PCS Orders Over the Holidays? How to Get Your Car to Your Next Duty Station

We've been in auto shipping since 1999, and every year a wave of military families gets orders with a report date that lands right around the holidays. The Army has said the peak PCS season runs from May 15 through August 31, and it has advised members to avoid moving around the holidays when they can. But that isn't always your call. Families also pick the holidays on purpose, since moving over the school break keeps the kids from switching schools mid-semester. Whatever the reason, a holiday PCS means fewer working days, more people on leave and winter roads. Here's how to get the car part right.

Start with what the military pays for, because it isn't what most people assume. For a move inside the lower 48, the DoD's Personal Property Activity puts it plainly: the government expects you to drive your vehicle to your new duty station. The Joint Travel Regulations allow a car to be shipped within CONUS at government expense in only two cases, under par. 052901: an authorized ship homeport change, or a CONUS-to-CONUS PCS where the member is physically unable to drive or doesn't have time to drive and still report as ordered. The rule adds that a dependent's inability to drive does not count.

There's a narrower rule for members with dependents, too. Par. 052902 says a member with dependents relocating on CONUS PCS orders may be authorized to transport a car, and DTMO's own worked example shows that the reimbursement for one car is capped by what the driving options would have cost. These rules are detailed and they change, so ask your installation's transportation office what applies to your orders before you book anything, and get the answer in writing.

“Holiday orders don't change the rules. They just shrink the number of days you have to follow them.”

If you drive, you're paid for it. The PCS mileage rate, called MALT, was 20.5 cents a mile at the start of 2026 and rose to 23.5 cents from July 1, 2026, according to DoD's updated rate notice. You also get travel days: one day for the first 400 miles, then another day for every additional 350 miles, as Military.com explains from the JTR. The Personal Property Activity says that if you ship your car at your own expense, you usually still get the mileage. That's the real decision for most families: drive both cars and collect the mileage, or drive one and pay to ship the other.

Winter tips that math toward shipping more often than summer does. Two drivers, two cars, a cross-country trip in December and maybe kids in the back seat is a lot to ask between out-processing and a report date. Many families drive the main car with everyone in it and ship the second one. If you only have one car and a long winter route, shipping it and flying can make sense, especially if the travel days don't leave room for a snow day in the mountains.

Here's what shipping looks like by our published formula, for four routes between towns outside some of the country's biggest posts, priced for November, December and January. These are estimates from a formula, not quotes, and the real price always comes from the company you book with. Direction matters: our method adds 15% to southbound routes in November and takes 5% off northbound ones, then everything runs 8% under normal in December and January. That December and January dip is one small upside of holiday orders.

Moving to Alaska, Hawaii or overseas works differently. The Personal Property Activity says the government ships one car for those moves through International Auto Logistics, and you book the drop-off at a Vehicle Processing Center through PCSmyPOV.com, by appointment only. Bring a full set of orders with all amendments and a valid government-issued ID. The car must be clean with a quarter tank of fuel or less, and you can't use it as a moving container: a spare tire, jack and first-aid kit can stay, but personal items can't. If there's a loan or a lease, you'll need a letter from the lienholder, and our lienholder letter guide covers how to get one in time. Getting the car to the VPC is still your job, and that leg can be shipped like any other.

If someone else will drop the car at the VPC, they'll need a power of attorney or a letter of authorization. The rules add that one is needed from every person listed on the title. The same goes for a stateside shipment you can't be present for: name the person who will release the car at pickup and the person who will receive it, and tell the company you book with who they are. Military OneSource says a special power of attorney covers one specific transaction, and the legal assistance office on your installation will prepare one for free. Get it done before leave starts, because offices thin out over the holidays too.

Registration is easier than people expect. Under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, at 50 U.S.C. 4001, a servicemember doesn't lose or gain a state of residence for tax purposes just because of military orders, and that protection covers motor vehicles. It also covers vehicle license fees and excises paid in your home state. In plain terms, you can usually keep the car registered and taxed in your home state while you're stationed somewhere else. Check your home state's renewal rules before you leave, though, so a registration doesn't expire while the car is on a truck.

Now the holiday timing. Book as soon as your orders are firm, because the fewer working days there are before your report date, the less room you have. Truck drivers work under federal limits: FMCSA allows 11 hours of driving after 10 consecutive hours off duty, and no driving past the 14th hour after coming on duty. Add snow and holiday traffic and you can see why any pickup date is an estimate. Ask for a pickup window, not a promise, and if your report date is tight, ship before you sign out of the old unit rather than after. Our guide to reading a quote shows which lines to check, and you can look up any company's USDOT or MC number for free on FMCSA's SAFER Company Snapshot.

At delivery, someone has to be there in daylight if possible. Inspect the car, note any new damage on the Bill of Lading and only then sign. Our delivery-day guide walks through it in ten minutes. If the new base is still getting its name signs changed, don't worry: Fort Liberty went back to Fort Bragg in February 2025, and Fort Hood took its name back in July 2025, so double-check the address on your paperwork matches the gate the driver will actually find.

Here's how it works with us. We put your shipment in front of vetted, licensed auto transport companies, they compete with their best offers, and you choose the one whose price, dates and terms fit your orders. You never pay us a cent. Tell us your old and new duty station ZIP codes and get your free estimate, so you know your options before leave starts.