What is DA Form 4187? It is the Department of the Army form titled PERSONNEL ACTION, and it exists so that you can personnel action. That single line covers most of what people arrive looking for. The rest of this page fills in the details.
Is this the current version? The edition offered here is dated 09/01/2025, published with the status ACTIVE. That date is the version number of a military form; there is no other. And no, this is not the newest one. A later edition has been published, and this copy is kept only for reference and for records already completed on it.
Who fills it out, and how long does it take? The individual named in the entries fills it, or a records clerk fills it on that person's behalf. Length is 2 page(s) with about 200 entry fields, which is the honest measure of the work involved. Who owns the form and when it is raised comes from G-1 and AR 600-8 respectively.
What the form asks for
- APPRV_A
- APPRV_B
- APPRV_C
- APPRV_D
- BEEN_VER
- Button8
- CMD_AUTH
- COMMENT_A
- COMMENT_B
- COMMENT_C
- COMMENT_D
- CommandsignDate
- Commandsignat
- ContentArea1
- DATE28aa
- DATE28bb
- DATE28cc
- DATE28dd
- DISAPPRV_A
- DISAPPRV_B
- DISAPPRV_C
- DISAPPRV_D
- DUTY_FROM
- DUTY_TO
Download the form
What file types are offered? PDF, DOC. The page image is the same in every one of them; only the way you complete it changes from format to format.
Should I take the fillable pdf or the printable one? Take the fillable version if you will type, since its entry areas respond to the keyboard and hold what you enter. Take the printable version if you will write by hand — it is the same blank form as a flat page image. The finished result looks the same either way.
Which application should I use? Reading takes nothing beyond a browser. Filling takes a proper pdf reader, since browser viewers vary in whether they retain what you type — verify with a single field and a save before you fill the whole form. What is the doc file for? Word processing. It is a fully editable version, convenient for drafts and office circulation, but the published spacing moves once you add text.
Does the download cost anything? No. There is no charge, no account and no email address to surrender, and the file you receive is the published document with nothing added to it.
What goes in first? The heading block — your name exactly as official records show it, then identification number, then organisation, then the date you prepared the form. Is the order important? It is, because those four entries become the index for the finished record, and an error there is the one mistake that hides the document from everyone looking for it.
What is the fastest way to fill the body? Tab from field to field. The order was set at build time and normally matches how the page reads, which is why tabbing catches boxes that clicking past would leave empty. And the boxes and buttons? Those take a click. Where only one option in a set can apply, choosing one deselects the other.
Can a field hold a long answer? Not if it is sized for one line — there is no wrap, and the excess prints missing while remaining visible as you type. So where does the extra text belong? In the remarks area or a continuation sheet. Should you skip fields that are irrelevant to your case? No. Mark them accordingly, because an empty field reads as an oversight rather than an answer.
Is a signature really the last step? Yes, and without it you have a draft, not a form. Who else signs? Whoever the form calls for — reviewer, approver, witness — in printed block order, each dated as of the day they sign. Which errors cause the most returns? Blank mandatory fields lead, followed by identification numbers with two digits swapped, dates written day-for-month, and leftover data in a reused file that goes forward as though it were meant.
What is the Privacy Act statement on the page? A notice appearing wherever personal information is collected, setting out the authority for the collection, the purpose, the routine uses, and whether your disclosure is mandatory or voluntary. When should you read it? At the point you reach it, before entering the details it covers. And afterwards? Your completed copy holds personal data and is stored and transmitted under the rules that apply to such records.
Where do you send it? To the destination the prescribing directive names, which may be a specific office, the unit administrative channel, or the individual's file. Is a copy worth keeping? Always, and taken before submission. How long does the receiving office keep it? For the period the records schedule for the series prescribes, regardless of local custom.
How do you find related forms? By series and number. Documents in the DA series sharing a proponent or a prescribing directive are commonly used together, and a form cited on the face of another usually goes forward with it. When should you gather them? Before submission — continuation sheets, cover sheets and transmittal documents belong in the package from the start.
When is an edition replaced? When the proponent revises the form and publishes a new edition date. What should you do with a copy kept on your own machine? Check its date against the edition in force before reusing it. Does the change reach backwards? It does not; work already completed on an earlier edition remains valid as filed.
Is this an official Department of the Army site? No. It is an independent site distributing reproductions of published Department of the Army documents for download, with no authority to issue forms. Does it guarantee acceptance of anything you submit? It does not, and nothing on the page is legal advice. Who should you ask instead? G-1 or your servicing administrative office, whenever an entry, a requirement or your eligibility is in doubt.
Questions and answers
- What is DA Form 4187?
- PERSONNEL ACTION
- Which edition is current?
- 09/01/2025
- Who is responsible for this form?
- G-1
- In which formats can it be downloaded?
- PDF, DOC, PDF
Publisher notes
- REQUIRES PRIVACY ACT STATEMENT (AR 340-21)