Use this PCS move checklist and do these three things the moment orders arrive: make multiple copies of your orders, call your local transportation office (TMO/PPSO) to schedule shipment counseling, and start a PCS binder. Those three steps protect your scheduling priority, your entitlements, and your sanity. Everything else builds from there.
Military OneSource recommends using Plan My Move and MilitaryINSTALLATIONS alongside your binder from day one. Here is your one-page cheat-sheet to print and keep in that binder.
One-Page PCS Cheat-Sheet (Print This First)
Hand-carry items (keep with you, never in the shipment):
- Orders (at least 5 copies), IDs, passports, Social Security cards
- Prescriptions and 30-day medication supply
- Medical, dental, and immunization records for every family member
- Pet health certificates and vaccination records
- Uniforms, rank insignia, and dress items
- Laptop, chargers, and essential electronics
- Jewelry, irreplaceable photos, and valuables
- Children’s school records and shot records
- Checkbook, credit cards, and GTCC
Immediate admin steps (first 30 minutes):
- Read orders fully: note RNLTD, report date, and any special instructions
- Copy orders (physical and digital cloud backup)
- Call TMO/PPSO to book shipment counseling
- Start your PCS binder (one section per topic: orders, housing, schools, finance, pets)
- Log into Plan My Move and build your custom checklist
Move-day checks:
- Be present 8 AM to 5 PM (or send an authorized Power of Attorney rep)
- Photograph every room and high-value item before packers touch anything
- Verify the inventory sheet item by item before signing
- Confirm your “Do Not Pack” zone is locked or in your vehicle
Pro Tip: Set a phone alarm labeled “TMO Call” for the morning after orders arrive. Scheduling slots fill fast, especially during peak PCS season (May through August), and a 24-hour delay can push your pack date back by weeks.
Key Takeaways
Contacting your TMO within 24 hours of receiving orders is the single highest-return action in any PCS move checklist, protecting your scheduling priority and entitlement counseling access before peak-season slots fill.
| Point | Details |
|---|---|
| Call TMO immediately | Contact your transportation office within 24 hours of orders to secure scheduling priority. |
| Build a PCS binder | Gather orders, IDs, passports, medical records, and pet records in one place from day one. |
| Photograph everything | Document every high-value item and the inventory sheet before movers touch anything. |
| Declutter before pack day | Removing unused furniture and appliances reduces shipment weight and lowers overage risk. |
| Pinkysjunkremoval for Hampton Roads | Same-day PCS move-out cleanouts for military families in the Norfolk area, starting at $48. |
Table of Contents
- What should you do in the first 72 hours after PCS orders arrive?
- How do PCS entitlements and finances actually work?
- What does a phase-by-phase PCS timeline look like?
- What goes on your packing checklist and inventory template?
- How do you supervise pack and load day to protect your shipment?
- What do you do on delivery day and after the move?
- What special situations do you need to plan for?
- Which official tools help you build a personalized PCS checklist?
- What I have learned from watching military families move
- Cut your pre-PCS workload with Pinky’s Junk Removal
- Sources
What should you do in the first 72 hours after PCS orders arrive?
The first three days set the tone for the entire move. Miss a step here and you spend the next two months catching up.
Read your orders completely. Note the Report No Later Than Date (RNLTD), the gaining installation, and any special instructions. If anything looks wrong, contact your unit S1 or personnel office immediately. Errors on orders are far easier to fix before you have already scheduled a shipment.
Make copies, then make more copies. You will hand orders to the housing office, the school liaison, the DMV, TRICARE, and your gaining unit. Keep at least five physical copies and scan a set to a secure cloud folder. One copy lives permanently in your PCS binder.
Call TMO/PPSO the same day. Delaying this call is the single most common PCS mistake and it directly reduces your scheduling priority for household goods shipments. When you call, ask about shipment counseling, weight allowances for your rank and dependency status, and available pack/pickup dates. The earlier you call, the more dates you have to choose from.
Start housing steps immediately. Join the gaining installation’s housing wait list that same week. Check the off-base rental market in parallel. Housing wait lists at high-demand installations can run months long, and knowing your options early prevents a scramble for temporary lodging.
Begin your household inventory. Walk every room with your phone and photograph high-value items: serial numbers, model numbers, condition. This is your claims evidence if anything is damaged or lost in transit. Military.com’s phase-by-phase PCS checklists consistently list early photography as one of the highest-return steps you can take.
Pro Tip: Designate a physical “Do Not Pack” zone immediately. A locked bedroom, a locked car, or a clearly labeled corner works. Put orders, meds, uniforms, jewelry, and anything irreplaceable there now. Movers have been known to pack items left on kitchen counters. Clear segregation prevents that headache entirely.
| First 72-Hour Task | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Read orders fully | Catch errors before shipment is scheduled |
| Copy orders (5+ physical, 1 digital) | Required by housing, schools, DMV, TRICARE |
| Call TMO/PPSO | Secures scheduling priority and entitlement counseling |
| Join gaining installation housing list | Wait lists can run months at high-demand posts |
| Start household photo inventory | Primary evidence for damage and loss claims |
| Create PCS binder | Centralizes documents for every in-processing stop |
How do PCS entitlements and finances actually work?
PCS entitlements are not automatic. You have to claim them, and the choices you make early affect how much comes out of your own pocket.
Core entitlements to know:
- Household Goods (HHG) shipment: The government arranges and pays for movers to pack, transport, and deliver your belongings up to your authorized weight limit.
- Dislocation Allowance (DLA): A flat payment to offset the cost of relocating your household. DFAS documents DLA eligibility rules and notes that rates depend on dependency status and specific circumstances. Partial and advance DLA options also exist.
- Personally Procured Move (PPM): You arrange and execute your own move and receive reimbursement from the government, typically a percentage of what the government would have paid for a standard HHG shipment.
- Temporary Lodging Expense (TLE): Covers lodging costs during the transition period at origin or destination, subject to daily limits and eligibility rules.
PPM vs. government move: the real tradeoff
A government move is lower effort. The movers come, they pack, they load, they deliver. The downside is you have less control over timing, and if something is damaged, you are navigating a claims process with a third-party mover. A PPM gives you control and can put money back in your pocket if you move efficiently, but you absorb the risk of damage, the labor, and the logistics. Many families use a hybrid: PPM for items they want to control (valuables, bikes, a car) and a government move for the bulk of household goods.
Weight allowances vary by rank, dependency status, and whether you are doing a PPM or HHG shipment. Your TMO counselor gives you the exact figure for your situation. Confirm it before you start packing, because going over your allowance means paying the overage out of pocket.
Advances and travel vouchers: You can request a DLA advance before the move. Travel vouchers for per diem and mileage are filed after the move. Keep every receipt. Military families often still spend out of pocket during a PCS even with full entitlements, so build a cash reserve before pack day.
Pro Tip: Build a PCS budget spreadsheet with columns for DLA amount, estimated TLE days, travel mileage reimbursement, and a buffer for incidentals. Include deposits for new housing, pet fees, and school supply costs. Families who skip this step are routinely surprised by the gap between entitlements and actual spend.
What does a phase-by-phase PCS timeline look like?
A PCS is not a single event. It is six to twelve weeks of parallel tasks running simultaneously. The families who handle it smoothly treat it like a project, not a checklist.
Military.com’s printable PCS checklists break the move into phases from three-plus months out through thirty days after arrival. That structure works because it forces you to act on housing, schools, medical, and transportation at the same time rather than sequentially.
3+ months out
- Receive and read orders; note RNLTD and report date
- Contact TMO/PPSO and schedule shipment counseling
- Research gaining installation housing; join wait list
- Request school records and medical/dental records
- Begin household inventory and photography
- Research vehicle shipment if needed (OCONUS requires extra lead time)
8–12 weeks out
- Confirm pack and pickup dates with TMO
- Begin decluttering: sell, donate, or discard items you will not ship
- Schedule final medical and dental appointments at current installation
- Contact gaining installation’s School Liaison Officer for enrollment guidance
- Research TRICARE providers at destination
- Begin pet paperwork (health certificates, vaccination records, OCONUS permits if applicable)
4–6 weeks out
- Notify utilities, subscriptions, and financial institutions of address change
- Update USPS mail forwarding
- Confirm vehicle shipment or road trip logistics
- Finalize housing: sign lease or confirm on-post housing move-in date
- Gather all hand-carry items into your designated zone
- Confirm storage unit arrangements if needed between moves
2–3 weeks out
- Deep-clean and photograph current quarters for move-out inspection
- Finalize PCS binder: orders, IDs, passports, medical records, pet records
- Confirm pack day and load day times with movers
- Notify gaining unit of arrival date
- Arrange childcare or pet care for pack and load days
Pack and load days
- Be present 8 AM to 5 PM or have a Power of Attorney rep on-site
- Photograph every item before it is packed
- Review and sign inventory sheets only after verifying accuracy
- Keep hand-carry items in a locked room or vehicle
Travel days
- Carry orders, IDs, and all hand-carry items in the vehicle with you
- Track shipment status through the Defense Personal Property System (DPS)
- Save all lodging and meal receipts for travel voucher
Delivery and 30 days after arrival
- Inspect every item against the inventory sheet before signing
- Note and photograph any damage immediately
- File claims through DPS or your transportation office within the required window
- Enroll children in school, update TRICARE, update DEERS, register vehicle
Pro Tip: Book your pack and load dates as early as possible. Peak PCS season runs May through August, when the majority of military moves happen. The HomeSafe Alliance, which now manages most CONUS household goods moves, books up quickly during those months. Families who call TMO in week one of receiving orders consistently get better date options than those who wait even two weeks.
| Phase | Top Priority |
|---|---|
| 3+ months | TMO contact and housing wait list |
| 8–12 weeks | Declutter, medical/dental appointments, school records |
| 4–6 weeks | Utilities, pet paperwork, vehicle logistics |
| 2–3 weeks | Move-out inspection prep, PCS binder finalization |
| Pack/load days | Presence, photography, inventory verification |
| Delivery + 30 days | Claims, enrollments, DEERS update |
What goes on your packing checklist and inventory template?
Packing for a PCS is not the same as packing for a civilian move. You are managing a weight allowance, a claims process, and a hand-carry requirement all at once.
Room-by-room packing priorities
Start with what you are not shipping. Walk every room and sort items into four categories: ship, donate, sell, or trash. Anything you have not used in a year is a candidate for the donate or sell pile. Reducing weight before pack day is the cheapest way to stay under your allowance.
For items you are shipping, label boxes by room and number them sequentially. Box 1 of 14 from the kitchen is far easier to track on an inventory sheet than an unlabeled box.
Inventory template fields to capture for every high-value item:
- Item name and description
- Make, model, and serial number
- Estimated replacement value
- Condition at time of packing (note any pre-existing damage)
- Photo index number (match to your photo library)
Keep this inventory in your PCS binder and back it up digitally. If a claim is filed, this document is your starting point.
Hand-carry list (these never go in the shipment)
Navy Federal’s PCS checklist highlights travel documents, prescriptions, uniforms, and valuables as the core hand-carry items. Add to that:
- Military ID and dependent IDs
- Passports for every family member
- Social Security cards
- Birth certificates and marriage certificate
- All prescription medications (30-day supply minimum)
- Medical, dental, and immunization records
- Pet vaccination records and health certificates
- Laptop, tablet, phone chargers, and power banks
- One week of clothing per person
- Children’s comfort items and car entertainment
- Checkbook, GTCC, and emergency cash
Packing supplies to have on hand before movers arrive:
- Permanent markers for labeling
- Color-coded stickers by room
- A dedicated box of cleaning supplies (for move-out inspection)
- A “first night” box: toilet paper, paper towels, a few dishes, coffee maker, shower curtain
Pro Tip: Pack a “first night” box yourself and load it last so it comes off the truck first. Label it clearly. After a long travel day, the last thing you want is to dig through 40 boxes to find the toilet paper.
How do you supervise pack and load day to protect your shipment?
Pack day is not a day off. It is one of the most important workdays of your entire PCS.
Moving professionals and Military Times are direct on this: you or your authorized Power of Attorney representative must be physically present from 8 AM to 5 PM during all scheduled pack and load activities. Your presence is not just courtesy. It is your primary defense against accidental packing of hand-carry items, incorrect inventory entries, and damage that goes undocumented.
Pack-day walkthrough checklist:
- Confirm hand-carry items are in a locked room or vehicle before movers arrive
- Walk through the home with the crew chief and point out any pre-existing damage
- Photograph every room, every item, and the inventory sheet itself before signing
- Stay visible and available throughout the day
- Do not sign the inventory until you have reviewed every line
Photography that actually holds up in a claim:
- Shoot from multiple angles: front, back, and any existing damage
- Include something in the frame that identifies the item (serial number label, unique feature)
- Photograph the inventory sheet next to the item it describes
- Keep all photos until your claim is fully resolved, even if you think nothing was damaged
If something is missing or damaged at delivery, log it immediately. Contact your transportation office and the mover directly. Do not discard damaged items until you receive guidance from TMO or the mover on the claims process.
What do you do on delivery day and after the move?
Delivery day is not the finish line. It is the start of the claims window.
Inspect before you sign. Walk every item against the inventory sheet. If a box is crushed, note it. If a piece of furniture has new damage, photograph it and write the exception on the delivery paperwork before the movers leave. Signing without exceptions is signing away your claim.
Filing a household goods claim:
- Document all damage with photos immediately
- Note exceptions on the delivery paperwork
- Log into DPS (Defense Personal Property System) to file your claim
- Submit within the required timeframe (confirm the exact window with your transportation office, as it varies)
- Keep damaged items until the claim is resolved
Post-arrival enrollment checklist:
- Update your address in DEERS
- Enroll or transfer TRICARE coverage at the new installation
- Enroll children in school (bring shot records, birth certificates, and previous school records)
- Register your vehicle in the new state within the required window (typically 30–90 days depending on state law)
- Update your driver’s license if required by the new state
- File your travel voucher with receipts for lodging, meals, and mileage
Unpacking order that gets your family functional fastest:
- Bedrooms first: beds assembled, bedding on, everyone sleeps that night
- Kitchen: enough dishes and cookware to make a meal
- Bathrooms: toiletries, towels, shower curtain
- Kids’ rooms: familiar items and comfort objects reduce transition stress
- Living areas and storage last
Pro Tip: File your travel voucher within five days of arrival. The longer you wait, the harder it is to reconstruct receipts and mileage. Set a calendar reminder for day one at the new installation.
What special situations do you need to plan for?
Some PCS moves have layers that a standard checklist does not cover. Here are the ones that catch families off guard most often.
Common mistakes that cost time and money:
- Waiting more than 24 hours to contact TMO after orders arrive
- Underestimating household weight and exceeding the allowance
- Skipping the “Do Not Pack” zone and losing medications or documents in the shipment
- Missing pet paperwork deadlines, especially for OCONUS moves
- Not photographing the home before movers arrive
OCONUS considerations:
- Pet export and import requirements vary significantly by country. Start the process at least 90 days out for most OCONUS destinations; some countries require six months of lead time for pet health certifications.
- Passports for all family members must be valid well beyond the tour length. Renew early.
- SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement) rules affect housing, vehicle registration, and driving privileges at overseas installations. Your gaining installation’s transportation office is the authoritative source.
- Medical and dental records in original language may be required at some OCONUS locations.
Vehicle shipment steps:
- Confirm vehicle eligibility with TMO (age, condition, and type restrictions apply)
- Schedule shipment through DPS
- Remove all personal items from the vehicle before drop-off
- Photograph the vehicle thoroughly before handing over keys
- At destination, inspect for damage before signing the release form
- Register the vehicle in the new state or country within the required window
Branch-specific notes: Weight allowances, PPM reimbursement rates, and specific TMO procedures can vary by service branch. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard each have their own transportation office contacts and procedural nuances. Always confirm your specific entitlements with your branch’s transportation office, not a general guide.
Pro Tip: Decluttering before pack day is one of the highest-return moves you can make. Hiring a junk removal team before your PCS to haul furniture, appliances, and debris you are not taking reduces your shipment weight, lowers overage risk, and speeds up pack day. Military families who do this consistently report smoother pack days and fewer weight-related surprises.
Which official tools help you build a personalized PCS checklist?
You do not have to build your checklist from scratch. The DoD has already built the tools. Use them.
Scheduling and shipment tools:
- Plan My Move: Enter your origin, destination, family status, and move date. The tool generates a custom, printable PCS checklist you can save, download, and use as a binder insert. It covers CONUS and OCONUS moves and adjusts tasks based on your specific situation.
- Defense Personal Property System (DPS): The official system for scheduling household goods shipments, tracking your move, and filing claims. Your TMO counselor will walk you through it during shipment counseling.
Local and community resources:
- MilitaryINSTALLATIONS: Provides installation-specific information on housing, schools, childcare, and community resources at both your current and gaining installation. Search by installation name at MilitaryINSTALLATIONS.militaryonesource.mil.
- Military OneSource: Available 24/7 for counseling, financial guidance, and relocation support. Call 1-800-342-9647 or visit militaryonesource.mil. Consultants can help with everything from budgeting to finding childcare at the new installation.
In-person help at your installation:
- Relocation Assistance Program (RAP): Offers one-on-one relocation counseling, lending closets, and local area orientation. Ask your installation’s Family Support Center.
- School Liaison Officer (SLO): Coordinates school enrollment, credit transfers, and special education continuity. Contact the SLO at both your losing and gaining installation.
- Legal Assistance Office: Reviews leases, powers of attorney, and any legal questions that come up during the move.
- Transportation Office (TMO/PPSO): Your primary contact for all shipment scheduling, entitlement counseling, and claims guidance.
Pro Tip: Use Plan My Move to generate a checklist, then print it and add it to your PCS binder as a master task list. The tool lets family members create role-based task lists, which is useful when a spouse is managing school enrollment and housing while the service member handles unit out-processing.
What I have learned from watching military families move
The families who handle PCS moves with the least stress share one habit: they treat the move as a project with parallel tracks, not a sequential to-do list. Housing, schools, medical, and TMO contact all start at the same time, not one after another.
The three problems I see repeat most often are: waiting too long to call TMO, skipping the household photo inventory, and underestimating weight. The weight issue is particularly avoidable. A family that ships a garage full of items they have not used in three years is paying for that decision either in overage fees or in a rushed, chaotic pack day. The families who declutter aggressively before pack day, donating or discarding furniture and appliances they were not going to use anyway, consistently have smoother moves and smaller claims.
On spouse employment and school transitions: start those conversations at the 8-to-12-week mark, not after arrival. The School Liaison Officer at the gaining installation can often facilitate enrollment before you physically arrive, which means kids start school on the first day rather than weeks later. For spouses navigating career transitions, Military OneSource offers career counseling and connects families with the Spouse Education and Career Opportunities (SECO) program. Starting that process during the packing phase, not after settling in, shortens the employment gap significantly.
Cut your pre-PCS workload with Pinky’s Junk Removal
Military families in Hampton Roads know the weight-overage math: every pound over your allowance comes out of your pocket. The fastest way to stay under is to remove what you are not taking before the movers ever show up.
Pinkysjunkremoval specializes in PCS move-out cleanouts for military families across Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Hampton, and Newport News. Same-day and next-day pickups mean you can schedule around your pack date without scrambling. Furniture, appliances, mattresses, electronics, yard debris, and garage cleanouts are all handled in a single trip. Pricing is upfront before the crew starts, starting at $48 for single items, with no hidden fees. Pinky’s donates and recycles whenever possible, so items that still have life go to families who need them rather than a landfill.
Ready to lighten your load before pack day? Schedule your pickup or call 1-800-41-PINKY. A local person answers, not a call center.
Sources
Scheduling and moving:
- Preparing & Planning a Military PCS Move | Military OneSource
- Create A Custom Military PCS Moving Checklist | Plan My Move
- Military Times 2025 PCS Guide
- Dislocation Allowance (DLA) — DFAS
Entitlements and finance:
Post-arrival and phase checklists:
Installation and local help:
Entitlements, weight allowances, and procedural rules vary by service branch and individual circumstances. Confirm your specific figures with your branch’s transportation office before making shipment decisions.
