U.S. dependency payments –
Secondary dependents are eligible for allowances
Working wives can receive automatic payments, while parents, brothers and sisters must prove dependency; other questions answered
Wives of servicemen are eligible for government allowances even if they work and regardless of any other income which they may be receiving.
The Servicemen’s Dependency Allowance Act provides automatic monthly payments to lawful wives and unmarried children under 17 of men in the four lowest ranks of each branch of service.
These payments are mandatory and a serviceman who is covered by the act cannot refuse to contribute toward an allowance for such persons.
On the other hand, secondary dependents – parents, brothers, sisters, etc. – are not eligible for the allowances unless they can prove substantial dependency upon the serviceman. Furthermore, the man himself must agree to send the allowance home.
Wife gets $50
A wife gets $50 a month; the first child, $12, and every other child, $10. If there is no wife, the first child gets $42; the others, $10 each.
A dependent parent receives $37; a second dependent parent, $10; additional dependent brothers or sisters, $5 each. If there are no dependent parents, a dependent brother or sister may get $27 with $5 for each additional one.
Where there is both a wife and a dependent parent, the parent gets only $20. A second dependent parent gets $10 more.
A wife who has not been legally separated from her husband may receive the automatic $50 a month even though he may not have been supporting her at the time he entered service. His children would also get the regular allowances.
Divorced wife
A divorced wife cannot collect any allowances unless she holds a court order and has not remarried. In such event, she may get a maximum of $42 a month.
However, this $42 may be decreased by the government if the man himself has married again or if he has other dependents. In such cases, the government decides how much the divorce is to get – regardless of the size of her court order.
The Allowance & Allotment Branch at Washington, requests that all questions on specific cases involving divorced wives be mailed to it for a proper ruling.
Where to write
Application blanks for allowances should be filed by the serviceman of at all possible. They may, however, be filed by the civilian. Forms may be obtained at the following places upon written request:
FOR DEPENDENTS OF ARMY MEN: Allowance & Allotment Branch, Bldg. Y, 20th and B Sts., NE, Washington, DC.
FOR DEPENDENTS OF NAVY MEN: Bureau of Naval Personnel, Navy Department, Washington, DC.
FOR DEPENDENTS OF MARINE CORPS MEN: Commandant, U.S. Marine Corps, Washington, DC.
FOR DEPENDENTS OF COAST GUARD MEN: Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard, Washington, DC.
Aid in filling them out may be obtained at any Red Cross headquarters.
Q&A:
My son, a carpenter’s mate in the Naval Reserve, is at sea. Is it possible he may return to the U.S. and be transferred to other duties?
Yes, if the Navy should feel his services are needed more elsewhere.
What has happened to 2-A and 2-B men since we hear only that 3-As will be reclassified when 1-A and 1-B lists are exhausted?
Men in 2-A and 2-B receive maximum six-month deferments at a time and are subject to reclassification at any time. Those in 3-A hold indefinite deferments which are terminated only in case of a change in dependency status or exhaustion of otherwise “available” regulations. Men in key jobs are not regarded as “available.”
My husband was called up with the National Guard in April 1941. Will he be sent overseas or kept here until married men with dependents are called?
He’s subject to assignment anywhere at any time.
A friend of mine was recently transferred from overseas to the U.S. for hospitalization because of stomach ulcers. Will he be discharged?
He may if medical officers in charge of his case deem it necessary.
Is an incomplete hernia acceptable now by the Army?
That would be a borderline case that would have to be decided by the examiners.
I was discharged because of disability in 1932. Would I be accepted for the Army now as a volunteer?
Yes, if your condition has improved to such an extent, you could meet current requirements. Consult the recruiting station officers.
Is a man with high blood pressure acceptable for the Army?
No.
Will any branch of service accept a man with syphilis?
The Army now will, through the draft.
I was classed 1-B because of severe acne and insufficient teeth. Am I acceptable now?
Your teeth are no bar, but you won’t be accepted unless your acne condition has improved perceptibly.
I would like to enlist. I have one perfect eye but am blind in the other. Can I get into any service branch?
You may volunteer through your draft board for limited Army service.
My husband has five or six teeth missing and says he is to be drafted. Is this true?
He can be taken if the Army doctors determine he still has sufficient good teeth left.