For any person who is in the military or retired from the military it is actually very easy to obtain the right certificates to prove that he or she is serving or has recently served in the military. The new centralized military status verification service makes the whole process easy and fast. The search is simple, and a certificate can be printed out right from the online service and you can tell if the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (“SCRA”) applies.
Civilian Processes
For civilians, the process is a little different. Civilians do not have access to the same resources for military status searches as those in the military do. It is still fairly easy to obtain verification though. To start with, a person just needs to obtain the standard form. The form consists of three pages. It can actually be retrieved online and printed out.
The first page of the form is mostly just informational. It provides instructions and other general information regarding the archive retrieval. The second page of the standard form has several fields and is broken up into three main sections including the personal information of the person whose records are being requested, the information on the specific documents being requested and then the signature section of the form.
What to Do With the Forms
Once the military status verification form has been filled out there are then two options to send in the form. A person can either mail the form in or they can fax the form in to the National Personnel Records Center. From there it is just a waiting game to have a person review the request and respond to the request. For the most part, this last step does not take long at all. Typically it takes 10 or less business days in order to receive a response and certificate for status verification for the military serviceman or servicewoman.
The process for verification is very easy regardless of who is requesting the documents. It is a little more difficult for a civilian to process the paperwork that it is for a current military serviceman or servicewoman. With that said though, the process is really not difficult for a civilian either. The form is three pages long, but there is really only two pages on the form to fill out.
But, recently, even though the process is easy, the various military agencies (like the Army) have not had enough resources to respond at all. Your request for military verification will sit around for eternity and you will not receive a response. Instead, you should use the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act Centralized Verification Service (“SCRACVS”) .
The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act Centralized Verification Service (“SCRACVS”) provide military status verification and rights to people who are on active military duty or have retired from active duty. The service verifies which individuals qualify for the benefits and protection under the SCRA.
