Q. My Fiancé (a US Marine) and I are planning on getting married in April. We are a little worried about the financial issues. We are both very frugal people and not big spenders. We were told that we would get an allowance for food as well as housing. Any idea of if we get money for food and if so how much?
Congratulations on your upcoming marriage!
The allowance for food is called Basic Allowance for Substance aka BAS. This is something he should already get, in most circumstances, and it will not go up when he gains a dependent. This BAS is only meant to help him defray the cost of food for himself, it is not meant to feed the family. The current BAS rate is$ 348.44 for Enlisted and $239.96 for Officer. His Basic Allowance for Housing, aka BAH or BAQ as it was once known, is to help defray the cost of housing. This too is also something he should already get (unless he lives in government quarters). Once he gets married (or gains a dependent) BAH will go up, but it is usually not all that much. The BAH rate is determined by a service members duty station, rank, and dependency status. For more information on pay and entitlements see the Military Pay & Entitlements section on our site .
Also, something to think about would be to live on base in Military Housing, if it’s an option. You will not get BAH, however depending on the area it may be a ton cheaper to live on post, then renting a house off post.
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