Soldiers and their family members who need short-notice, often-expensive travel for an emergency will be eligible next year for more financial assistance to pay for those unexpected costs.
Soldiers will have access to up to $2,000 for domestic travel and up to $4,000 internationally for emergency situations like the death of a loved one, important surgeries and disaster assistance under a new program run by Army Emergency Relief, a non-profit organization.
The policy goes into effect Jan. 1 and will include additional help with no-interest loans for travel costs exceeding the $2,000 and $4,000 caps. For travel costs exceeding the $2,000 and $4,000 caps, soldiers will be offered additional help with zero-interest loans.
Army Emergency Relief is a civilian organization approved by the Army to coordinate and provide help to soldiers. Its CEO is former Sergeant Major of the Army Michael Grinston.
“We updated this policy because the last thing a soldier should have to think about when
needing to get home is the cost of a plane ticket,” Grinston said in a press release.
As of Nov. 1, more than 4,300 soldiers have used $4.6 million in emergency travel funds in 2024 with most of the assistance used by enlisted soldiers in junior and mid-career ranks between private first class and sergeant first class, according to Sean Ryan, an AER spokesperson.
Soldiers in those ranks with less than 10 years in service generally earn salaries between roughly $28,500 to $58,600.
“Soldiers are concerned they could not afford to bring their entire family if a direct family member passed and that was one of the concerns Tony hears throughout his travel,” Ryan told Task & Purpose, referring to Grinston, who goes by Tony.
The update is a change to AER’s current policy, in which active-duty soldiers and their families receive funds in the form of half interest-free loan and half grant. With the policy update, soldiers can now receive a full grant, depending on the soldier’s financial situation, according to the non-profit.
Emergency travel falls under AER’s ‘Care During a Crisis’ category, along with disaster assistance, funeral expense help and funds to help victims of domestic violence get away from dangerous situations faster. The nonprofit provides financial assistance for a variety of soldier needs like rent, permanent change of station moves, military spouse relicensing fees, medical copays not covered by TRICARE, and childcare to name a few.