The Air Force is denying early retirement to all transgender service members with between 15 and 18 years of military service, opting instead to force them out with no retirement benefits, according to a memo seen by Reuters.
These longer-serving transgender service members will have the same choice as more junior ones: quit or be forced out, with corresponding lump-sum payments as they walk out the door, the August 4 memo says.
The move is the latest escalation by President Donald Trump’s administration as it seeks to bar transgender individuals from joining the U.S. military and remove all who are currently serving. The Pentagon says transgender individuals are medically unfit, something civil rights activists say is untrue and constitutes illegal discrimination.
“After careful consideration of the individual applications, I am disapproving all Temporary Early Retirement Authority (TERA) exception to policy requests in Tabs 1 and 2 for members with 15-18 years of service,” the memo said.
It was signed by Brian Scarlett, who is performing the duties of the assistant secretary of the Air Force for manpower and reserve affairs. The memo has not been previously reported.
Multiple service members had already been approved for early retirement, but those approvals were rescinded, advocates say. An Air Force spokesperson said a subset of applications were “prematurely approved.”
“It’s devastating,” said Shannon Minter of the National Center for LGBTQ Rights. “This is just betrayal of a direct commitment made to these service members.”
The Air Force’s decision follows a policy detailed in a May 23 memo, which stated that airmen with 15-18 years of service could request early retirement.
When asked by Reuters about the decision, the Air Force noted that it approved early retirement for more senior members who self-identified as transgender and had 18-20 years of service. Regular retirement happens after 20 years.
In an internal question-and-answer fact sheet seen by Reuters, the Air Force provided potential answers to the question: “How do I tell family we’re not getting retirement benefits?”
The answers were:
- “Focus on the benefits you do retain (GI Bill, VA benefits, experience)
- “Emphasize this doesn’t reflect on your service or character.”
- “Military & Family Readiness can provide counseling resources.”
Minter said the financial impact on transgender service members would be severe, costing them hundreds of thousands of dollars over their lifetimes in denied benefits due to the Trump administration’s policy.
Despite ongoing legal challenges, a Supreme Court ruling in May cleared the way for the Pentagon to implement a ban on transgender individuals from serving in the U.S. military.
There are 4,240 U.S. active-duty and National Guard transgender troops, officials have said. Transgender rights advocates have given higher estimates.
Trump signed an executive order in January, after returning to the presidency, that reversed a policy implemented under his predecessor Joe Biden that had allowed transgender troops to serve openly.
A Gallup poll published in February found that 58% of Americans favored allowing openly transgender individuals to serve in the military, but the support had declined from 71% in 2019.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has embraced conservative stances, including eliminating diversity initiatives at the Pentagon.
Addressing a conference in May, Hegseth said: “No more pronouns, no more climate-change obsessions, no more emergency vaccine mandates, no more dudes in dresses.”