How to Fill Out and Submit AF Form 3994: Recommendation for Decoration

DAF Form 3902, Application and Approval for Off-Duty Employment, is the form Air Force military members and civilian employees use to request permission before taking a second job, freelancing, or starting a business. A quick clarification up front: AF Form 3994 is a decoration recommendation form, not an employment form. If you want approval for outside work, 3902 is the correct one, and you can download it from the Air Force E-Publishing site at e-publishing.af.mil.¹ The form has four sections. You fill out the first. Your supervisor, the base Judge Advocate, and your commander complete the other three, and you cannot begin the work until the commander signs.²

Who Has to Submit the Form

The requirement covers active duty, Reserve, Air National Guard, and civilian employees who want to take on compensated outside work.³ Three categories of activity trigger the process: off-duty employment (compensated work or self-employment), outside employment (personal services in a non-federal role), and business activities such as owning rental property or holding a business interest, even when you provide no personal services.

Civilian employees who file the OGE Form 450 or OGE Form 278e financial disclosure have an extra rule: they need prior written approval whenever the outside work involves a “prohibited source” — anyone who does business with their agency, seeks official action from it, or has interests affected by their duties.⁴ Civilian employees who do not file financial disclosures still have to report outside work to their supervisor, who documents the approval on the Supervisor’s Employee Brief.⁵

Filling Out Section I

Section I is the only part you complete. The rest is filled in by your chain of command during review.²

Applicant and Duty Information (Blocks 1–6)

Enter your name, grade, Air Force Specialty Code, organization and office symbol, duty phone, and duty title. Straightforward identification.

Employer Information (Blocks 7a–8)

List the employer’s name, business address, phone number, and whether the employer is a Department of Defense contractor. Answering “yes” to the contractor question triggers closer conflict-of-interest scrutiny, so don’t guess. Block 8 is your job title with the outside employer.

Schedule and Job Description (Blocks 9–11)

Block 9 asks how many days per week and hours per day you’ll work off duty. Block 10 is the description of what you’ll actually do. Be specific here. A vague entry like “general labor” holds up the review because the Judge Advocate cannot evaluate conflicts without knowing the real work. Block 11 records your normal military duty schedule, so reviewers can compare it against Block 9 and judge whether you’ll have adequate rest.

Certifications and Signature (Blocks 12–25)

Blocks 12 through 24 are certification statements. They cover commitments that the work will not interfere with military duties, will not require absences during duty hours, will not use government equipment or resources, and will not create a conflict of interest. Read each one before signing. Your signature at Block 25 certifies every statement is true, and misrepresenting any of them can lead to revocation and disciplinary action.

What Your Chain of Command Does

Once you sign Section I, the form moves through three reviewers in order.

Section II, Blocks 26–28 — Your immediate supervisor confirms the details, considers whether the schedule leaves adequate rest and whether the work could distract from unit readiness, and recommends approval or disapproval. A disapproval recommendation must include a written explanation.
Section III, Blocks 29–32 — The base Judge Advocate or an ethics counselor checks the request against the Joint Ethics Regulation, federal conflict-of-interest statutes, and DoD supplemental ethics standards. The JA either recommends approval or flags legal problems in the remarks section.⁶
Section IV, Blocks 33–36 — Your unit commander, or a designated approving authority, makes the final decision and signs Block 36.

Do not start working until Block 36 is signed. Beginning the job on a supervisor’s verbal go-ahead, before the commander approves, can be charged as a violation of Article 92 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.⁷

What Gets Denied

Three grounds justify denial: the work is prohibited by law or regulation, it would hurt readiness, or it poses a security risk.⁸ A few specifics come up often.

Conflicts of interest. If you participate personally and substantially in a government matter, you cannot work for a company with a financial interest in that matter.⁹ A contracting officer cannot moonlight for a company bidding on contracts their office evaluates. If your impartiality could reasonably be questioned because of a business or financial relationship, talk to your supervisor or an ethics counselor before submitting.

Prohibited sources for financial-disclosure filers. Filers need prior written approval before working for anyone who does business with their agency, seeks official action from it, is regulated by it, or has interests affected by their work, including organizations where most members fall into those categories.⁹

Marijuana industry work. Even in states where cannabis is legal, working in the marijuana industry is prohibited. Federal law and DoD policy still classify marijuana as a controlled substance, and violations can bring UCMJ punishment, installation bars, or loss of a security clearance.¹⁰

Use of rank, title, or uniform. You cannot use your military rank, title, or uniform in a way that implies Air Force endorsement of the outside employer. Serving in an official capacity on the advisory board of a defense contractor is also prohibited, though personal-capacity service may be possible after an ethics review.⁹ Work that requires regular absences during duty hours, uses government equipment, or could embarrass the service is reliably denied.

If your request is denied, the commander documents the reason in Block 35. The form itself does not build in a formal appeal, but you can generally request reconsideration by addressing the specific concern or by working with an ethics counselor to restructure the arrangement so it complies.

Renewals, Changes, and Revocation

Approval is not permanent. Most installations require annual renewal, and a new DAF Form 3902 is generally needed when you change duty stations, change supervisors, or change the nature or hours of the outside work. If your outside employer later wins a DoD contract, that is a changed circumstance you must report to your supervisor and ethics counselor right away. What was conflict-free at approval may not be anymore.

Commanders can revoke a previously approved request when circumstances change, whether from a deployment, higher operational tempo, or new information about a conflict. Once revocation happens, you must stop the outside work. Continuing after revocation is treated the same as working without approval to begin with.

What Happens If You Skip the Form

Working off duty without written approval is chargeable under Article 92 of the UCMJ as a violation of a lawful regulation.⁷ Maximum punishment for violating a lawful general order or regulation includes a dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and confinement for up to two years. Most cases are handled at a lower level through nonjudicial punishment under Article 15, a general officer memorandum of reprimand, or administrative separation, but court-martial is available.

Civilian employees face parallel consequences under DAFI 36-148, ranging from reprimand to removal.¹⁰ For both military and civilian members, a violation can also trigger loss of a security clearance, which often ends a career faster than the formal punishment does.

Taxes on Your Approved Side Income

Approval to work off duty does not change your tax obligations. The Air Force will not withhold taxes from your second paycheck. If you’re an employee of another company, that employer handles withholding. If you’re self-employed — freelancing, driving for a rideshare service, running an online business — you’re responsible for both income tax and self-employment tax.

The self-employment tax rate is 15.3 percent, combining a 12.4 percent Social Security tax and a 2.9 percent Medicare tax.¹¹ The Social Security portion applies to the first $184,500 of combined wages and net self-employment earnings in 2026.¹² If your military pay already exceeds that cap, you won’t owe the Social Security portion on your side income, but the Medicare portion has no cap. Self-employed members who expect to owe $1,000 or more beyond what’s withheld from military pay should make quarterly estimated payments using IRS Form 1040-ES to avoid an underpayment penalty.¹³

1
Department of the Air Force E-Publishing. Department of the Air Force E-Publishing
2
Ellsworth Air Force Base. Application and Approval for Off-Duty Employment
3
Air Force E-Publishing. Off Duty Employment, Outside Employment and Business Activities (ACCI51-500)
4
Federal Register. Supplemental Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Department of Defense
5
Department of the Air Force. DAFI 36-147 – Civilian Conduct and Responsibility
6
Standards of Conduct Office. Joint Ethics Regulation
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 10 USC 892 – Art 92 Failure to Obey Order or Regulation
8
Robins Air Force Base. Civilian Off-Duty Employment Requests
9
Department of the Air Force Ethics Office. Off-Duty Employment
10
Hanscom Air Force Base. Hanscom AFB Updates Marijuana Policy
11
Internal Revenue Service. Self-Employment Tax (Social Security and Medicare Taxes)
12
Social Security Administration. Contribution and Benefit Base
13
Internal Revenue Service. About Form 1040-ES, Estimated Tax for Individuals