Military Leave Sell Back Calculator
Updated August 2026 · Free · No sign-up
Calculate your military leave sell-back payment: base pay ÷ 30 × days sold, the 60-day career limit, what gets taxed, and the real decision — selling leave vs taking terminal leave.
Quick answer: Leave sells back at 1/30th of monthly BASE pay per day — no BAH, BAS, or special pays. An E-6 with $4,500 base pay selling 30 days gets 30 × $150 = $4,500 gross (~$3,400 after taxes). Career limit: 60 days sold, total, across all reenlistments and separation.
How Leave Sell-Back Works
Unused military leave can be converted to cash at reenlistment, separation, or retirement — at 1/30th of your monthly base pay per day. The formula's catch is what it excludes: no BAH, no BAS, no special or incentive pays. Since allowances often make up 30-40% of total military compensation, a day of sold leave is worth meaningfully less than a day of served leave — the fact at the center of the sell-vs-terminal-leave decision below.
The hard ceiling: 60 days sold per career, cumulative across every reenlistment and your final separation. Days sold at a mid-career reenlistment permanently reduce what you can sell at retirement.
Worked Examples
Example 1 — E-6 at reenlistment. $4,500 base pay, selling 30 days: $150/day × 30 = $4,500 gross; after ~25% withholding ≈ $3,375. Career counter: 30 of 60 used.
Example 2 — O-4 at retirement. $9,000 base pay, 45 days on the books, 20 already sold years ago: only 40 more days sellable → 40 × $300 = $12,000; the remaining 5 days are use-or-lose.
Example 3 — sell vs terminal leave. The same O-4's 40 days as terminal leave: full pay AND allowances (~$13,600 for the period) while on leave, plus 40 extra days of service credit (TIS pay raises, retirement date) — vs $12,000 taxed cash and starting a civilian job 40 days sooner. If the civilian job pays more than military daily compensation, working + selling can still win. Run both numbers.
The Rules at a Glance
| Rule | Detail |
|---|---|
| Rate | Monthly base pay ÷ 30, per day sold |
| Career cap | 60 days total — reenlistments + separation/retirement combined |
| What's excluded | BAH, BAS, special pays, hazard pays — base pay only |
| Enlisted vs officer | Enlisted may sell at reenlistment and separation; officers generally only at separation/retirement |
| Tax | Federal income tax withheld (typically ~22-25%) + applicable state; notably NO FICA on leave sell-back in most cases — check your final LES |
| Use-or-lose | Leave over the carryover cap (usually 60/some years higher) vanishes each fiscal year — selling isn't an alternative to losing it mid-career unless reenlisting |
Sell Back vs Terminal Leave: The Full Decision
The trade everyone faces at separation:
- Terminal leave pays more per day — base pay + BAH + BAS + specials continue, versus base-only for sold days. For most members that's 30-40% more value per day.
- Terminal leave extends service dates — time in service keeps accruing (can cross a longevity raise), benefits (TRICARE, base access) run longer, and your retirement date moves later.
- Selling gets you started sooner — a civilian salary that beats your daily military compensation flips the math toward working + selling. SkillBridge participants (interning the last 180 days) often can't take long terminal leave anyway.
- The hybrid is usually optimal: take terminal leave for the days that fit your transition timeline, sell the remainder (within the 60-day cap).
Timing and Paperwork
- Reenlistment sales process with your reenlistment paperwork; payment typically lands within 1-2 pay periods.
- Separation sales ride the final pay settlement — expect it 30-45 days after separation alongside other final-pay items.
- Verify your leave balance on the LES months before separation — leave audits finding errors at final-out are painful; the same keep-your-own-ledger advice as civilian leave balances applies double.
- Guard/Reserve: AGR members follow the same rules; leave earned on long ADOS orders can often be sold at demobilization — ask finance before the orders end.
Tax Notes Worth Money
Leave sold in a combat-zone-tax-exclusion month can be partially or fully tax-free (enlisted: fully; officers: capped) — if a CZTE deployment is near your reenlistment window, the sequencing is worth thousands. Otherwise, sell-back is federal-taxable income withheld around 22-25%; state taxation follows your state of legal residence (several states don't tax military pay at all). The civilian-world equivalents of this math live in the PTO payout calculator and severance tax calculator.
Common Mistakes
- Burning the 60-day cap early: selling 30 days at a first reenlistment for quick cash, then hitting the cap at retirement when base pay (and per-day value) is far higher. Later selling almost always pays more per day.
- Comparing sold days to nothing: the alternative isn't zero — it's terminal leave at full compensation. Compare against that.
- Forgetting use-or-lose: days over the carryover cap can't be sold mid-career without reenlisting — plan leave usage the fiscal year before separation.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much do you get for selling back military leave?
One-thirtieth of monthly base pay per day — base pay only, no BAH or BAS. An E-6 at $4,500 base gets $150 per day sold, before taxes.
How many days of leave can you sell back?
60 days across your entire career — every reenlistment sale counts against the same cap as your final separation sale.
Is leave sell-back taxed?
Yes — federal income tax (typically ~22-25% withheld) and possibly state tax, though FICA generally does not apply. Days sold during combat-zone months can be tax-excluded.
Does sold leave include BAH and BAS?
No — the biggest drawback. Sold days pay base pay only, while terminal leave days keep full pay plus allowances, worth 30-40% more for most members.
Is it better to sell leave or take terminal leave?
Per-day, terminal leave pays more and extends benefits and service dates. Selling wins when a higher-paying civilian job starts sooner. The usual optimum: terminal leave to fit your transition, sell the rest.
Can officers sell leave at reenlistment?
Officers do not reenlist — they generally sell only at separation or retirement, within the same 60-day career cap.
When is the best time to sell leave?
Later beats earlier: base pay rises with rank and years, so days sold at retirement are worth more than the same days sold as an E-4. Guard the 60-day cap for your highest-pay years.
How is the daily rate calculated?
Monthly base pay ÷ 30, regardless of the month's actual length. $6,000 base pay = $200 per day sold.
When does sell-back money arrive?
Reenlistment sales within 1-2 pay periods; separation/retirement sales with final pay, typically 30-45 days after your date.
Can I sell use-or-lose leave?
Not mid-career without a reenlistment window — leave over the carryover cap simply expires at the fiscal-year boundary. Plan usage or reenlistment timing around it.
✓ Formula verified • Last updated: August 20, 2026