I take care of my father in law because he was diagnosed with lupus, will the military see him as my dependent?

SPC Gabriel Flores — Sat, 03 Nov 2018 12:18:05 -0400

I’m planning on re-entry into the Army (active) my wife and I take care of her dad who was diagnosed with Lupus years ago. Will the military view my father in law as a dependent and allow me to bring him on post or are we SOL?

Thank you in advance.

Response by CSM Darieus ZaGara made Nov 3 at 2018 12:55 PM

CSM Darieus ZaGara — Sat, 03 Nov 2018 12:55:28 -0400

If he requires care as identified by the medical services and he is dependant on you financially as well there is a good chance he can be considered a dependant. This issue can also impact where you may be assigned, and even warrant a separation for extended periods based on mandated assignments other than deployments. Thank you for your service.

Response by SSG Thomas Trutt made Nov 6 at 2018 10:40 AM

SSG Thomas Trutt — Tue, 06 Nov 2018 10:40:59 -0500

Be sure to get them registered in DEERS. There is a form you can actually fill out to claim "secondary dependency" I believe it is still DD 137-3, it will go over all the documentation you would need for DEERS/Finance in the instructions. As long as he lives with you and you provide more than 50% of his support you should be fine. To consider here, does he get social security, disability, pension payments or long term payments through a legal settlement?