Published October 15, 2026
Can you do a PPM move for a CONUS to OCONUS PCS? No. Personally procured moves are a CONUS program. For overseas assignments, the Navy's household goods guidance lists the options plainly: a government-arranged household goods shipment, unaccompanied baggage, or non-temporary storage. There is no PPM line, because there is no PPM for OCONUS.
The reason is logistics, not policy stubbornness. Ocean freight is a government operation, not a rental truck run. The PPM reimbursement model, the government constructed cost for your weight and distance, is built around domestic moves. Nobody is handing you a constructed cost for a container ship to Yokosuka, and no certified scale ticket covers the Pacific leg.
So here is what the move looks like instead. The government ships your household goods on its contracted carriers. Unaccompanied baggage flies ahead with the essentials, so you are not living out of a suitcase for two months while the slow boat crosses. Non-temporary storage holds whatever does not make the trip. One detail that surprises people: Alaska and Hawaii count as OCONUS for moves, so the same rules apply there.
One allowance worth knowing by name: Temporary Lodging Allowance, TLA. It offsets hotel and meal costs while you wait for permanent housing, and it is an OCONUS-only benefit. Its CONUS cousin is Temporary Lodging Expense, TLE. Mixing the two up in your planning spreadsheet is a classic first-OCONUS-move mistake, so learn the right acronym before you brief the family.
The partial-move question
Families do sometimes move part of their goods themselves within the US before the overseas leg, and the question is always whether any of that gets reimbursed. Do not assume it does. The safe move is to ask your transportation office in writing before you spend a dollar. Policies vary by branch and by year, and the TO's answer is the one that counts, not a forum post from 2019.
The paperwork habits still matter. Weight tickets, inventories, and receipts follow you even on a government move, especially if you file a damage claim on the other end. The record-keeping discipline from the PPM guides on this site transfers directly. An overseas claim with a complete inventory settles faster than one built from memory.
I cannot tell you whether the services will ever open PPM to OCONUS legs. The financial case is obvious and the logistics are not, which is exactly the kind of gap that takes a policy change, not a blog post, to close. Until then, the winning play is a clean government shipment, unaccompanied baggage packed like you mean it, and everything else in storage.
Frequently asked questions
Can you do a PPM move for an OCONUS PCS?
Generally no. Personally procured moves are authorized for CONUS assignments. For OCONUS orders, the options are a government-arranged household goods shipment, unaccompanied baggage, and non-temporary storage.
What are the moving options for OCONUS orders?
A government-contracted household goods shipment, unaccompanied baggage for essentials shipped ahead, and non-temporary storage for items that do not make the trip.
Do Alaska and Hawaii count as OCONUS for military moves?
Yes. The government classifies Alaska and Hawaii as OCONUS moves, so the same shipment options and rules apply.
Can you move some things yourself on an OCONUS PCS?
Ask your transportation office in writing before spending anything. Do not assume a self-moved portion will be reimbursed on an OCONUS assignment.
What is unaccompanied baggage?
A smaller, faster shipment of essentials that travels by air ahead of your main household goods, so you have what you need while the bulk shipment is in transit.
This guide is general information, not official DoD guidance. Entitlements vary by service and situation, so confirm the current rules with your transportation office before you plan around them.
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