New Air Force recruits are sworn in by Maj. Jake Hall on April 12, 2025, during an air show at March Air Reserve Base, Calif. The number of Air Force and Space Force recruits eligible for initial enlistment bonuses is projected to rise fivefold in 2026, both services say in budget documents. ( Ryan Green/U.S. Air Force)
The Air Force and Space Force are banking on the appeal of a much bigger pool of recruits eligible for enlistment bonuses to grow the ranks of airmen and guardians starting next year.
Over 25,000 Air Force recruits stand to receive an initial enlistment bonus in the service’s 2026 budget, exceeding the current budget year’s estimate of 4,500 by more than five times. And the Space Force is doing likewise, raising the number of eligible guardians from about 100 this fiscal year to 550 in 2026, according to budget documents from the two services.
The budget documents for both services do not list which career fields have been designated for the enlistment bonuses.
The maximum enlistment bonus authorized in the Air Force is $75,000, which documents say could be awarded to as many as 207 recruits. No recruit received that amount during the past two fiscal years, according to the service.
“Funds are required for the hardest to fill skills,” service officials say in budget papers, which typically consist of special warfare, combat control, explosive ordnance disposal, pararescue, cybersecurity, security forces missile and space systems, and cryptologic language analyst.
The Pentagon uses enlistment bonuses as an incentive to entice people to sign up for at least four or six years in specific career fields deemed critical or hard to fill.
“Since the critical skills vary from year-to-year, the career fields and associated bonus amounts can vary,” service officials said in the budget documents.
In total, the Air Force is asking for nearly $141 million for initial enlistment bonuses, an increase of about $94,000 from the fiscal 2025 program. The increase is due to a larger number of members receiving initial bonuses, the service said.
Meanwhile, the Space Force is asking for $13 million for its fiscal 2026 initial enlistment bonus program, up from $4 million in 2025. The increase request reflects the service’s expectation that more guardians will receive bonuses next year, the documents state.
For the Air Force, the minimum enlistment bonus planned in fiscal 2026 is $2,500, an amount slated for 19,579 recruits. The Space Force plans to offer 450 enlistment bonuses of $20,000 and 100 of $40,000.
Some of the bonuses expected to be awarded in fiscal 2026 may be due to airmen or guardians who enlisted a year or two earlier, the services note in budget documents.
Enlisted airmen and guardians must complete training in their job specialty before receiving their initial enlistment bonuses, a process that can take two years or more depending on career field.
