So what is DD Form 616? The short answer: a Defense Department document, officially Report of Return of Absentee, used to Report of Return of Absentee. Anything else you need follows from that.
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.
Is this the right edition? The current one is dated not stated, and the publisher carries it as not stated. Check that against whatever copy you already have before going further.
Download the form
What can you download? The available set is PDF. How big is the job? The form runs unknown pages with roughly unknown fields to complete.
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.
Can you skip around the form? Better not to. The layout runs identification, then content, then certification, and entries near the bottom frequently take their meaning from what sits above them.
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 If not, the copy is superseded, and a superseded DD form is a real problem: Department-level revisions replace the blank for every service at once, so an old file on a shared drive is stale everywhere, not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.
What about a box that does not apply to you? Enter N/A rather than leaving it empty. An empty field reads as an oversight and sends the form back; N/A reads as an answer. What about dates? Use the format printed beside the field, not the one you write by habit.
What does the Privacy Act notice cover? Four things: the legal authority behind the collection, the purpose, the routine uses, and whether disclosure is required. When should you read it? Before entering personal information, while the choice is still open.
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.
Which mistakes are worth a final check? Superseded edition, gaps in mandatory fields, unreadable writing on a scanned copy, non-conforming date format, unsigned or undated certification.
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.
How do you find a form referenced inside this one? By its number alone. The DD sequence runs across the entire Department, so a number identifies exactly one document regardless of which service cited it.
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.
Why do editions change at all? Three reasons, mostly: the prescribing directive gets reissued, the information collected changes, or the required notice language is amended. Are you notified when it happens? No. Which is why confirming not stated at the moment you download is worth the few seconds.
Will your completed form be accepted? That is not a question this page can answer. What you have here is a published Department of Defense document, a description of it and instructions for filling it out. Nothing on the page is legal advice, and nothing here determines what any office does with a submission. Where do the remaining questions go? To not stated, to your servicing personnel office, or to the office named in not stated.
Questions and answers
- What is DD Form 616?
- Report of Return of Absentee
- Which edition is current?
- Not stated by the publisher
- Who is responsible for this form?
- Not stated
- In which formats can it be downloaded?