DD Form 1597, the Contract Closeout Check-List, is the document an Administrative Contracting Officer (ACO) uses to verify that every required closeout action on a Department of Defense contract is complete before the file is closed in the system. The Defense Contract Management Agency requires the form, or its electronic equivalent in the MOCAS Contract Closeout (MCC) 1.5 eTool, for all contracts at or above the simplified acquisition threshold, and the ACO must sign it before the contract can be officially closed.1DCMA. DCMA Manual 2501-07 Contract Closeout The checklist tracks the fifteen actions listed in FAR 4.804-5 and feeds into DD Form 1594, the Contract Completion Statement that formally ends the contract.
When You Can Start
Closeout cannot begin until the contract is physically complete. Under FAR 4.804-4, that means the contractor has delivered all required supplies and the government has inspected and accepted them, or all services have been performed and accepted, and any option periods have expired.2Acquisition.GOV. 48 CFR 4.804-4 – Physically Completed Contracts A contract also qualifies if the government has issued a notice of complete termination.
Once physical completion is documented, FAR 4.804-1 sets target windows by contract type:
- Simplified acquisition procedures: close as soon as the contracting officer has evidence of property receipt and final payment.
- Firm-fixed-price contracts above the simplified acquisition threshold: 6 months.
- Contracts requiring indirect cost rate settlement (cost-reimbursement, time-and-materials, and similar): 36 months.
- All other contracts: 20 months.
These are targets, not statutory deadlines, but DCMA tracks them as performance metrics.3Acquisition.GOV. 48 CFR 4.804-1 – Closeout by the Office Administering the Contract
Where to Get the Form
The current DD Form 1597 is hosted as a fillable PDF on the Department of Defense Executive Services Directorate website.4Department of Defense. DD 1597 Contract Closeout Check-List DCMA personnel can also work in the MCC 1.5 eTool inside MOCAS, which mirrors the paper form and feeds closeout data directly into the contract administration system. The header fields capture the contract number, contractor name, purchasing office, and administering contract office. The body lists each required closeout action as a line item to be checked off, dated, and annotated.
Working Through the Fifteen Closeout Actions
The fifteen actions in FAR 4.804-5 are the backbone of DD Form 1597. Each line needs supporting documentation (a signature, a clearance letter, or a system confirmation) before the ACO can mark it complete. Not every item applies to every contract; annotate inapplicable items accordingly.5Acquisition.GOV. 48 CFR 4.804-5 – Procedures for Closing Out Contract Files
Financial Actions
Confirm the contractor’s final invoice has been submitted and paid. For cost-reimbursement contracts, that means the completion voucher reflecting all allowable costs. The invoice total should reconcile with the obligated amount; any difference flags a need for de-obligation or additional funding before closeout can proceed.
Settle interim or disallowed costs. If the Defense Contract Audit Agency has questioned or disallowed specific cost items during performance, resolve those disputes through negotiation, contracting officer final decision, or appeal before closing the file.
Settle prior-year indirect cost rates. This is the item that stalls most cost-type closeouts. Contractors submit incurred cost proposals within six months of their fiscal year end, and DCAA audits those proposals to establish final rates. Until every performance year is finalized, total cost stays uncertain. Complete the contract funds review at the same time and identify any excess funds for de-obligation.
Complete price revision for contracts with incentive, redeterminable, or economic price adjustment provisions. Confirm that final pricing reflects negotiated overhead rates, incentive fee determinations, and all modifications.
Property and Security Actions
Verify property clearance. All government-furnished property must have been returned, consumed, or disposed of per contract terms. The plant clearance report is a related but distinct item that documents screening and disposition of contractor-held government property at the performance site.
Verify disposition of classified material. If the contract involved classified work, the security office confirms that all classified documents and materials have been destroyed, returned, or transferred under National Industrial Security Program requirements.
Intellectual Property Actions
Clear the final patent report. Contractors file DD Form 882, Report of Inventions and Subcontracts, certifying whether any inventions were conceived or first reduced to practice during performance.6Department of Defense. Report of Inventions and Subcontracts (DD Form 882) Small businesses and nonprofits have six months after contract completion to file; other contractors have three months. Clear the final patent report within 60 days of receipt. A negative report is fine; the ACO documents it and moves on.
Clear the final royalty report, documenting any royalties paid for patented technology used during performance.
Contractor Obligations
Confirm the prime contractor has settled its subcontracts. The ACO verifies that the prime has closed out all lower-tier agreements and resolved any outstanding subcontractor claims. On large contracts with many subcontractors, this is frequently the bottleneck.
Confirm no outstanding value engineering change proposals remain open. Any VECP submitted during performance must be evaluated, accepted, or rejected before closeout.
Confirm the contractor’s closing statement is complete and, where applicable, the contract audit is finished. For cost-type contracts, the audit ties directly to indirect cost rate settlement and confirms the final billable amount.
Release of Claims and Termination Docket
Before final payment on cost-reimbursement contracts, the contractor must execute a release discharging the government from all liabilities, obligations, and claims arising under the contract, and must assign to the government any refunds, rebates, or credits allocable to reimbursed costs.7Acquisition.GOV. 52.216-7 Allowable Cost and Payment The contractor may reserve specific claims in exact or estimated amounts and preserve claims based on third-party liabilities not yet known, provided written notice is given within six years of the release date. Confirm receipt of a properly executed release before checking this item off.
Complete the termination docket if the contract was partially or fully terminated. Any termination settlement proposals need final resolution before the file can close.
Quick-Closeout Option
Contracts with relatively small unsettled indirect costs can skip full rate settlement. Under FAR 42.708, the ACO can negotiate a settlement of direct and indirect costs in advance of establishing final rates if the unsettled amount does not exceed the lesser of $1,000,000 or 10 percent of the total contract value.8Acquisition.GOV. 42.708 Quick-Closeout Procedure
Before using quick closeout, the ACO performs a risk assessment covering the contractor’s accounting and estimating systems, the auditor’s concerns, the contractor’s history with approved indirect cost rate agreements, any rate volatility, and recent mergers or acquisitions. The parties agree on a reasonable estimate of allocable costs, and that figure becomes final for the specific contract. No future adjustments apply, and the negotiated rate does not bind either party on other contracts.
Signing and Submitting the Completed Form
Once every applicable line item is verified and documented, the ACO signs the checklist and places a signed copy in the official contract file.1DCMA. DCMA Manual 2501-07 Contract Closeout Required closeout documents must be uploaded into the Integrated Workload Management System (IWMS) before the ACO signs. In the MCC 1.5 eTool, the electronic workflow routes the completed checklist through the system automatically.
The ACO then closes the contract in MOCAS using the Contract Closeout Application. The signed checklist must exist before this step; DCMA policy prohibits closing a contract in the system without a completed DD Form 1597 or its electronic equivalent. Closure triggers de-obligation of any remaining funds, freeing those dollars for use on other contracts or returning them to the appropriation.9DoD Procurement Toolbox. Contract Closeout Guidebook
What Happens Next: DD Form 1594
After the ACO completes DD Form 1597 and closes the contract in the administration system, the government generates DD Form 1594, the Contract Completion Statement, which notifies the procuring contracting office and other stakeholders that the file is closed.10Acquisition.GOV. PGI 204.804 Closeout of Contract Files The closeout date recorded in Block 9d of DD Form 1594 becomes the official file closure date.11GovInfo. 48 CFR 204.804 – Closeout of Contract Files
The procuring contracting office then closes its own files. Under FAR 4.804-2, the contracting officer verifies that all contractual actions are complete and prepares a statement to that effect, which becomes part of the official record.12Acquisition.GOV. 48 CFR 4.804-2 – Closeout of the Contracting Office Files Completion data is transmitted electronically throughout DoD so no further funding flows to the closed contract.
Record Retention
Closed contract files must be retained for six years after final payment, and that period applies whether the contract was above or below the simplified acquisition threshold. When the retention period expires, records stored in the Procurement Integrated Enterprise Environment (PIEE) are permanently destroyed, and the system creates a minimal data artifact confirming the file once existed.13DoD Procurement Toolbox. PIEE Records Retention and Destruction Records tied to ongoing investigations, litigation, appeals, or historical significance can be placed on an exclusion list to prevent destruction. Contractor record-retention obligations under FAR 4.7 may differ from the government’s six-year requirement, which can complicate later disputes if the contractor has already destroyed its copies.