DD214 is the identification number for the United States Department of Defense Certificate of Discharge from Active Duty. It is often considered by servicemen to be one of the most important personnel documents in the military.^{[citation needed]} The DD214 form contains an official record of a servicemember's service dates, sorted by location, and in what capacity they served. It contains records of all authorized awards, ribbons, medals, ranks and promotions, any combat service or overseas service, and Military Occupational Specialty identifiers. The document is required for virtually all interaction with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Document classification is a problem in information science. ... The United States Department of Defense, abbreviated as DoD or DOD and sometimes called the Defense Department, is a civilian Cabinet organization of the United States government. ... A Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) is a job classification in use in the U. S. Army and the U. S. Marine Corps. ... The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet department of the United States government responsible for administering programs of veterans benefits for veterans, their families, and survivors. ...

Generally, servicemembers are awarded a DD214 upon completion of their first tour of active duty. National Guards and reservists are awarded a DD214 upon completion of their "Active Duty for Initial Entry Training" period. After completion of any federal activation, they will receive an updated DD214. Their DD214 form will be updated and finalized upon completion of their service. In the military, a tour of duty is a period of time spent at sea or assigned to service in a foreign country. ... National Guard may refer to: A military force: Cypriot National Guard United States National Guard National Guard (France), active during the French Revolution Saudi Arabian National Guard A part of the Military of Kuwait Iraqi National Guard A part of the Military of Venezuela Portuguese Republican National Guard National Guard... The Military Reserves are an organization that is associated with the military but is not in active duty. ...

Relationship to the DD215

The DD214 should not be confused with the similar looking DD215 which is used to amend an already issued DD214, and does not require all information to be present. Hence, a DD215 may give a good cross section of a servicemember's record. However any official changes or verification relying on an official record of service will need to consult a DD214.