The US Department of Defense (DoD) encourages all veterans who believe they have suffered an error or injustice to request relief from their Military Department's Board for Correction of Military/Naval Records (BCM/NR) or Discharge Review Board (DRB).  In the past several years, the DoD has issued supplemental guidance for the correction of military records that may involve post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury (TBI), sexual assault, sexual harassment, intimate partner violence, spousal abuse, sexual orientation, and gender identity that enhances the ability to rectify past errors or injustices.

Veterans who believe they have suffered an error or injustice warranting correction to their service record or who believe their discharge was unjust, was erroneous, or warrants an upgrade are encouraged to apply for review.

For discharge upgrades, if the discharge was less than 15 years ago, the veteran should complete the DoD Form 293 (https:www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/forms/dd/dd0293.pdf) and send it to their Service's DRB (the address is on the form).

For discharges over 15 years ago or in cases already considered for upgrade and denied by the Service DRB, the veteran should complete the DD Form 149 (https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/Forms/dd/dd0149.pdf) and send it to their Service's BCM/NR (the address is on the form).

For corrections of records other than discharges, veterans should complete the DD Form 149 (link above) and submit their request to their Service's BCM/NR (the address is on the form).

If a veteran in unsure of how or where to apply for discharge upgrade or correction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, in partnership with the Department of Defense, provides resources that veterans can use to help with applications as well as provide personalized instructions in response to a few simple questions on a publicly available website: https://www.va.gov/resources/request-a-discharge-upgrade-or-correction/.