Im wondering when we should anticipate getting actual PCS orders in our hands so we can start applying for housing and stuff like that. I keep hearing 90-120 days out but hubby is deployed and they arent going to issue them until they are back here (very soon!) Im just concerned that we wont have enough time to do everything. Our report date is December but I also know from last deployment that things dont calm down and they dont deal with PCS's until after block leave which will end a month before out report date. Just wondering what yalls experiences have been as far as when your hubby received his orders because Im having major anxiety about it. This is our first PCS so sorry about all the questions and posts! 

My husband got his orders to Ft. Riley in April. We were supposed to report mid-Oct, but had them deferred b/c our son is due less than a month from the original PCS date. Now we're supposed to report to Riley in January. 

The actual orders on paper? Not the ones saying where he is going on AKO, but the ones you submit to post housing and stuff like that? 

Oh. Sorry. He hasn't gotten those, yet. In the past, he got them right before he had to start clearing, which was 10 business days prior to leaving. 

Thanks. I hope thats not the usual time because how are you supposed to schedule for them to pickup household goods and all that just 10 days prior to leaving. What a mess! lol. Thanks! 

When my husband was in Iraq, he was able to send me the POA paperwork and a paper copy of his orders about a month before he returned. I was able to use that to get a house in Ft Leonard Wood. It was our first PCS, too. 

He talked to his S1 and they said they arent doing orders until they get back to Hood but we definately need to get them before block leave! 

We always got them at about 30 days before but usably the back date them to the day the order were made with was well before we got ours 

We got ours 30 days before 

At Hood we got ours 30 days before too. That was right after a deployment. 

Thanks girls! 

The Army has changed so much. We have PCS'd 8 times,and I can remember getting PCS orders up to 6 months early for a few of those reassignments, but for the last 2 PCS's the orders have been extremely slow in coming. When we left Fort Jackson my husband had to beat on the transition center's door to get his orders (and he wasn't the only one). We are due to PCS in November (for probably the last time) and I am not looking for orders any time soon.

It sucks because you can't really do a lot to prep for your next duty station without orders (get on the receiving post's housing list, get on the Priority Placement Program for employment, etc). Like I said, the Army sure has changed. 

Since your DH is coming from overseas, you will be bumped to the top of the waitlist for housing. Anyone reporting to a duty station from somewhere overseas gets priority. 

So you know too with our last move we only had 9 days to PCS. It didnt even take us that to clear. Its very do-able if that puts your mind at ease some. 

MPWife- Im not sure thats correct because hes coming from overseas and then he's here for 4 months (he comes back this month). I believe that only applies if you are deployed from your duty station and coming to the same duty station and need a place. Thats always how Ive understood it. I could be mistaken though. Do I have it wrong? 

My freind had her orders from from here to alaska she got them 30 days prior. 

We got our orders in March two weeks after he returned from Iraq. Our report date is not until October. He had to go to levy first to a class and then they sent him his orders to akp within a week. 

Jennifer, but were they the actually paper orders?? or were they the orders that are on his AKO acct. Because we got orders last december on AKO to go to washington but as of march when he got back we still had not recived the paper orders. Needless to say my husband got his orders cancled a month or so after he got back from deployment because he is not qualified to go 160th which is what his orders were for. 

They are actual paper orders they were just sent in an email that we had to print out, but they were the offical one, and you can't get those until after the levy class. 

They dont do levy briefs unless it is overseas, that was a recent change. If he is in 2nd bde you can contact me and i can see if i can assist you. I am the Rear det S1 NCOIC 

That makes sense. We are getting ready to go to Germany. 

We are also in the same boat, we have received the orders that get sent by email to the AKO with the report date stating that we will be sent there but no actual PCS orders and our report date is November 10th. 

UPDATE-Got the orders!!!!! Yay!!! 

When we got to this duty station two years ago, it was a new set of orders and the people in housing told us that we were bumped to the top of the waiting list b/c he was PCSing here from overseas. 

Yeah but mine isnt coming directly from overseas so I dont think we qualify for that.