Which document is this? DD Form 1588, official title DD Form 1588, Record of Travel Payments, January 1967. What does it do? It exists to Record of Travel Payments. Everything on this page builds on those two facts.
Will you need a different form because of where you serve? No. DD forms are Department-wide instruments, and that scope is what separates them from service publications. One edition, all branches, defense agencies included.
Where does the requirement come from? From not stated, with not stated responsible for the document itself. Those are the names to cite if anyone asks under what authority you filed.
How current is this? Edition not stated, publisher status not stated. That is the version described throughout this page.
What the form asks for
- Address or addressograph impression.
- 1. Previous record microfilmed (Air Force only). Date.
- Station.
- Roll reference.
- 2. Special orders. Paragraph and number, line 1.
- Date.
- Issuing headquarters.
- 3. Dates of travel.
- 4. Vouchers. Amount.
- Voucher number.
- Month and year.
- D.S.S. number.
- 5. Description of travel and other remarks.
- 2. Special orders. Paragraph and number, line 2.
- Date.
- Issuing headquarters.
- 3. Dates of travel.
- 4. Vouchers. Amount.
- Voucher number.
- Month and year.
- D.S.S. number.
- 5. Description of travel and other remarks.
- 2. Special orders. Paragraph and number, line 3.
- Date.
Download the form
What can you download? The available set is PDF. How big is the job? The form runs 1 pages with roughly 95 fields to complete.
Fillable or printable — which do you have? Click inside a box. If it accepts a cursor and typed text, the file is fillable and your entries save with it. If nothing happens, the pdf is flat, and the only way forward is printing it and writing on paper.
Is handwriting acceptable? Yes, but it is the weaker choice. Scanning flattens pen strokes and reproduction blurs them, while typed characters survive the whole chain intact. Print in capitals if you are working from a paper blank.
Why will not the xfdl file open? Because it is not a pdf. Xfdl belongs to IBM Lotus Forms, long the Department's electronic form format, and it needs IBM Lotus Forms Viewer or an equivalent reader installed first.
Is there a charge? No — free, all formats. Where should you open the file? In a full pdf application on your own machine. Browser-embedded viewers handle field properties unpredictably.
In what order do you complete it? The printed order, top to bottom. Header data comes before the body, and the body before the signature block. The sequence is not decorative — later entries are keyed to earlier ones.
Why does the edition matter so much here? Because DD forms are revised centrally. When the Department reissues one, it reissues it for all branches simultaneously, and the field layout can shift. Compare the printed date against not stated before you type anything.
What if a specific field still puzzles you? Read the instructions printed on the form, then not stated. Which wins if they differ? The directive.
Where does the completed form go? To the office named in not stated or in your organization's local procedure. Should you keep a copy? Always — a scan or a saved file costs nothing and spares you the whole exercise if the original disappears.
Do you need to know which branch issued a related form? No. DD numbering is Department-wide and unified, which means the number on its own is a complete address for the document.
Do DA and DD numbers ever correspond? Never. DA numbering is Army-specific, administered by an Army proponent, while DD numbering is Department-wide under not stated or an equivalent Department office. Identical digits in the two systems mean two unrelated documents, which is why the prefix matters more than the number.
How often does a form like this change? Unpredictably — revision follows directive changes, altered collection requirements and updated notice language. What is the practical defence? Verifying not stated every time you download rather than trusting a saved copy.
Is any of this advice? No. This page distributes a published Defense form and explains its contents, which is a different thing from telling you whether your circumstances qualify or whether a reviewer will accept your copy. Direct questions of eligibility, applicability and procedure to not stated, to your servicing personnel office, or to the office designated in not stated.
Questions and answers
- What is DD Form 1588?
- DD Form 1588, Record of Travel Payments, January 1967
- Which edition is current?
- Not stated by the publisher
- Who is responsible for this form?
- Not stated
- In which formats can it be downloaded?