Military retirees and veterans with disability ratings received a 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment at the start of 2026, up from 2.5% in 2025. Retired pay, VA disability compensation, and Survivor Benefit Plan annuities all received the increase. 

A COLA bump is also a natural trigger to revisit your financial plan and make sure your income is structured as efficiently as possible. Here’s what’s worth looking at.

You served. You showed up in ways most people will never fully understand — and then you transitioned into a civilian world that doesn't always know how to recognize what you bring. The financial transition out of service is one of the most consequential planning moments in a woman veteran's life, and it's one of the most overlooked.

From VA healthcare eligibility and education benefits that just got bigger to TSP decisions that can't be undone, the moves you make in the months and years after separation can set the foundation for decades of financial strength — or quietly cost you benefits you've already earned.

This post is a practical roadmap: what to claim, what to compare, and how to build lasting wealth on the other side of service. Because you've spent years taking care of others. This chapter is about building something lasting for yourself.