A PCS touches everything: your orders, your money, your household goods, your family's records, and your housing. This checklist follows the official process from Military OneSource and the Defense Personal Property System (move.mil), broken into the phases families actually move through. Inside the Kithpost app you can check each item off, track your countdown, and meet the community already at your new base.
When you get your orders
- Keep your original orders and make several copies
Hand-carry them; you will need them at finance, housing, and the move office. - Request a sponsor at your gaining unit
A sponsor of similar rank and family situation helps you settle in. - Contact the Relocation Assistance Program
At your Military and Family Support Center, free for every move. - Research your new base and meet your Kithpost circle
Start with people who are already there.
Money and entitlements
- Confirm your weight allowance for your rank and dependents
Going over your authorized weight comes out of your pocket. - Review your PCS entitlements (DLA, per diem, mileage, TLE)
Dislocation Allowance and Temporary Lodging Expense help cover the move. - Request advance pay or a travel advance if you need it
- Make a moving budget with a Personal Financial Counselor
Free through Military OneSource.
Schedule the move
- Contact your installation transportation / personal property office
- Upload your orders and set up your shipment in DPS (move.mil)
- Decide: government-arranged (HHG) move or a personally procured move (PPM)
A PPM can earn you reimbursement if you move yourself. - Plan unaccompanied baggage and any non-temporary storage
Family, medical, and records
- Update EFMP if a family member has special medical or educational needs
The Exceptional Family Member Program affects your assignment and care. - Hand-carry copies of medical, dental, and immunization records
- Plan your TRICARE region change and find a new provider
- Get school records and IEPs; contact the School Liaison at your new base
- Get on childcare waitlists early
- Sort pet travel: vet records, health certificate, and base or overseas rules
Housing and travel
- Contact the housing office: on-base waitlist or off-base with your new BAH
Look up Basic Allowance for Housing for your new ZIP code. - Line up temporary lodging for arrival
- Plan your vehicle: shipment if needed, new registration, and insurance
- OCONUS: passports, visas, command sponsorship, and area clearance
Command sponsorship on your orders protects your family overseas.
Before you leave
- Out-process and clear your current installation
- Pack a hand-carry binder: orders, IDs, medical, financial, and legal documents
Include power of attorney and wills. - Photograph and inventory high-value items before the packers arrive
- Forward your mail and update utilities, banks, and insurance
When you arrive
- In-process at your new unit and finance office
- File your travel voucher to get reimbursed
- Inspect your shipment and file any loss or damage claim promptly
- Register your vehicle and update your license
- Settle in: meet neighbors through your Kithpost base circle
Use it in the app
Kithpost turns this checklist into a personal PCS tracker: set your destination base and report date, check tasks off as you go, and connect with the families already stationed there before you arrive. Create your free account to get started.
This is general guidance, not a substitute for your orders, your branch, or your installation's transportation and finance offices. Entitlements and procedures vary by move.