHA stands for Variable Housing Allowance. It was replaced by Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) some years ago.
Block 53: Amount of rent paid for housing. Mine says zero. Not sure if this used to be used for government housing in the past.
Block 54: SHARE. The number of people with whom the member shares housing costs. Likely 0 if you are single, 1 if you are married.
Block 55: STAT. VHA status. Mine is R. This is probably a holdover from the old VHA system.
Block 56: JFTR. Only has an entry if you are receiving Cost of Living Allowance (COLA).
Block 57: DEPNS. Number of dependents you have for VHA purposes. Mine says zero. Likely a VHA holdover.
Block 58: 2D JFTR. JFTR code for members dependents for COLA calculations.
Block 59: BAS TYPE. For officers, this is blank. For enlisted, you have: B (Separate Rations), C (TDY/PCS/Proceed Time), H (Rations In Kind Not Available) or K (Rations Under Emergency Conditions). Information about BAS Types is here: http://comptroller.defense.gov/fmr/07a/07a_25.pdf
Block 60: CHARITY YTD. Deduction made to charity, year to date.
Block 61: Not used.
Block 62: Only used by the Army.
Block 63: BASE PAY RATE. Percentage rate your TSP is deducted at.
Block 64: BASE PAY CURRENT. Not used.
Block 65: SPECIAL PAY RATE. How much (percentage) of special pays are deducted for TSP.
Block 66: SPECIAL PAY CURRENT. Not used.
Block 67: INCENTIVE PAY RATE. How much (percentage) of incentive pays are deducted for TSP.
Block 68: INCENTIVE PAY CURRENT. Not used.
Block 69: BONUS PAY RATE. How much (percentage) of bonus pays are deducted for TSP.
Block 70: BONUS PAY CURRENT. Not used.
Block 71: Not used.
Block 72: TSP YTD DEDUCTION. How much you've paid, year to date, into TSP.
Block 73: DEFERRED. How much TSP money is deferred for tax purposes.
Block 74: EXEMPT. TSP that is exempt from taxes.
Remarks. Read the remarks section to find:
- What bank you have on file.
- What level of SGLI coverage you have.
- How much Sea Duty Time (shown as YY/MM/DD)
