How to Fill Out and Sign DA Form 2062: Hand Receipt Types and Annex

To fill out DA Form 2062, the Army’s hand receipt, enter the issuing and receiving parties in the header, then list each item on its own line in the table with its National Stock Number, nomenclature, expendability and security codes, unit of issue, authorized quantity, and quantity issued. Both parties jointly inspect the property, and the recipient signs in ink to accept direct responsibility. The current edition is dated December 2023 and is available from the Army Publishing Directorate at armypubs.army.mil.

Before you touch a pen, understand what the signature does. Signing a DA Form 2062 creates direct responsibility for every item on the form: the obligation attached to a person who has signed a hand receipt, accepted a formal delegation, or been assigned as an accountable officer.1United States Army. Accounting for and Methods to Obtain Relief of Responsibility for Organizational Clothing and Individual Equipment That is why every field on the form has to be right before the signature goes down.

Header Blocks

The top of the form identifies the transfer. Fill in each block completely; abbreviations that seem obvious in your unit will not be obvious to an investigator two years later.

  • From: Name, rank, and organization of the person or activity issuing the property.
  • To: Name, rank, and organization of the person receiving it.
  • Hand Receipt Number: A locally assigned tracking number. Units typically tie the numbering to the property book account or to the sub-hand receipt holder’s name.
  • End Item Stock Number: The NSN of the major end item when the form is being used as a component hand receipt. Leave blank on a standard hand receipt that lists multiple unrelated items.
  • End Item Description: The nomenclature of that end item. Again, used primarily for component hand receipts.
  • Publication Number and Date: The technical manual number and its publication date, when the form lists components drawn from a specific TM.

The Table: One Line Per Item

The body of the form is a table. Each line describes one item or one grouping of identical items.

  • Stock Number: The 13-digit National Stock Number, written as a 4-digit Federal Supply Classification code followed by a 9-digit National Item Identification Number in the format 1234-00-567-8901.2eCFR. 41 CFR 101-30.101-3 – National Stock Number
  • Item Description: The official nomenclature from the Federal Logistics (FEDLOG) database or the applicable technical manual. Use the exact standard name, “RADIO SET, AN/PRC-152A” rather than “152 radio.” Mismatched nomenclature causes problems during inventories and when ordering replacement parts.
  • Expendability Code: A single character: N (non-expendable), D (durable), or X (expendable). Non-expendable items require property book accountability; durable items need hand-receipt control after issue but not property book tracking.3GlobalSecurity.org. FM 10-27-4 – Chapter 6 Property Accountability at Unit Level
  • Security Code: The Controlled Inventory Item Code (CIIC) from the supply catalog, indicating whether the item is controlled or sensitive.
  • Unit of Issue: EA (each), SE (set), KT (kit), and so on. Getting this wrong throws off quantity totals.
  • Quantity Authorized: The number the unit is supposed to have per the MTOE or TDA.
  • Quantity: The number actually being issued or on hand. Any gap between this column and Quantity Authorized should be documented on a shortage annex.

At the bottom of each page, write the current page number and the total number of pages. Multi-page hand receipts are common at company level and above, and the page count keeps sheets from being separated and lost during audits.

Which Kind of Hand Receipt Are You Preparing?

How you complete the form depends on what it is doing in the accountability chain. The same blank form serves several distinct purposes.

Primary Hand Receipt

Lists every property book item issued to a unit. The commander or designated Primary Hand Receipt Holder signs it to accept direct responsibility from the Property Book Officer. This is the broadest hand receipt in the chain and drives every sub-hand receipt below it.

Sub-Hand Receipt

Transfers direct responsibility for specific items from the primary hand receipt holder down to a subordinate, such as a platoon leader, squad leader, or individual soldier. Supply sergeants are responsible for ensuring every item on the commander’s hand receipt is signed for down to the user level.4Center for Army Lessons Learned. Command Supply Discipline Program Without sub-hand receipts, the commander personally absorbs liability for missing property.

Component Hand Receipt

Lists every part belonging to a single end item: accessories, tools, and attachments that ship with it. Components are drawn from the Components of End Item (COEI), Basic Issue Items (BII), and Additional Authorization List (AAL) sections of the operator’s technical manual. Pre-printed hand receipt TMs, the “-HR” series, provide overprinted DA Forms 2062 with all components already listed, which eliminates the need to build a component hand receipt manually.5Defense Logistics Agency. Preparation of Hand Receipt Technical Manuals When a soldier signs for a truck this way, they are also signing for the jack, tire iron, tow bar, and every other listed component.

Shortage Annex

Documents components missing at the time of issue. If a generator arrives without its fuel cap, the shortage annex records the gap so the receiving soldier is not held liable for something they never had. Attach it to the component hand receipt and update it as missing parts arrive or are ordered.

Temporary Loans Use a Different Form

For property loaned for 30 calendar days or less, use DA Form 3161 rather than modifying the permanent DA Form 2062. The temporary hand receipt does not change the primary hand receipt; the original holder retains overall accountability even while the property is signed out to someone else.6Virginia Defense Force. UMT Supply and Equipment

Serial Numbers and Sensitive Items

Sensitive items must be tracked by serial number on every hand receipt. That includes weapons, night-vision devices, navigation systems, GPS receivers, and communications security equipment.4Center for Army Lessons Learned. Command Supply Discipline Program Write the serial number on the same line as the item, and verify it matches the physical stamp or plate on the equipment before you sign.

Controlled Cryptographic Item equipment carries an additional marking requirement: every CCI component, including circuit boards and modular assemblies, must bear the designator “Controlled Cryptographic Item” or “CCI.”7United States Army Reserve Command. Controlled Cryptographic Item Confirm those markings during the joint inventory.

Inspect Before You Sign

Never sign a hand receipt without physically inspecting every item listed on it. This is the single piece of advice experienced supply sergeants repeat, and the one that junior soldiers most frequently ignore under time pressure. Both parties should conduct a joint inventory, checking each item against its line entry and confirming the NSN, serial number, quantity, and condition.

Note the supply condition code when an item is anything other than fully serviceable. The most common codes are Code A (serviceable, issuable without restriction), Code B (serviceable but restricted to certain units or areas), Code F (unserviceable but economically repairable), and Code H (condemned).8Defense Logistics Agency. Condition Codes If you sign for an item as Code A and it later turns up in Code F, you may be asked to explain the difference.

Once both parties agree the form reflects what is being transferred, sign in ink. The issuing authority keeps the original; the recipient keeps a copy. These documents are filed in the Unit Property Book Office or supply room. If your unit uses GCSS-Army, hand receipts can be generated and managed digitally down to the sub-sub hand receipt level, but printed copies with wet signatures remain standard practice in most units.

Keeping the Hand Receipt Current

A signed DA Form 2062 has no expiration date. It remains valid for accountability and financial liability purposes until the property is turned in, transferred, or the hand receipt is reissued. It does, however, have to be kept current. Change documents, typically DA Form 3161, must be posted to hand receipts and sub-hand receipts at least every six months, measured from the date of the oldest unposted change document.9United States Army. DA PAM 710-2-1 Using Unit Supply System Manual Procedures Many units post changes more often, and some local policies require hand receipts to be completely re-signed every 12 months even when nothing has changed.

Inventory frequency depends on the item. Explosives, firearms, and hazardous items require monthly inventories. Other sensitive items and unclassified CCI equipment require quarterly inventories. Any serial-number discrepancy found during these inventories must be reported immediately to the Property Book Officer and corrected under AR 735-5.

The form is the paper trail that ties a name to a piece of equipment. Fill it in fully, verify every entry against the item in front of you, and treat the signature block as what it is: acceptance of financial responsibility for everything above it.