DD Form 2656-8 at a glance
What it is: DD FORM 2656-8 is the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) Automatic Coverage Fact Sheet, a listing of all eligible members of the family as eligible beneficiaries under SBP.
Who signs: The retiree and the witness sign.
Public Law 92-425, effective September 21, 1972, provides that every member having a spouse and/or child(ren), who retired/transfers (reserve) on or after that date is automatically covered under SBP at the maximum rate unless he/she elected otherwise before retirement or transfer.
The member completes the dependency information.
A filled-in DD Form 2656-8 example: a married retired member lists a spouse and two children
How to fill out DD Form 2656-8, box by box
Boxes 1 to 3: the member's name, Social Security Number and date of birth
In Box 1 enter the member's name (Last, First, Middle Initial), in Box 2 the Social Security Number and in Box 3 the date of birth (YYYYMMDD).
The Social Security Number is required to identify the correct member/annuitant account and to apply the correct coverage and costs.
Boxes 4 and 5: married and dependent children
Box 4: ARE YOU MARRIED? YES (Complete Item 6) or NO. Box 5: DO YOU HAVE ANY DEPENDENT CHILDREN? YES (Complete Item 7) or NO.
Item 6: the spouse
In Item 6, enter the spouse's name (Last, First, Middle Initial), the Social Security Number, the date of birth (YYYYMMDD), the date of marriage (YYYYMMDD) and the place of marriage (City, County, State).
Item 7: the dependent children
In Item 7, list dependent children under age 22 (or over age 22 and incapable of self-support because of a disability incurred before age 18, or with a disability incurred after age 18 but before age 22 while attending school).
Enter the name (Last, First, Middle Initial), the Social Security Number, the date of birth (YYYYMMDD) and the relationship (Natural, Step, Adopted, Foster).
8. SIGNATURES: retiree, witness and date
In 8. SIGNATURES, sign in a. RETIREE and b. WITNESS, and enter the date (YYYYMMDD) in c. DATE.
More rules for DD Form 2656-8
The public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 15 minutes per response.
You are not required to provide this information, but failure to do so may result in incorrect SBP deductions from your retired pay and adjustments to your survivor's annuity payments, or difficulty in establishing eligibility to receive future payments.
If you did not have a spouse or dependent child(ren) as of the effective date of your entitlement to retired/retainer pay, or if before that date you either declined SBP coverage or elected coverage before the effective date of your entitlement to retired/retainer pay, notify the Defense Finance and Accounting Service immediately.
Common questions about DD Form 2656-8
Where do I file it?
Please complete and return this form to: Defense Finance and Accounting Service, U.S. Military Retirement Pay, 8899 E. 56th Street, Indianapolis, IN 46249-1200.
When is this form not the right one?
This is not an SBP election form.
Sources
[1] DD Form 2656-8 (JULY 2020), Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) Automatic Coverage Fact Sheet, Department of War (the Official source link on this page).