1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Military Career Intermission Program Act of 2018 . 2. Permanent Career Intermission Program (a) Codification and permanent authority Chapter 40 of title 10, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section 710: 710. Career flexibility to enhance retention of members (a) Programs authorized Each Secretary of a military department may carry out programs under which members of the regular components and members on Active Guard and Reserve duty of the armed forces under the jurisdiction of such Secretary may be inactivated from active service in order to meet personal or professional needs and returned to active service at the end of such period of inactivation from active service. (b) Period of inactivation from active service; Effect of inactivation (1) The period of inactivation from active service under a program under this section of a member participating in the program shall be such period as the Secretary of the military department concerned shall specify in the agreement of the member under subsection (c), except that such period may not exceed three years. (2) Any service by a Reserve officer while participating in a program under this section shall be excluded from computation of the total years of service of that officer pursuant to section 14706(a) of this title. (3) Any period of participation of a member in a program under this section shall not count toward— (A) eligibility for retirement or transfer to the Ready Reserve under either chapter 571 or 1223 of this title