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. 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/evetrecs/.
2. Personnel records and Service Treatment Records (STR). Personnel records of military members who were discharged, retired, or
died in service less than 62 years ago and STR’s 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). STR’s of
persons on active duty are generally kept at the local servicing clinic, and usually are available from the Department of Veterans Affairs
approximately 40 days after the last day of active duty. (See item 3, Archival Records, if the military member was discharged, retired or
died in service over 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 and 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. An 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 STR’s 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, 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, letter from funeral home or obituary.
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 be notified as soon as that determination is made.
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. However, 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 preclude the release of some information.
b. Fees for Archival Records: Access to archival records is granted by offering copies of the records for a fee (44 U.S.C. 2116 (c)).
You will be notified if there is a charge for photocopies of documents contained in the record you are requesting.
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.
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 inquire@nara.gov 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 (NHP), 8601 Adelphi Road,
College Park, MD 20740-6001. DO NOT SEND COMPLETED FORMS TO THIS ADDRESS. SEND COMPLETED FORMS AS INDICATED
IN THE ADDRESS LIST ON PAGE 2 OF THE SF 180.
