How to verify a candidate's military service: the DD-214, National Archives requests and what not to ask

To verify a candidate's military service, ask the candidate for a copy of their DD Form 214, the Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, or a VA service verification letter, after a conditional offer and for every hire who claims service. If they don't have one, the veteran can request it free from the National Archives' National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) through eVetRecs or Standard Form 180. Without the veteran's signed authorization, an employer can get only limited public information, and the Defense Department's SCRA website may not be used for hiring at all. Ask for a "deleted" copy if you do not need the discharge details. This reflects the agencies' pages as of October 2026 and is not legal advice.

This page covers the documents and the request routes. How to interview veterans, translate military experience and avoid stereotyped questions is in how to interview military veterans; checking civilian jobs is in how to verify employment history.

When do you actually need to verify military service?

Most hiring decisions do not need proof of service; they need evidence of skills, which the interview supplies. Verification makes sense in a few situations:

• The resume relies on it. Service is presented as work history ("8 years, logistics NCO"), so you check it the way you would check any employer.
• A preference or program depends on it. Veterans' preference in public-sector hiring, a veteran hiring program, or a benefit tied to veteran status.
• The role requires prior service or a qualification earned in service, such as a specific military certification.

One situation where you should not demand proof: federal contractors' self-identification under VEVRAA. The rule at 41 CFR 60-300.42 requires the invitations to state that the information is requested on a voluntary basis, kept confidential, and that refusal to provide it will not subject the applicant to adverse treatment. Keep self-identification answers in their confidential file, apart from any verification you do for a separate reason. More on the contractor rules is in VEVRAA job listing requirements.

Which documents prove military service?

NPRC notes that before January 1, 1950, the services used several similar forms instead of the DD-214, such as the WD AGO 53-55 and NAVPERS 553, so a candidate who served before then may hold one of those.

How do you ask for a DD-214 without learning about the discharge?

The full ("undeleted") DD-214 shows information you usually do not need and may not lawfully use. The Standard Form 180 (revision 06/2026) explains that if a veteran requests a deleted copy, "the following items will be blacked out: authority for separation, reason for separation, reenlistment eligibility code, separation (SPD/SPN) code, and, for separations after June 30, 1979, character of separation and dates of time lost." That is the copy to ask for.

Practical steps:

1. Ask at the same stage for everyone, normally after a conditional offer, and only where one of the reasons above applies.
2. Say what you need: service dates and branch, and the training or specialty they listed if it matters for the role.
3. Invite redaction of anything else, and offer to accept a VA service verification letter instead.
4. Look, record, return. Note "Military service verified: [branch], [dates], [document type], [date checked]" and avoid keeping a copy unless a program requires it.

Subject: One document for your file

Hi [name], congratulations again on the offer. Because your
service is part of the experience we relied on, we verify it the
same way we verify other employers. Could you send a copy of your
DD-214 or a VA service verification letter? We only need your
branch and dates of service, so a "deleted" DD-214, or one with
other boxes covered, is fine. We'll note what we checked and won't
keep a copy.

What if the candidate doesn't have a DD-214?

Veterans can request their own records from NPRC, and for most it costs nothing. As of October 2026, the National Archives' request page describes these routes:

• Online through eVetRecs. The veteran must verify their identity through ID.me. VA's records page adds that the National Archives may ask for a "live selfie" as an extra verification step.
• By mail or fax with the SF-180, to NPRC, 1 Archives Drive, St. Louis, MO 63138, or fax 314-801-9195.
• milConnect, which the SF-180 says recent veterans may be able to use to get a DD-214.

Plan for time. The Archives says it receives approximately 4,000 to 5,000 requests a day and asks requesters not to send a follow-up before 90 days have passed. If a start date depends on it, accept another document from the table above or verify later, and say so in the offer rather than delaying it. Requests cannot be made by email; the Archives says the Privacy Act and Defense Department directives require a written request, signed and dated.

Can an employer request a candidate's military records directly?

Only with the veteran's written authorization. The SF-180 instructions say that "others requesting information from military personnel records" must have the release authorization in Section III "signed by the member or authorized legal recipient," and that without it "only limited types of information can be provided." The form's purpose box includes "Employment."

Without authorization, NPRC applies the Freedom of Information Act. Its FOIA page lists the kind of information that may be released to the public without the veteran's consent, including:

• Name, service number, dates of service and branch of service
• Final duty status and final rank
• Assignments and geographical locations
• Military education level
• Awards and decorations (eligibility only)
• Place of entrance and separation

That is enough to confirm that a person served, but you still face the 90-day queue, and the result may describe a different person with the same name. Records of people who left service 62 or more years ago are archival and open to the public for a copying fee, which rarely matters for a job candidate. For anything else, ask the candidate.

Can you use the DMDC SCRA website to verify service?

No. The Defense Manpower Data Center's SCRA website answers whether a person is on active duty, for lenders and courts applying the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. Its terms of use (version 3, dated February 7, 2020, as displayed on the site in October 2026) say access "is restricted to financial institutions, collection agencies, and others with financial and legal transactions with eligible service members for the sole purpose of ensuring that those service members receive Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) protections," and "All other use is strictly prohibited." The terms warn that false representations to gain access can bring criminal penalties under 18 U.S.C. 1001. Screening job applicants is not a permitted use.

What should you not ask while verifying?

• Type of discharge, unless a law or program requires it. Illinois's Human Rights Act lists "unfavorable discharge from military service" among the bases of unlawful discrimination (775 ILCS 5/1-103). The deleted DD-214 avoids the question entirely.
• Medical or disability information from service records, or VA disability ratings. Benefit letters can include disability compensation details; ask for the service verification letter, not the benefit summary, if that is all you need.
• Future deployments or Guard and Reserve obligations as a hiring factor. USERRA and the other protections are summarized in how to interview military veterans, and broader risky questions in illegal interview questions.

What if the records don't match the resume?

Treat a mismatch as a question before it becomes a conclusion. Possible innocent explanations: Reserve or National Guard service that never produced a DD-214, a civilian translation of a military job title that reads differently from the military one, or several periods of service with separate documents. Ask the candidate to explain, in writing if needed, and give them time to produce another document. If the doubt came from a background screening company's report, the FCRA's pre-adverse action notice and waiting period apply before you act; see the FCRA background check process for recruiters. If what you see suggests the person is not who they claim to be, that is an identity question, and the candidate identity verification checklist applies.

A checklist for verifying military service

• Verify only when the claim, a program or the role requires it, and then for everyone in that situation.
• Ask after a conditional offer, for a deleted DD-214, NGB Form 22 or a VA service verification letter.
• Do not request the Veteran ID Card as proof, and do not ask about discharge type.
• If the candidate has no copy, point them to eVetRecs or the SF-180 and allow for the processing time.
• Request NPRC records yourself only with the veteran's signed authorization on the SF-180.
• Never use the DMDC SCRA website for hiring.
• Record what you checked, not the document; keep VEVRAA self-identification separate and confidential.