2026 Military Pay Raise Could Be Suspended

Joe Wallace

The federal government currently operates under a patchwork of funding measures following the record-setting 43-day shutdown in late 2025. When the President signed the FY2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) on December 18, 2025, it codified the defense spending budget and priorities for the new year.

What it did NOT do was provide the actual funding for the DoD.

2026 Military Pay Raise Could Be Suspended

Each year’s NDAA is passed as a defense policy and authorization framework. While it establishes the legal authority for the 2026 3.8% military pay raise and sets troop levels, the 2026 NDAA does not include the constitutional power to withdraw money from the Treasury. That authority resides exclusively in appropriations bills. And at press time, those appropriations bills are in dispute.

The federal government has until January 30, 2026, when the current continuing resolution expires. If funding isn’t passed into law then the government could experience another shutdown. Why?

If Congress fails to pass the remaining nine annual appropriations bills, the Department of Defense will lose its legal authority to obligate funds for personnel salaries, delaying the 3.8% raise authorized by the NDAA.

Military Raise Delays, Military Paycheck Delays

During a government shutdown, active-duty service members are designated as excepted employees. This means they may be required to work without pay if the government shuts down.

Approximately 1.3 million active-duty personnel must report for duty and perform their missions without interruption regardless of pay status. Under federal law, the government cannot compensate military members for work performed during a period for which Congress has not appropriated funds.

If a shutdown begins on January 31, 2026, a February 15 mid-month paycheck would only reflect pay for the days worked while the government was funded.

The portion of the paycheck covering the shutdown period will be withheld until a new funding bill is signed into law. Military members would eventually be paid the full amount, but not on time.

Military Pay After January 30, 2026

The federal government is currently funded through January 30, so service members should see their pay raise reflected in their January pay statements.

But if/when the government enters a shutdown on January 30, the legal mechanism to continue paying these higher rates disappears along with all other discretionary funding. While the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act of 2019 guarantees that all service members will receive back pay once the shutdown ends, it does not provide a timeline for when those funds will be released.

Lawmakers have introduced the Pay Our Troops Act of 2026. This bill, if passed, would allow permanent appropriations for military pay, ensuring that checks continue to flow even if the rest of the government is shut down.

At press time that bill is in committee.

What to Know About a Possible Government Shutdown

• The effects of a shutdown are often more immediate for the National Guard and Reserve components. Unlike active-duty members, many reservists are paid based on specific drill periods or training cycles.
• When the government shuts down, non-essential training and weekend drills are canceled to avoid new debt the government cannot legally pay until properly funded.
• The lack of an appropriations bill prevents the Defense Finance and Accounting Service from processing the payments for any drills that do occur during the lapse.
• A federal government shutdown would trigger furloughs for the Department of Defense civilian workforce.
• DoD civilians are legally barred from working, even from home unless they have excepted status.
• The spending fight in Congress centers on approximately $21 billion in spending between the House and Senate defense bills. Until the House and Senate reconcile their versions and the President signs the final appropriations bill, the 3.8% pay raise authorized by the NDAA remains vulnerable to a suspension if the government closes due to a failure to pass the funding bills.