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b"Veteran\\u2019s Day has come and gone and I feel especially thankful for all who have served and continue to serve in the military\\u2026 many sacrificing their daily lives at home and many putting their lives at risk to keep us safe and strong. I thank you all for your service.

I started to think about the financial challenges one must encounter as a service man or woman and I wanted to see if there were any military benefits or compensations for these challenges in terms of special financial benefits that the government may have created.
the government offers military families a list of financial benefits that I hope our service members know about
And thanks to Kiplinger Magazine I found a list of military benefits that most of us don\\u2019t know about and I even hope our service members know about. Here\\u2019s a sampling:

Let\\u2019s start with savings and retirement plans:

In the Government\\u2019s retirement plan, the so-called TSP Plan, a service member can invest up to $18,000 in 2015, and if they're receiving tax-free income while deployed, they can increase their contributions to $53,000 for the year.

And now the government has given them access to a Roth Retirement Plan. This ROTH acts like a regular one in that all of the earnings are tax free, which is like a Roth IRA for the rest of us - but without the income restrictions.

An additional ROTH benefit service members can get occurs when they receive tax-free combat-zone pay. Because there is no income tax on their pay and their money can go into the Roth tax-free, contributions go in tax-free and their earnings come out tax-free. That\\u2019s a nice touch.

Talk about savings; The government also gives service members a 10% Guaranteed Return on Savings. That\\u2019s right, a 10% Guaranteed Return on Savings!

Here\\u2019s the direct quote from Kiplinger: \\u201cThe military\\u2019s Savings Deposit Program lets deployed service members invest up to $10,000 in the program each time you are deployed. You receive 10% annual interest, compounded quarterly; the program lasts for up to three months after your return.\\u201d Also, any increase in this tax-free take-home pay can be stashed in this 10% interest savings plan.

Remember the G.I. Bill? Well, it still exists and offers free college for yourself, your spouse or your kids. This post 9/11 GI Bill covers the full cost of in-state tuition and fees at public colleges for up to 36 months (four academic years), or up to $21,085 per year for private colleges and foreign schools. You\\u2019ll also get a housing stipend and money for books and tutoring.

The money may be used for undergraduate or graduate programs, or for certain programs at vocational and trade schools. And one of the best features of the Post 9/11 GI Bill is that longtime service members may transfer their benefits to a spouse or children.

Inexpensive Life Insurance

The government also offers Service members one of the lowest-cost life insurance programs available. The cost for coverage is only 7 cents per $1,000 of coverage per month, which translates to $336 a year for the maximum $400,000. Life Insurance is guaranteed regardless of your age, health or likelihood of being deployed. Service members can also get $100,000 in coverage for a spouse for as little as $60 a year if he or she is under age 35.

Here\\u2019s one that\\u2019s a little more subtle but can be helpful. If you maintain a legal residence a state that has no or low income taxes and are deployed out of that state, service members will still be taxed according to their place of legal residence. This rule can shield them from taxes despite the fact that they are living in another state. This applies to the spouse as well if both have to live out of their state of legal residence."