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Veterans

Ten points on the test, your job back and retirement: the veteran’s employment rights

Last reviewed: August 16, 2026 — VerifiedProcurador del Veterano

In short

The Bill of Rights of the Puerto Rican Veteran for the 21st Century imposes employment duties on a broad list: the Government of the Commonwealth, its agencies and instrumentalities, public or quasi-public corporations, municipalities, and all private natural or juridical persons operating businesses in Puerto Rico. The duties are concrete. Give preference to a veteran, under equal academic and technical conditions or experience, as to appointment or promotion for any position, job or employment opportunity. Reinstate the veteran or reservist to the same position or work they were performing when called to active service or when they voluntarily joined, or to an equal or similar one, if they formally request it of their employer within one hundred and eighty days following honourable discharge; and if that position does not exist, the veteran has placement priority in another position within the company or agency, and the employer is responsible for doing everything possible to train or retrain them. Guarantee that, where the veteran has taken a test as part of an employment, reinstatement or promotion application and obtained the minimum score required to qualify, ten points or ten per cent — whichever is greater — is added to the score obtained. Offer competitive tests to the veteran who, being in active service, could not take them, if requested within one hundred and eighty days after returning to work. And notify the Office of the Advocate for Veterans Affairs of every employment announcement for available competitive positions.

Act 203-2007 is nineteen years old and it could not be verified whether it has been amended. Veterans’ labour rights are also governed by federal legislation this guide does not cover. Confirm the claim mechanism before relying on it.

External link

Go to the official site

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sutra.oslpr.org

What is it?

These are employer obligations, not favours. The act enumerates what the employer is obliged to do, and it does so in a list beginning with the word obligation. Two things set it apart from what people assume. The first is whom it binds: not only the government and municipalities, but also all private natural or juridical persons operating businesses in Puerto Rico. The second is how measurable it is: preference under equal conditions can be argued about, but ten points or ten per cent on a test score is not argued, it is calculated. On the retirement side, the act puts the burden on the private employer: it must defray the employer and individual contributions to the retirement plan of an employee called to active military service who enters that service.

Who can do it?

The act speaks of the veteran and, for reinstatement, also of the reservist. For reinstatement it requires the request to be formal, addressed to the employer, and made within one hundred and eighty days following honourable discharge from the Armed Forces. For the added points it requires the veteran to have taken the test as part of an employment, reinstatement or promotion application, and to have obtained in it the minimum score required to qualify. For competitive tests it requires that the veteran was unable to take them because of being in active service, and that they request them within one hundred and eighty days after returning to work. And the act adds a clause settling a frequent doubt: the veteran who receives a disability pension from the Government of the United States of America is not hindered from availing themselves of this chapter’s benefits.

Requirements

Documents you need

Cost

This procedure has no cost.

Step by step

  1. Step 1: Claim the ten points: it is a calculation, not an opinion

    The act writes it as a guarantee. In those cases where, as a requirement of the employment process, a veteran has taken a test or examination as part of an employment, reinstatement or promotion application, and on that test obtained the minimum score required to qualify for the corresponding position, they are guaranteed the right to have their score increased by adding ten points or ten per cent, whichever is greater, to the score obtained. Note the two conditions: that it be a test in the employment, reinstatement or promotion process, and that you reached the minimum to qualify. If you meet them, the number is not negotiable.

  2. Step 2: If you return from service, request reinstatement in writing

    The act obliges the employer to reinstate the veteran or reservist to the same position or work they were performing when called to active service or when they voluntarily joined the Armed Forces, or to an equal or similar position, if the veteran formally requests it of their employer within one hundred and eighty days following honourable discharge. And if that position does not exist, the veteran shall have placement priority in another position within the company or government agency, and the employer shall be responsible for doing everything possible to train or retrain the veteran. The act adds that this right does not displace the obligations the employer may have under the Americans with Disabilities Act, Public Law 101-336, or any other federal or Commonwealth legislation benefiting the veteran returning to their job or to the active labour market.

  3. Step 3: If you could not take the test while on active duty, ask for it

    It is another express employer duty: offer competitive tests to any veteran who, being in active service, was unable to take the competitive tests, and who requests them within one hundred and eighty days after returning to work; and if they pass those tests, the veteran’s name is to be included in the corresponding list or register. That is, you did not lose your turn for having served, but there is a deadline to claim it.

  4. Step 4: And yes, this binds private employers too

    The list of those bound that opens this section of the act is long on purpose: the Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, its agencies and instrumentalities, public or quasi-public corporations, municipalities, and all private natural or juridical persons operating businesses in Puerto Rico. If you were told veteran preference is a government thing, the act says otherwise. And on the retirement side, the burden on the private employer is explicit: private sector employers shall defray the employer and individual contributions to the retirement plan to which the employee called to active military service, and who enters that service, is entitled.

  5. Step 5: Learn of announcements through the Advocate’s Office

    The act creates a channel worth using. Every employer is obliged to notify the Office of the Advocate for Veterans Affairs of any employment announcement for available competitive positions or jobs, and that Office in turn must notify duly organised veterans’ organisations through its internet-accessible web page, the Government of Puerto Rico portal, or any other means it deems appropriate. If you belong to a veterans’ organisation, that is the route by which they should reach you. A warning: that Office’s portal did not respond from the environment in which this guide was verified.

  6. Step 6: And if you receive a federal disability pension, do not rule yourself out

    The act says it in a line that settles a very common doubt: the veteran who receives a disability pension from the Government of the United States of America shall not be hindered from availing themselves of this chapter’s benefits. Receiving one does not exclude you from the other.

Where to do it

Reinstatement and test requests are made directly to the employer, public or private. Announcements for competitive positions are notified to the Office of the Advocate for Veterans Affairs, which must circulate them to veterans’ organisations. The official text of Act 203-2007 and its translation are in SUTRA. If the problem is an employer who does not comply, this site has guides on the general routes for labour claims in Puerto Rico.

How long it takes

Check the current processing time with the official agency.

What to do if something goes wrong

First, currency: the act is dated 14 December 2007 and SUTRA’s record lists no later amendments, so it could not be verified whether the ten points, the one hundred and eighty days, or the range of bound employers still stand. Second, and this is the guide’s most important gap: the act enumerates employer duties, but this guide does not describe the procedure for enforcing them when the employer does not comply. Section 9 of the act deals with violations and penalties, but it is not summarised here because it was not read in full, and no page of the Department of Labour or the Commonwealth Human Resources Office describing the mechanism could be reached. If an employer denied you one of these rights, ask expressly about the claim route before assuming one. Third, on crediting service for retirement: the act deals with this with rules of its own on who pays the contributions and within what term, including the option of a payment plan for the veteran returning to work. This guide mentions the private employer’s obligation because it is clearly written, but does not detail the full crediting mechanism, which was not read in full. Fourth: the reinstatement right does not replace federal protections; the act itself says it does not displace obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act or other applicable federal or Commonwealth legislation. And fifth: PRFácil does not file claims, represents nobody and gives no legal advice.

Common mistakes

  • Believing veteran preference applies only to the government: the act binds private employers too.
  • Not claiming the ten points or ten per cent after passing a test with the minimum score.
  • Letting the one hundred and eighty days from honourable discharge lapse before requesting reinstatement.
  • Requesting reinstatement verbally: the act speaks of a formal request to the employer.
  • Giving up when the position no longer exists: the act gives placement priority elsewhere and obliges the employer to train or retrain.
  • Not requesting the competitive tests you could not take while on active duty, within one hundred and eighty days of returning.
  • Ruling yourself out for receiving a federal disability pension, when the act expressly says it does not bar these benefits.
  • Assuming this right replaces federal employment protections: the act says it does not displace them.

Frequently asked questions

How many points are added to my employment test?

Ten points or ten per cent, whichever is greater, added to the score obtained, provided you reached the minimum score required to qualify for the position on a test in the employment, reinstatement or promotion process.

I came back from service and my position no longer exists. Did I lose the right?

Not under the act. If the position does not exist, the veteran has placement priority in another position within the company or government agency, and the employer is responsible for doing everything possible to train or retrain them. The deadline to request it remains one hundred and eighty days from honourable discharge.

Does my private employer have to pay my retirement while I was on active duty?

The act says private sector employers shall defray the employer and individual contributions to the retirement plan to which the employee called to active military service, and who enters that service, is entitled. The crediting details have rules of their own that this guide does not summarise in full.

Official sources

These are the government pages this guide is based on.

Last verified

August 16, 2026

MiPRFácil is an independent informational website and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by the Government of Puerto Rico or any government agency.

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