Which document is this? DD Form 218-1, official title DD Form 218-1, DoD Telephone Directory, Classified Section Change Order, February 1966.. What does it do? It exists to Telephone Directory Classified Section Change Order. Everything on this page builds on those two facts.
Does it apply to your branch? Yes. The DD prefix means Department of Defense, not one service, so the same blank serves the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Space Force and the Coast Guard under Defense jurisdiction. There is no Army version and no Navy version to search for.
Who decides this form exists? not stated owns it; not stated directs its use. If someone told you to file this, the authority traces back to those.
How current is this? Edition not stated, publisher status not stated. That is the version described throughout this page.
What the form asks for
- Description of entry. If more space is required, attach additional sheets.
- Action. Enter A for addition, C for change, or D for deletion.
- From: Office, official making report, and telephone number.
- Press this Reset button to clear the data from all fields.
- Date.
- Thru: office coordinator and address.
Download the form
Which files are here? These: PDF. How much work is involved? 2 pages, about 7 entry fields.
Why do two kinds of pdf exist? Because two kinds of user exist. One completes the form on screen and forwards a file; the other prints a blank and fills it by hand. The fillable release has interactive boxes, the printable release is a static image of the same page.
Does typing matter? It does. Your completed form will probably be scanned, forwarded and filed, and typed text comes through each of those steps unchanged while handwriting degrades. If pen is your only option, block capitals give the receiving clerk a fighting chance.
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.
What is the first thing to check? The edition date on the face of the form. Does it read not stated? If not, the copy is superseded, and a superseded DD form is a real problem: Department-level revisions replace the blank for every service at once, so an old file on a shared drive is stale everywhere, not just in your office.
Can you leave fields blank? Not safely. A reviewer cannot tell a deliberate omission from a missed question, so mark inapplicable items N/A. And date fields? Match the format shown on the form — conventions differ, and misreading a date is easy.
Why read the Privacy Act Statement? Because it sits ahead of the personal data fields deliberately. It names the collection authority, the principal purpose, the routine uses of your data and the consequence of declining. Reading it afterward tells you nothing you can still act on.
How do you sign electronically? With a digital signature, usually CAC-based, in a reader that handles it. Will typing your name work? Not as execution — it fills a field without certifying anything. Either way, the date goes in immediately after.
What goes wrong most? The same short list: old edition, empty fields, illegibility, wrong date format, missing signature or date.
Where do you look up an unclear entry? The form face first, not stated second. And when the two disagree? not stated controls.
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.
What if DD Form 218-1 points to another form? Search the series and number. Because the DD sequence is common to every military department, no branch qualifier is needed to land on the right file.
Can you assume a matching number is the same form? No, and this is where downloads go wrong. Read the prefix. Army numbering and Department numbering are independent systems, so the digits alone tell you nothing about which document you need.
Should you archive this file and reuse it next year? Better not. Forms are revised as directives are reissued, as data requirements shift and as statutory notice text is updated, and none of that reaches you directly. Download fresh, check the edition date.
What does this page actually provide? The blank form and a description of it. What does it not provide? Legal guidance, procedural rulings, or any assurance about a particular filing. Who answers those? not stated, the administrative office that serves you, or the authority identified in not stated.
Questions and answers
- What is DD Form 218-1?
- DD Form 218-1, DoD Telephone Directory, Classified Section Change Order, February 1966.
- Which edition is current?
- Not stated by the publisher
- Who is responsible for this form?
- Not stated
- In which formats can it be downloaded?