Your military ID card or a dependent card gives you access to different benefits such as TRICARE and support agencies.
If you do not have your military ID card you will first have to be in the DEERS (Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System) program. If you have a sponsor, your sponsor will have to enter you into the DEERS program. A sponsor does have the option of not signing an application for a military id card. There is a space allotted for the military spouse to write his/her refusal on the application. The military can issue the non-military spouse an ID card even if the spouse refuses to be cooperative. If you have lost your military ID card you will need to at least two forms of identification to get a replacement card.
A military uncontested divorce after the first of February 1983 may still continue to give the former non-military spouse military benefits. One of the main criteria is to have been married for at least twenty years and for the military spouse to have been active during those twenty years. There are special circumstances where a former spouse of a military person, who does not fall under the 20 year requirement, may be able to get continued health benefits up to a year after divorce. If a non-military ex-spouse has medical coverage through an employer s/he will not be eligible for military health benefits. In the case of this same spouse losing his/her medical benefits through an employer, s/he may have military health care benefits reinstated.
For individuals who are in the military, you do not have the right to take your spouse's military ID card because you are getting an uncontested Pennsylvania divorce. Some military members have mistakenly believed they have the right to do so and have found themselves in legal trouble. It's important to concentrate on getting your simple divorce, and not other legal issues. The cards are issued through congressional law, so technically it is congress who issued the card. If a military spouse takes his/her spouse's military ID card without consent s/he can be charged with larceny.
Each person's situation is unique and it is strongly advised that s/he consult with a unit administrator. Also, the Real Time Automated Personnel Identification System (RAPIDS) has a site locator online which will help you find the closet location for issuing ID cards.
