Effective 1 June 2014, there is a revision to the list of approved areas the areas for which troops are eligible to receive Imminent Danger Pay (IDP).
The following areas will be removed from the IDP list:
• The nine land areas of East Timor, Haiti, Liberia, Oman, Rwanda, Tajikistan, United Arab Emirates, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
• The six land areas and airspace above Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Serbia and Montenegro.
• The four water areas of the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman, and the Red Sea.
• The water area and air space above the Persian Gulf.
These decisions were based upon a routine review of qualifying areas. Areas receiving IDP are meant to be locations where there is "the imminent threat of physical harm to U.S. military personnel due to civil insurrection, civil war, terrorism or wartime conditions." The areas being removed from the list no longer meet the criteria required. This was determined by in-depth risk assessments by the relevant combatant commanders in conjunction with the individual services and the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The last such review occurred in 2007.
The list adjustments will reduce the amount of IDP by approximately 20%, saving the Department of Defense around $100 million per year.
IDP is paid at a rate of $7.50 per day, up to a maximum of $225 per month. It was previously paid on a monthly basis, with the entire monthly payment amount paid even if the servicemember was in the IDP area for just one day.
