DA Form 3575 for Army Appointment: Signing and Obligations

DA Form 3575, the Certificate of Acknowledgement and Understanding of Service Requirements, is the one-page document a U.S. Army Reserve officer applicant signs to confirm in writing that they accept the participation and service obligations attached to a commissioned or warrant officer appointment under AR 135-100 or AR 135-101. It carries a single signature — yours — and is submitted as one document inside a larger appointment packet, never on its own.¹

Who Signs This Form

The form applies to a narrow group: people seeking appointment as commissioned or warrant officers in the Army Reserve who have no existing statutory service obligation. A nonobligated enlisted soldier receiving a direct appointment is the standard example. By signing, that applicant puts their agreement to the total obligation period and participation requirements on the record.²

The form’s header limits its use to appointments under AR 135-100 (general USAR officer appointments) and AR 135-101 (Army Medical Department branches). It is not used for Regular Army enlistment, Army National Guard enlistment, or reenlistment — those go on DD Form 4 and other documents. If a recruiter or Officer Accessions NCO has pointed you to DA Form 3575, you are on the USAR officer appointment track.

Where to Get the Current Edition

The current edition is dated June 1984. The Army Publishing Directorate (APD) is the distribution source, and the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel is the proponent agency.¹ Search armypubs.army.mil by form number. Some APD publications require a Common Access Card to download; if you cannot get to the file online, your local Officer Accessions NCO or recruiting office can hand you a copy.

What You Fill In

DA Form 3575 is short. There is no numbered-block layout like the DD Form 4. You will see a Privacy Act notice at the top, a narrative certification section listing your obligations, and a signature block at the bottom.

The fields you complete are:

The applicable regulation — AR 135-100 or AR 135-101.
Your full legal name, typed last-first-middle initial.
Your Social Security number. The Privacy Act notice states disclosure is voluntary but warns that failing to provide it may result in your application being denied.¹
The date you sign.
Your handwritten signature.

The form has no fields for Military Occupational Specialty, bonuses, or incentive programs. Those live on other documents in the packet.

What You Are Agreeing To

The certification section is the substance of the form. By signing, you confirm that you understand and accept each of the following for the entire period you hold a commission or warrant:¹

Satisfactory Army Reserve participation under the rules in effect at any given time.
Entry on active duty or active duty for training when ordered by competent authority.
Attendance at all scheduled unit training assemblies — at least 48 per year — if assigned to a Reserve unit, unless excused by proper authority.
At least 14 days of annual active duty for training as a unit member, not counting travel.
Up to 30 days of active duty for training per year if assigned to the Individual Ready Reserve instead of a unit.
Keeping your commander informed of your current mailing address.
Replying to and complying with all official orders and correspondence.

The underlying obligation typically mirrors the terms required of a USAR Officer Candidate School graduate: an eight-year statutory obligation with a six-year contractual obligation running concurrently, including six years in a Troop Program Unit with any remainder in the Ready Reserve.² For AR 135-101 appointments (medical branches) with concurrent active duty, the initial active duty tour is generally three years unless otherwise directed by Headquarters, Department of the Army.

Signing and Submitting the Form

DA Form 3575 requires only one signature. There is no counselor certification block, no witness line, and no administering officer signature. The signature line reads: “I, the undersigned having voluntarily elected to apply for appointment as a commissioned or warrant officer of the United States Army Reserve acknowledge that all of the conditions of said appointment are understood and acceptable.”¹

That single signature carries real legal weight. It establishes that you voluntarily accepted the appointment conditions and understood the participation requirements. If a dispute later arises over what you knew, this signed form is the Army’s primary evidence.

You submit the form as part of your appointment packet, not by itself. A warrant officer packet, for example, also includes DA Form 61 (Application for Appointment), the medical exam forms (DD Form 2808 and DD Form 2807-1), a security clearance verification memorandum, transcripts, letters of recommendation, an ACFT scorecard, and other supporting documents. USAR applicants preparing a warrant officer packet contact the Army Reserve Careers Division Special Missions team, who connect them with a local Officer Accessions NCO to help assemble and submit the packet.³ Exact packet contents depend on whether you are seeking a commissioned or warrant officer appointment and which regulation governs.

Where the Form Ends Up

After the packet is processed, DA Form 3575 becomes part of your Official Military Personnel File. Active duty, Reserve, and National Guard personnel can view digitized OMPF records through the Interactive Personnel Electronic Records Management System (iPERMS) with a CAC login.⁴ It is worth confirming that the form appears in your record after your appointment processes. If it is missing, any future dispute over the terms of your obligation becomes harder to resolve for you and for the Army.

False Information on the Form

Knowingly false statements on DA Form 3575, or on any document in the appointment packet, can trigger a charge under Article 104a of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (formerly Article 83), which covers fraudulent appointment. The statute reaches anyone who procures an appointment by knowingly false representation or deliberate concealment of qualifications and receives pay or allowances as a result.⁵

Maximum punishment on conviction includes forfeiture of all pay and allowances, a dishonorable discharge, and two years of confinement. A dishonorable discharge strips eligibility for veterans’ benefits and creates lasting barriers to civilian employment. Courts-martial have also imposed bad-conduct discharges in Article 104a cases depending on the severity of the misrepresentation.

If You Fail to Meet the Obligations

The obligations you acknowledged are enforceable. Skipping unit training assemblies, ignoring correspondence, or failing to complete annual training can lead to administrative or disciplinary action. Outcomes depend on the circumstances and your commander’s discretion, and range from counseling statements to involuntary separation with a less-than-honorable characterization of service.

If you received a financial incentive tied to your service term and fail to complete the obligation, the Defense Finance and Accounting Service may seek recoupment of the unearned portion. Recoupment is generally not pursued when the inability to serve results from circumstances beyond the member’s control, such as a combat-related disability, but it will be pursued when the failure stems from misconduct.⁶

1
New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs. DA Form 3575 – Certificate of Acknowledgement and Understanding of Service Requirements
2
Joint Force Headquarters Maine National Guard. AR 135-91 Service Obligations
3
U.S. Army Recruiting Command. MILPER 19-080 FY20 Warrant Officer Applications
4
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Accessing or Requesting Your Official Military Personnel File
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 10 U.S. Code 904a – Art. 104a. Fraudulent Enlistment, Appointment, or Separation
6
MilitaryPay.Defense.gov. Recoupment General Rules