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INSTRUCTION AND INFORMATION SHEET FOR SF 180, REQUEST PERTAINING TO MILITARY RECORDS
1. General Information. The Standard Form 180, Request Pertaining to Military Records (SF180) is used to request information from military records.
Certain identifying information is necessary to determine the location of an individual's record of military service. Please try to answer each item on the SF
180. If you do not have and cannot obtain the information for an item, show "NA," meaning the information is "not available". Include as much of the
requested information as you can. Incomplete information may delay response time. To determine where to mail this request see Page 2 of the SF180 for
record locations and facility addresses.
Online requests may be submitted to the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) by a veteran or deceased veteran’s next-of-kin using eVetRecs at
http://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records/ .
2. Personnel Records/Military Human Resource Records/Official Military Personnel File (OMPF) and Medical Records/Service Treatment
Records (STR). Personnel records of military members who were discharged, retired, or died in service LESS THAN 62 YEARS AGO and medical
records are in the legal custody of the military service department and are administered in accordance with rules issued by the Department of Defense and
the Department of Homeland Security (DHS, Coast Guard). STRs of persons on active duty are generally kept at the local servicing clinic. After the last
day of active duty, STRs should be requested from the appropriate address on page 2 of the SF 180. (See item 3, Archival Records, if the military member
was discharged, retired or died in service more than 62 years ago.)
a. Release of information: Release of information is subject to restrictions imposed by the military services consistent with Department of Defense
regulations, the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and the Privacy Act of 1974. The service member (either past or present) or
the member's legal guardian has access to almost any information contained in that member's own record. The authorization signature of the service
member or the member's legal guardian is needed in Section III of the SF180. Others requesting information from military personnel records and/or
STRs must have the release authorization in Section III of the SF 180 signed by the member or legal guardian. If the appropriate signature cannot be
obtained, only limited types of information can be provided. If the former member is deceased, the surviving next-of-kin may, under certain
circumstances, be entitled to greater access to a deceased veteran's records than a member of the general public. The next-of-kin may be any of the
following: unremarried surviving spouse, father, mother, son, daughter, sister, or brother. Requesters MUST provide proof of death, such as a
copy of a death certificate, newspaper article (obituary) or death notice, coroner’s report of death, funeral director’s signed statement of
death, or verdict of coroner’s jury.
b. Fees for records: There is no charge for most services provided to service members or next-of-kin of deceased veterans. A nominal fee is
charged for certain types of service. In most instances, service fees cannot be determined in advance. If your request involves a service fee, you will
receive an invoice with your records.
3. Archival Records. Personnel records of military members who were discharged, retired, or died in service 62 OR MORE YEARS AGO have been
transferred to the legal custody of NARA and are referred to as “archival records”.
a. Release of Information: Archival records are open to the public. The Privacy Act of 1974 does not apply to archival records, therefore, written
authorization from the veteran or next-of-kin is not required. In order to protect the privacy of the veteran, his/her family, and third parties named in
the records, the personal privacy exemption of the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552 (b) (6)) may still apply and may preclude the release
of some information.
b. Fees for Archival Records: Access to archival records are granted by offering copies of the records for a fee (44 U.S.C. 2116 (c)). If a fee applies
to the photocopies of documents in the requested record, you will receive an invoice. Photocopies will be sent after payment is made. For more
information see http://www.archives.gov/st-louis/archival-programs/military-personnel-archival/ompf-archival-requests.html.
4. Where reply may be sent. The reply may be sent to the service member or any other address designated by the service member or other authorized
requester. If the designated address is NOT registered to the addressee by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), provide BOTH the addressee’s name AND “in
care of” (c/o) the name of the person to whom the address is registered on the NAME line in Section III, item 3, on page 1 of the SF 180. The COMPLETE
address must be provided, INCLUDING any apartment/suite/unit/lot/space/etc. number.
5. Definitions and abbreviations. DISCHARGED -- the individual has no current military status; SERVICE TREATMENT RECORD (STR) -- The
chronology of medical, mental health, and dental care received by service members during the course of their military career (does not include records of
treatment while hospitalized); TDRL – Temporary Disability Retired List.
6. Service completed before World War I. National Archives Trust Fund (NATF) forms must be used to request these records. Obtain the forms by e-
mail from [email protected] or write to the Code 6 address on page 2 of the SF 180.
PRIVACY ACT OF 1974 COMPLIANCE INFORMATION
The following information is provided in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(3) and applies to this form. Authority for collection of the information is 44
U.S.C. 2907, 3101, and 3103, and Public Law 104-134 (April 26, 1996), as amended in title 31, section 7701. Disclosure of the information is voluntary. If
the requested information is not provided, it may delay servicing your inquiry because the facility servicing the service member's record may not have all of
the information needed to locate it. The purpose of the information on this form is to assist the facility servicing the records (see the address list) in locating
the correct military service record(s) or information to answer your inquiry. This form is then retained as a record of disclosure. The form may also be
disclosed to Department of Defense components, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS, U.S. Coast Guard), or
the National Archives and Records Administration when the original custodian of the military health and personnel records transfers all or part of those
records to that agency. If the service member was a member of the National Guard, the form may also be disclosed to the Adjutant General of the
appropriate state, District of Columbia, or Puerto Rico, where he or she served.
PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENT
Public burden reporting for this collection of information is estimated to be five minutes per request, including time for reviewing instructions and
completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of the collection of information,
including suggestions for reducing this burden, to National Archives and Records Administration (ISSD), 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-
6001. DO NOT SEND COMPLETED FORMS TO THIS ADDRESS. SEND COMPLETED FORMS TO THE APPROPRIATE ADDRESS LISTED ON
PAGE 2 OF THE SF 180.