I always get a lot of complaints when I write about this, but I'm going to write it anyway because I think it is important. There's a long pay period coming up, and depending on your bank or credit union's depositing policies, it might come over Christmas. Here's the deal:
The two regular December 2013 paydays are Friday, 13 December 2013 and Tuesday, 31 December 2013. Just doing straight math, that's 18 days between paydays, and it includes Christmas. If you're already having trouble stretching paychecks, this is the worst possible time for a pay period to be long.
However, because many banks and credit unions offer early direct deposit as a courtesy to their customers, your long pay period might not be until the next one, covering the first half of January. How confusing is that? The January mid-month payday is Wednesday, 15 January 2014. If you get your December end-of-month pay early, it will make the second half of December pay period normal length, but you'll be dealing with a long pay period at the beginning of January. Either way, it is good to be prepared.
Regular Paydays
Military servicemembers who get paid on the actual, designated paydays will see their pay deposited like this:
- Friday, 13 December 2013,
- Tuesday, 31 December 2013, and
- Wednesday, 15 January 2014.
If you get paid on the actual payday, your longer pay period will be at the end of December.
One Business Day Early
First up: banks and credit unions that offer direct deposit of military pay “one business day early.” This includes USAA and Pacific Marine Credit Union (PMCU). Customers who bank with financial institutions that offer deposits one business day early should expect to have their deposits posted on:
- Thursday, 12 December 2013,
- Monday, 30 December 2013, and
- Tuesday, 14 January 2014.
For customers with banks or credit unions that offer direct deposit one business day early, your long pay period will come at the end of December.
Service Credit Union
Service Credit Union advertises that it will deposit funds “up to two business days early,” pending the receipt of information from the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS.) However, Service Credit Union does not guarantee this, because they are reliant on the information coming from DFAS. There are a couple of possible dates for pay to be deposited:
- Wednesday, 11 December 2013 or Thursday, 12 December 2013,
- Friday, 27 December 2013 or Monday, 30 December 2013, and
- Monday, 13 January 2014 or Tuesday, 14 January 2014.
Depending on how those dates actually fall out, Service Credit Union customers will either have a long pay period at the end of December or the beginning of January.
Navy Federal Credit Union
As always, Navy Federal Credit Union (NFCU) is special because it has two different sets of deposit posting days. Which day your pay will be deposited is based upon the type of checking account you use for your deposits.
Members who have their pay deposited into their Active Duty checking account will see their pay like this:
- Pending on Wednesday, 11 December 2013, to be posted overnight and available for use on Thursday, 12 December 2013,
- Pending on Friday, 27 December 2013, to be posted overnight and available for use on Saturday, 28 December 2013, and
- Pending on Monday, 13 January 2014, to be posted overnight and available for use on Tuesday, 14 January 2014.
For customers who use Active Duty checking, the longer pay period will come in the first half of January.
Members with any other type of checking account will see their pay like this:
- Pending on Thursday, 12 December 2013, to be posted overnight and available for use on Friday, 13 December 2013,
- Pending on Monday, 30 December 2013, to be posted overnight and available for use on Tuesday, 31 December 2013, and
- Pending on Tuesday, 14 January 2014, to be posted overnight and available for use on Wednesday, 15 January 2014.
For customers who use a checking account type that is NOT Active Duty checking, the long pay period will come at the end of December.
Confused? It's OK. You can ask in the comments, or call your bank or credit union to confirm. It isn't the end of the world, but it is certainly something to be thinking about. Knowledge and preparation are the key to not finding money so stressful.
