Soldier's and Sailor's Civil Relief Act (SSCRA)

According to 50 U.S.C. App. § 502, the purpose of the act is to:

• Allow service members to fully devote their energy to the nation’s defense needs
• Create a temporary suspension of administrative and judicial transactions and proceedings that could negatively affect the rights of service members during their period of service

Because of the very nature of military occupations, this act allows service members and select others to benefit from some of the following protections:

• Early termination of pre-service lease agreements without penalty
• Postponements to evictions from leased housing
• An interest rate cap of 6%
• Postponement of court proceedings
• Postponement of collections for installment contracts and auto leases
• Tax relief
• Rights to re-employment

Covered groups include:

• Active-duty members of the Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Army, and Coast Guard
• National Guard members who are called to active duty for more than thirty consecutive days under to respond to a national emergency
• Commissioned members of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration and the Public Health Service
• Service members who are absent from duty due to sickness, injuries, leave, or any other legitimate cause
• Service members of the National Guard and Reserve, from time they received orders to report for duty to the date that they report
• The family of a service member (under certain sections of the act)
• Other people who have benefitted from the support of the service member for 180 days or more immediately following a relief application (they qualify as dependents).