PCS Binder

Life was simple when my husband and I first set off on our military adventures. Since I didn’t know much about the Army, my husband handled all of the paperwork the first couple of times we PCSed.

He used an accordion folder stuffed with an inordinate amount of paperwork.  I had no idea why he’d need 20 copies of his orders.   But I watched and learned.  I asked a lot of questions.  I began to see that every office he checked into needed a copy of his orders, among other things.  One office even asked for three copies of his orders!

It was a good thing I’d been paying attention.  Just six years into our adventures, I suddenly had to pull off an OCONUS PCS on my own since my husband was deployed.  We would move from Hawaii to Kansas as soon as he returned home.  That’s when I learned the value of a good PCS binder in taming the chaos, both literally and figuratively.

OK.  Maybe I wasn’t to the binder stage yet, but I had a good briefcase folder system.  It held orders, all of the stuff from housing on both ends of our move, transportation paperwork and moving company information, plane tickets, pet records and health certificates, medical records and so forth.  It was a lot of stuff to juggle.

As I sat through the transportation briefing with a bunch of soldiers (old school requirement for those PCSing), I realized just how out of my comfort zone this whole “solo PCS” thing was. 

I was the only spouse in a room full of soldiers who seemed to understand all of the paperwork.  It was a bit intimidating.  There were just SO many details!  How would I ever get this right?

But, somehow, it all came together.  I asked a lot of questions.  I probably drove people nuts.  I prayed a lot.  Eventually I scheduled the unaccompanied baggage, HHG shipment, the car shipment, got the dog health certificate and talked the SATO travel agent into letting me pick a different flight because of my dog. 

Through all of this, I really appreciated my PCS folder.  In fact, I started a PCS folder checklist in case I ever had to do this alone again.

Solo PCS, Round Two

By the time my second solo move happened about three years later, I’d graduated to an accordion folder.  I needed a lot more sections for paperwork than I did on that first solo move.

In theory, this move was less complicated, since I was just going from Arizona to Texas.  The one fly in the ointment—my husband was deployed again.  So everything was up to me.

The first day for packers finally arrived.  But the packers did not.  By 1 p.m. I knew something was wrong.  When I called to find out where they were, the driver cheerfully informed me he was in Nevada. The moving company shorted us one day, leading to the longest single-day packing session I’ve ever seen.

I was, however, celebrating a tiny bit.  I’d included not only the moving company contact information in my PCS folder, but also the transportation office.  I easily located the numbers and contacted each person.   Despite the date mixup, all of our HHG made it out of Arizona on time.

I tackled the next part of the move zealously.  I needed to find a house in Texas with enough time to get it set up before my husband returned. 

We had decided to rent off post since the housing waitlist was lengthy.  That meant I needed phone numbers of past landlords as references, previous addresses, first and last month’s rent, a credit check and a completed application.  All of that stuff was available in my PCS folders.

Prior to leaving Arizona, I’d  also done a bunch of research and stashed it in my folders.  I found potential doctors, veterinarians, mechanics, hairstylists, etc.  It’s a good thing I did. 

The week of my move-in date (on my way into town), my van started doing weird things. The dashboard alternately lit up like a Christmas tree and then went blank.

I immediately called the mechanic I’d researched.  On my way from the hotel to the garage, my minivan died, literally around the corner from the garage. 

Turned out, I needed a new alternator.  I was very thankful I’d done the research on our new mechanic and stuck it in my PCS folders.

Do I really need all of that?!

Eventually I graduated to a PCS binder.  Life got more complicated for both the people and pets.  I needed more space to carry everything with us.  The binder allowed me to add more dividers and page protectors as needed.

The page protectors with tabbed tops prevented things from falling out and the ensuing chaos that caused.  Dividers made it easy to group similar paperwork together to quickly find it. 

When you see the free checklist we’ve provided, you may ask, “Do I really need all of that?”

Yes, you really do.  You might not need every single thing each time you move, but at some point you’ll need everything in that binder.  We PCSed 11 times in 24 years. I needed all the stuff on the list at least once.

Many of the items on the checklist are required by the military.  You can do nothing without orders.  If the active duty person is deployed or elsewhere, family members can do nothing without a power of attorney.  You won’t receive medical care without an ID card and a current DEERS listing.  All of those things went on my binder checklist.

I added other items to my checklist because I did not want that information in the movers’ hands.  Common sense told me no one should have access to my credit card information, tax returns or banking information. 

I also added things to the list I wanted to hand-carry to my next home because I might need them while in route.  I once had to take the dog to the vet the day after we pulled in to our destination. 

Because I had his medical records with us, the vet was able to successfully treat our dog whose heart condition made things tricky.  I always carry medical records for people and pets in my binder.

In addition to the documents, I also throw in a zippered pouch with things like pens, pencils, a Sharpie, stamps, tape, scissors and Post-It notes.  I add a few empty page protectors and blank paper too just in case I need it.

About a week before the movers arrive, I print out “DO NOT PACK” signs and tuck those in to the binder’s pockets. That makes it easy to find and place the signs on pack out day so movers don’t forget and inadvertently pack stuff I needed to take with me. 

In that same binder pocket I stick a list of big pieces of furniture.  Before delivery day, I cut the pieces apart and stick them on the wall where I’d like that piece of furniture to go.  It makes delivery much faster.

If I know the layout of our next house, I also print a list of room names to tape to the door frame of each room in the new house.  That makes it easy for movers to place the boxes in the correct room.

The night before packers arrive, I make sure the PCS binder is safely stored in the “DO NOT PACK” room.  I usually have it in a bag just to make it easy to carry as we’re changing locations. 

I do recommend bringing the binder into the hotel and wherever else you go.  You don’t want someone accessing all of that information or, worse, stealing the binder.

One final note, we do have a small portable safe we take with us on CONUS moves.  It holds some of the more sensitive items like passports.  That also goes into the hotel with us.   For OCONUS moves, the PCS binder holds everything we need.

Resources for the Road

Building a PCS binder or folder doesn’t have to be complicated.  You can DIY It or you can purchase something.  We offer a free PCS binder checklist to help you get started building your own binder.  Tweak the list to fit your situation.

I recently tried out List & File’s pre-printed binder dividers.  I loved the heavier card stock and laminated tabs for different sections like “housing” or “legal”.  The dividers also have pre-printed content suggestions.  Everything held up well during our last move.  Plus they just looked super nice.

I’ve started leaving my PCS binder and the documents in place even after a move.  It’s nice to know exactly where all of these important documents are even when we aren’t moving.

So choose whatever option suits your family and start building that binder for a smoother PCS.