So what is DD Form 827? The short answer: a Defense Department document, officially DD Form 827, Application for Arrears in Pay, March 1985, used to Arrears in Pay, Application For. Anything else you need follows from that.
Is there a version specific to your service? No. A DD number is issued at Department level, which is the whole point of the prefix — every military department and defense agency works from one identical document. Looking for a branch variant wastes time you do not have.
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.
What the form asks for
- 1. Claimant Data. a. Name (last, first, middle initial).
- 1.b. Social security number.
- 1.c. Pay grade.
- 1.d. Rank.
- 1.e. Signature.
- 1.f. Date signed (4 digit year, 2 digit month, 2 digit day).
- 1.g. Mailing address (Street, P O Box, City, State, Zip Code).
- 2. Period for which arrears are believed to be due from the U.S. a. From (4 digit year, 2 digit month, 2 digit day).
- 2.b. To: 4 digit year, two digit month, two digit day.
- 3. Claimant served in: press space bar to mark X in first box if Army, second box if Navy, third box if Air Force, fourth box if Marine Corps, or fifth box if Coast Guard.
- 4. Last date enlisted/entered on active duty (4 digit year, 2 digit month, 2 digit day).
- 5. Last date discharged/released from active duty (4 digit year, 2 digit month, 2 digit day).
- 6. Place of discharge (City, state).
- 7. Facts and circumstances on which claim is based.
- 8. Disbursing/Finance Officer. (Complete only if claimant is on active duty. Continue on reverse side if additional space is needed.) I hereby certify that I have not and will not pay any portion of this claim for the following reasons:
- 8.a. Name (last, first, middle initial).
- 8.b. Unit/command name.
- 8.c. Signature.
- 8.d. Date signed (4 digit year, 2 digit month, 2 digit day).
- 8.e. Disbursing Officer Symbol Number.
- Press this Reset button to clear the data from all fields.
Download the form
What can you download? The available set is PDF. How big is the job? The form runs 1 pages with roughly 21 fields to complete.
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.
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 if your copy is old? Replace it. Check the date printed on the form against not stated. Old blanks circulate for years in shared folders, and because a DD revision lands across the whole Department at once, the receiving office will be working from the new layout.
Where do you look up an unclear entry? The form face first, not stated second. And when the two disagree? not stated controls.
What happens after you finish? It routes to the office specified in not stated or in local guidance. And your own record? Save a duplicate first; nobody regrets having one.
What if DD Form 827 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.
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.
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.
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 827?
- DD Form 827, Application for Arrears in Pay, March 1985
- Which edition is current?
- Not stated by the publisher
- Who is responsible for this form?
- Not stated
- In which formats can it be downloaded?