Soto v US - Army Processing Info

[RetiredColonel-MikeT]

Subject: Soto v US
Branch-specific info: Army

Ok folks, got some info and will be reaching out to Air Force and Navy first chance I can to see if I can pry any info from them, so this is JUST for Army and JUST for those owed under $10k in retro pay. Per my contact at HRC's Special Pay Branch (SPB):

"IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING THE 6-YEAR BARRING ACT: We are aware of the recent Supreme Court decision regarding the removal of the 6-year barring act from CRSC effective dates. At this time, we are unable to update your CRSC effective dates until the DoD provides formal guidance. We expect this process will take several months, as there is also a companion case (Casey v. United States) currently pending in the Court of Federal Claims. When guidance is received, we will begin to update all affected claims. No further action is required from you; however, please be aware that this process will take time. When your claim has been updated, a copy of the decision letter will be sent to DFAS for processing and a copy will be mailed to you. We appreciate your patience and apologize for the delay and any inconvenience this may cause.

FAQ’s: Army intends to update ALL CRSC claims without any action on behalf of the Retiree. Army currently estimates more than 7,000 claims will need to be updated. Expect this to be a fairly lengthy process. Not only will the BOS have to update all decision letters, DFAS will need to audit each individual case to determine what, if any, back pay will be awarded. All claims currently being processed will continue to be barred. These claims are being tracked, and will be updated accordingly, when guidance is received. All questions regarding retroactive payment amounts should be directed to DFAS. We are unable to provide any estimations regarding payment amounts or timeframe for payment. All effective dates will be adjusted to the date of initial eligibility, based on retirement date and date of VA rating."

Which means, be patient, young gwasshoppahs!
fyi @Jason Perry

 

[edwards7986]

Thankyou so much for posting this!!

 

[scottymotech]

Thanks COL Mike!

Whelp hopefully especially DFAS and the services are preparing for the workload proactively and not sitting idle. You know staffing up, getting processes aligned, etcetera. Between the push for passage of Maj Richard Starr act and now this drawn out and monumental unanimous decision, CRSC has been on the radar and public eye. We should push to keep it there until the whole process is cleaned up.

I reached out to the navy even though I am army because whelp 18+ months processing time is just hot trash. They did reply rather fast, but not surprising their response was less that professional and terse. Was I 100% cordial to them, naw but I pointed out the ruling and that this meandered thru the courts for nearly a decade and the whole misapplication of the barring act has been nothing short of a huge disservice to many disabled veterans.

 

[jon76]

I just found this, it has been over 6 months since the ruling. I wonder when they are going to start sending out the backpay payments. Has anyone received theirs yet?

 

[RetiredColonel-MikeT]

I just found this, it has been over 6 months since the ruling. I wonder when they are going to start sending out the backpay payments. Has anyone received theirs yet?

I, and several others I know, have gotten the remaining retro pay balance. If Army, check iPERMS for an updated CRSC Approval memo, which removed the Barring Statute wording. Once one has that, it reportedly takes DFAS and the VA approx 120 business days to complete their audits. If any money is due from the VA, it will be a separate deposit.

Other branches are a big unknown at this point: AF is basically lying that they have "7,000 claims to review," which is BS since they copied/pasted right from the Army's page, Navy/USMC, your guess is as good as mine.

 

[jon76]

I, and several others I know, have gotten the remaining retro pay balance. If Army, check iPERMS for an updated CRSC Approval memo, which removed the Barring Statute wording. Once one has that, it reportedly takes DFAS and the VA approx 120 business days to complete their audits. If any money is due from the VA, it will be a separate deposit.

Other branches are a big unknown at this point: AF is basically lying that they have "7,000 claims to review," which is BS since they copied/pasted right from the Army's page, Navy/USMC, your guess is as good as mine.

Thank you Colonel Mike. Yeah I’m Air Force. I reached out to them a couple of weeks ago and they just gave me a generic statement saying I don’t have to do anything else. My approval award letter is already with DFAS and they are ones who will handle it and my backpay.

 

[db25U]

Subject: Soto v US
Branch-specific info: Army

Ok folks, got some info and will be reaching out to Air Force and Navy first chance I can to see if I can pry any info from them, so this is JUST for Army and JUST for those owed under $10k in retro pay. Per my contact at HRC's Special Pay Branch (SPB):

"IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING THE 6-YEAR BARRING ACT: We are aware of the recent Supreme Court decision regarding the removal of the 6-year barring act from CRSC effective dates. At this time, we are unable to update your CRSC effective dates until the DoD provides formal guidance. We expect this process will take several months, as there is also a companion case (Casey v. United States) currently pending in the Court of Federal Claims. When guidance is received, we will begin to update all affected claims. No further action is required from you; however, please be aware that this process will take time. When your claim has been updated, a copy of the decision letter will be sent to DFAS for processing and a copy will be mailed to you. We appreciate your patience and apologize for the delay and any inconvenience this may cause.

FAQ’s: Army intends to update ALL CRSC claims without any action on behalf of the Retiree. Army currently estimates more than 7,000 claims will need to be updated. Expect this to be a fairly lengthy process. Not only will the BOS have to update all decision letters, DFAS will need to audit each individual case to determine what, if any, back pay will be awarded. All claims currently being processed will continue to be barred. These claims are being tracked, and will be updated accordingly, when guidance is received. All questions regarding retroactive payment amounts should be directed to DFAS. We are unable to provide any estimations regarding payment amounts or timeframe for payment. All effective dates will be adjusted to the date of initial eligibility, based on retirement date and date of VA rating."

Which means, be patient, young gwasshoppahs!
fyi @Jason Perry

So there is still a chance i may get back pay dating back to when i medically retired (2020)? I recently was approved, but i submitted my CRSC application 6 days after the 20 AUG 2025 cutoff and they have my effective date set as SEP 2025...

 

[jon76]

So there is still a chance i may get back pay dating back to when i medically retired (2020)? I recently was approved, but i submitted my CRSC application 6 days after the 20 AUG 2025 cutoff and they have my effective date set as SEP 2025...

Subject: Soto v US
Branch-specific info: Army

Ok folks, got some info and will be reaching out to Air Force and Navy first chance I can to see if I can pry any info from them, so this is JUST for Army and JUST for those owed under $10k in retro pay. Per my contact at HRC's Special Pay Branch (SPB):

"IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING THE 6-YEAR BARRING ACT: We are aware of the recent Supreme Court decision regarding the removal of the 6-year barring act from CRSC effective dates. At this time, we are unable to update your CRSC effective dates until the DoD provides formal guidance. We expect this process will take several months, as there is also a companion case (Casey v. United States) currently pending in the Court of Federal Claims. When guidance is received, we will begin to update all affected claims. No further action is required from you; however, please be aware that this process will take time. When your claim has been updated, a copy of the decision letter will be sent to DFAS for processing and a copy will be mailed to you. We appreciate your patience and apologize for the delay and any inconvenience this may cause.

FAQ’s: Army intends to update ALL CRSC claims without any action on behalf of the Retiree. Army currently estimates more than 7,000 claims will need to be updated. Expect this to be a fairly lengthy process. Not only will the BOS have to update all decision letters, DFAS will need to audit each individual case to determine what, if any, back pay will be awarded. All claims currently being processed will continue to be barred. These claims are being tracked, and will be updated accordingly, when guidance is received. All questions regarding retroactive payment amounts should be directed to DFAS. We are unable to provide any estimations regarding payment amounts or timeframe for payment. All effective dates will be adjusted to the date of initial eligibility, based on retirement date and date of VA rating."

Which means, be patient, young gwasshoppahs!
fyi @Jason Perry

So hopefully maybe a couple of more months like the end of March of this year, maybe. Finger crossed