milConnect from the Defense Manpower Data Center allows DoD affiliates and beneficiaries to manage their benefits and records online, offering secure access to many personal and personnel records stored within DEERS. This self-service portal features integrated applications providing users with secure access.
Sponsors and their dependents can access milConnect using either their Common Access Card (CAC) or, when available, card readers.
Frequently Asked Questions
DoD affiliates and their families can now access an array of online tools for managing benefits, records and entitlements through milConnect – the Defense Manpower Data Center’s (DMDC) web portal – via milConnect. MilConnect allows DoD affiliates access and manage information stored within DEERS (Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System) as well as other systems.
No matter where you are on your deployment journey, transition from Active Duty to Guard/Reserve service or retirement process as a Reserve Retiree; milConnect’s FAQ pages provide a one-stop source of frequently asked questions on benefits and records. Simply click on the menu bar of milConnect and choose either Life Events or Benefits & Records as your topic of inquiry.
At DEERS, it’s critical that your information remains up-to-date, since inaccurate details could impede health care eligibility, income tax reporting and other services. milConnect makes managing DEERS information simple for sponsors, dependents and those with dual sponsorship.
Separating service members lose access to CACs and DFAS myPay passwords upon separation; however, their DS Logons remain active and can still be used to access milConnect. To make the transition simpler for prior eligible family members 18 and over who wish to register a DS Logon and begin managing their information within milConnect, DMDC is offering them six additional months to register for one and get started using milConnect. To learn more about obtaining one and getting started using milConnect visit DMDC’s DS Logon page
Public Pages
milConnect provides service members and their families a one-stop solution for managing benefits, records, and entitlements. Through its integrated applications, milConnect secures access to their information stored within DEERS (Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System). milConnect can be found 24/7/365 online for active duty service members; National Guard members; Reserve members; retired military retirees and family members 18 or over as well as DoD affiliates.
milConnect provides numerous resources that can help you manage your benefits and records more easily, including Correspondence/Documentation, eCorrespondence, and FAQ pages.
Correspondence/Documentation from the DoD includes forms, documents and notices sent directly by them. If there’s something unclear in their correspondence that’s making you uneasy or confused, visit their eCorrespondence page to contact a DoD representative directly – in addition to being used by Civilian employees to self-attest for COVID-19 vaccination status!
eCorrespondence is an online tool developed by the Department of Defense that allows service members and their families to gain access to its official email accounts and receive notifications from it directly. eCorrespondence has quickly become the preferred means for DoD communication with service members and their families.
The eCorrespondence page also gives service members and their family members access to their personnel files, such as medical history, education records, awards received and deployment details. This allows service members and their family members to stay informed of any changes to benefits, records or entitlements as they occur.
Benefits provided through milConnect include TRICARE health insurance, commissary and exchange benefits, ID cards, and ID badges. milConnect’s FAQ pages provide the most up-to-date and accurate benefits information from the DoD, covering everything from military transitions to life events, life insurance benefits, education benefits and military compensation.
milConnect recently added or enhanced several features that can be seen from both its Home page and Correspondence/Documentation and FAQ pages. Coast Guard and NOAA members covered full time by Servicemembers Group Life Insurance (SGLI) can now manage their elections through milConnect – this allows them to designate beneficiaries, reduce, decline, restore coverage easily online 24×7 (please refer to MARADMIN 220/18 for details). Furthermore, its new search capability on its Home page makes finding specific information much quicker!
Private Pages
MilConnect is an online portal designed to allow service members and their families to manage their records and benefits online. The site includes tools for updating contact details, viewing TRICARE eligibility cards online, transferring education benefit entitlements and using an eCorrespondence initiative that sends email notifications when there are changes in eligibility or important updates about benefits eligibility or other important updates. milConnect is part of the Defense Manpower Data Center – a Department of Defense service which keeps records for millions of active duty personnel, retirees and their families across military services worldwide.
DoD Self-Service website is open to everyone with an affiliation to the Department, such as active duty members; National Guard and Reserve members; military spouses and eligible family members aged 18 years or over; retired service members and their spouses. Users may access it using a Common Access Card (CAC), Defense Finance and Accounting Service myPay account logon or DoD Self-Service Logon; those without CAC can apply at this site for one.
Once logged into milConnect, your Home page displays your name and indicates whether you are signed in as either a sponsor or dependent. From there, select from among various menus to access your records and benefits; typically Correspondence/Documentation and eCorrespondence are used to manage correspondence for OMPF, DPRIS, BWE; while Proof of Coverage provides access to TRICARE benefit eligibility cards images and printing options.
As milConnect updates roll out, some public pages may look slightly different due to technical updates intended to protect personal information more securely. Private pages will receive their new appearance later this year.
Service members can log into milConnect using their DoD logon credentials – such as those used for myPay and other DoD systems – or their PHS Uniformed Service ID Badge/CAC to sign in. However, to protect their privacy it is advised not to use their DS Logon to access myPay or personal accounts on public computers.
Getting Started
milConnect provides DOD affiliates and beneficiaries access to their personal information, health care enrollments and personnel records 24 hours a day. This portal acts as the interface of DEERS’ Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System – which manages information for 42 million service members and their families – managing information regarding active-duty military members as well as family members of retired service members.
milConnect is designed to be easy and convenient. Simply sign in using either your Common Access Card (CAC) or DS Logon and access the system. If you need help using milConnect, refer to our Frequently Asked Questions menu or reach out to the milConnect team directly for support.
If you own a CAC, use ActivClient software to connect your card reader with access documents and verify your online identity before beginning milConnect use. ActivClient also lets you view all available applications within milConnect with one click of your mouse and choose between them easily.
milConnect provides different views depending on who logs into it; for instance, service members looking for their Official Military Personnel File can sign in, select Correspondence/Documentation and DOD Personnel Management System (DPRIS).
milConnect also makes it possible for service members to share educational benefits with immediate family members through the Transfer of Education Benefits program, using BWE from the Benefits menu. To take advantage of this feature, log into milConnect and select this feature.
Once a service member separates from the military, they will likely need to transfer their active duty military pay to a new sponsor. To do this, sign into milConnect and select BWE and SGLI Online Enrollment System (BWE) from the Benefits menu. In addition, their sponsor can access dependent beneficiary BWE information by accessing medical eligibility, dental, or pharmacy tabs in milConnect for them.
TRICARE Open Season allows you to use milConnect to change your health plan for next year and access important TRICARE documents, like the Under 65 Medicare Brochure. In addition, milConnect features an eCorrespondence or Beneficiary Web Enrollment option within its Benefits menu which may allow for easy registration for Beneficiary Web Enrollment services.
milConnect provides Transition Counselors and Authorized Commanders with another useful tool called DoDTAP for Transition Counselors and Authorized Commanders, which enables authorized transition counselors to help service members and veterans manage their TRICARE needs prior, during, and post separation from military service. To access it simply sign into milConnect and select DoDTAP from Correspondence/Documentation menu – an effective way of helping authorized transition counselors assist service members/veterans manage TRICARE coverage throughout their transition period.