How Much Do Former Presidents Get Paid? Pension, Staff, and Security

A former U.S. president is paid a lifetime annual pension of $253,100 in 2026, and that figure is only part of the package. The Former Presidents Act of 1958 also funds an office, staff, mail privileges, and a survivor allowance for a spouse, while separate laws provide Secret Service protection for life and a one-time transition budget on the way out of the White House.¹²

The Annual Pension

The pension is pegged to Executive Level I, the pay grade for the head of an executive department. For 2026, that rate is $253,100 a year, paid monthly by the Treasury.¹ Payments start the moment a president leaves office and continue for life. The Executive Schedule received a 1.0 percent raise in 2026, and the pension moves with any future adjustment to that schedule.³

The IRS treats the pension as taxable income like any other retirement annuity.⁴ One built-in pause: the pension is not paid during any period the former president holds a paid federal or District of Columbia government position. If a former president took a cabinet job or a seat in Congress, the pension would stop for as long as that service lasted, then resume.²

Office, Staff, and Mail

Beyond the personal pension, the General Services Administration provides each former president with a fully equipped office at a U.S. location of their choice. The government covers the lease, utilities, furniture, computers, and other equipment.² Recent annual office lease costs have run from about $118,000 to over $660,000 depending on location.

Staffing is funded separately. For the first 30 months after leaving office, total staff compensation can reach up to $150,000 a year. After that, the annual cap drops to $96,000. No individual staff member can be paid more than the annual rate for Executive Level II.² The former president picks the staff, and they report only to the former president. Although they are not full federal employees, they can be eligible for some federal benefits such as retirement contributions and health insurance.⁵ Across all living former presidents, GSA’s total budget for these office and staff costs was about $5.5 million for fiscal year 2025.

Former presidents can also send nonpolitical mail at government expense, both within the United States and, when properly marked, internationally. Campaign or fundraising mail does not qualify.⁶

Secret Service Protection

Former presidents and their spouses receive Secret Service protection for life. That lifetime coverage was restored by the Former Presidents Protection Act of 2012, after a period when protection had been capped at ten years post-office.⁷ A spouse loses protection on remarriage. Children of a former president are protected until age 16.⁸

The dollar cost of Secret Service coverage sits outside the GSA budget and is generally not itemized in public documents. A former president who declines Secret Service protection, or whose protection has ended, can instead receive up to $1,000,000 a year for security and travel expenses, with a spouse eligible for up to $500,000.

Transition Payment on the Way Out

The Presidential Transition Act provides one-time funding to help an outgoing president wind down. The support window runs up to seven months, starting 30 days before the term expires rather than on Inauguration Day.⁹ During that time, GSA provides office space, communications, IT, vehicles, furniture, and payroll services.

Congress has authorized up to $1,500,000 for transition services for the outgoing president and vice president combined. If the outgoing vice president is also the incoming president, any amount above $1,250,000 must be returned to the Treasury. After the seven months, the former president moves onto the permanent pension, office, and staffing benefits.

Survivor Allowance for a Spouse

The surviving spouse of a former president is entitled to a $20,000 annual allowance, paid monthly by the Treasury. To receive it, the spouse must waive any other federal pension or annuity they would otherwise draw.² Payments begin the day after the former president dies and continue for life, unless the spouse remarries before age 60 or takes a paid federal or D.C. government job. Surviving spouses keep the same nonpolitical franking privileges, and Secret Service protection continues unless they remarry.⁶

When a Former President Does Not Qualify

Not every former president collects these benefits. The Former Presidents Act defines a “former President” as someone whose service ended by any means other than removal through the impeachment process in Article II, Section 4 of the Constitution.² A president impeached by the House, convicted by the Senate, and removed from office falls outside that definition and gets no pension, office, staff funding, or other benefit under the act.

Impeachment alone is not enough to disqualify. A president who is impeached but acquitted, or who resigns before conviction, still counts as a “former President” and keeps full benefits.²

State Funeral

Every former president is eligible for a state funeral with full military honors, arranged at the direction of the sitting president and paid for by the federal government. Military support can include honor guards, a 21-aircraft flyover, a cannon salute at interment, flag-draped casket ceremonies, and transportation for the remains and immediate family.¹⁰

1
U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Salary Table No. 2026-EX – Rates of Basic Pay for the Executive Schedule
2
National Archives. Former Presidents Act
3
Federal Register. January 2026 Pay Schedules
4
Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 410, Pensions and Annuities
5
U.S. General Accounting Office. Former Presidents – Office and Security Costs and Other Information
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 39 U.S. Code 3214 – Mailing Privilege of Former President; Surviving Spouse of Former President
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 3056 – Powers, Authorities, and Duties of United States Secret Service
8
United States Secret Service. Frequently Asked Questions About Us
9
U.S. General Services Administration. Our Role in Presidential Transitions
10
DoD Directives Division. DoD Support of State, Official, Special Military, and First Lady Funerals