#54 "When I Leave the Military, Do I Pay Annual Fees on Credit Cards?" Retire, Separate, or EAS

Listener Will writes "Will Amex and Chase stop waiving my annual fees on my credit cards when I get out of the militay?"

Spencer has a great article on annual fees on credit cards after you leave the military.

The short answer is no, you will not be immediately charged annual fees on your credit cards when you separate or retire from the military.

The longer answer is American Express takes a while to start charging you annual fees again. Chase usually sends a letter to you 3 months after you leave the military. The Chase letter states that the MLA database shows you no longer on active duty and Chase will start charging you annual fees in 24 months.

So don't panic, relax, you have time to decide which cards you want to keep and which cards you want to close. Even if you need to close a few cards, you shouldn't have much impact on your credit score if you keep your oldest account open and continue to pay your bills on time.

If you have a question you would like us to answer on the podcast or just need some extra guidance and help with your military money, please reach out on instagram.com/militarymoneymanual or email mmm@militarymoneymanual.com

If you want to maximize your military paycheck, check out Spencer's 5 star rated book The Military Money Manual: A Practical Guide to Financial Freedom on Amazon at or at shop.militarymoneymanual.com.

I also offer a 100% free course on military travel hacking and getting annual fee waived credit cards, like The Platinum Card® from American Express, the American Express® Gold Card, and the Chase Sapphire Reserve® in my Ultimate Military Credit Cards Course at militarymoneymanual.com/umc3.