How to Fill Out and Submit the DA Form 2166-9 Series (NCOER)

To fill out DA Form 2166-9, start by selecting the version that matches the rated NCO’s rank, then work through Part I (administrative data), Part II (rating chain), the support form and counseling record, Part IV (performance assessment against the Army Leadership Requirements Model), and the senior rater’s potential assessment, before routing the report for signatures and submission through the Evaluation Entry System (EES). The form is completed electronically in EES under Army Regulation 623-3, and getting the administrative fields and rating chain right is what keeps the report from being kicked back by Human Resources Command.

Pick the Right Form in the Series

The 2166-9 series has three forms. Picking the wrong one is a hard-stop error in EES, so this is the first decision.

DA Form 2166-9-1 covers Sergeants (E-5) at the direct leadership level. Performance comments are written in bullets.
DA Form 2166-9-2 covers Staff Sergeants through First Sergeants and Master Sergeants (E-6 through E-8), focused on organizational leadership. Bullet format.
DA Form 2166-9-3 covers Sergeants Major and Command Sergeants Major (E-9). Uses narrative paragraphs instead of bullets to reflect the strategic scope of the role.

All three share the same Part I administrative section and Part II rating chain; the depth and format of the performance write-up change with rank.¹

Fill In Part I: Administrative Data

Part I identifies the rated NCO and the reporting period. Verify these fields before you open EES:

Unit Identification Code (UIC), entered exactly as assigned. An incorrect UIC prevents the system from routing the report.
Primary Military Occupational Specialty (PMOS) code.
Date of Rank.
DOD ID Number as the primary identifier. Use the Social Security Number only if a DOD ID is unavailable.¹
Report period FROM and THRU dates. Every day of the rating period must be accounted for with no gaps in the Soldier’s record.
Reason for submission. Common codes include Annual, Change of Rater, Relief for Cause, Complete the Record, and Promotion. Each reason triggers different validation rules in EES; an annual report, for example, must cover exactly twelve months with no nonrated time.²

Nonrated Time Codes

Any period during the rating window when the NCO was not under the rater’s supervision must be documented with a nonrated code. These cover extended leave of 30 or more consecutive days (Code E), hospitalization where the Soldier cannot perform duties (Code P), student status at a military or civilian school (Code S), and transit between duty stations (Code I). Other codes address confinement, temporary duty under 90 days, and time on the temporary disability retirement list. Enter the applicable code and the dates in Part I so the rating period reflects reality.³

Set Up the Rating Chain in Part II

Part II lists the Rater, Senior Rater, and (when required) the Supplementary Reviewer. Publish the rating chain in the unit at the start of the rating period rather than assembling it after the fact.

Minimum Supervision Time

A rater must have directly supervised the rated NCO for at least 90 calendar days on Active Component reports, or 120 calendar days for Reserve and National Guard NCOs. A Change of Rater report cannot be submitted unless this threshold is met.⁴

Who Can Serve as Senior Rater

Authorized senior raters include commissioned officers, warrant officers, and NCOs of the U.S. Armed Forces or Coast Guard, along with DOD civilians, Senior Executive Service members in DOD positions, and Ambassadors at U.S. Consulates. Members of allied armed forces may serve as raters (subject to the 90-day minimum) but are not authorized as senior raters.⁵

When a Supplementary Reviewer Is Required

A supplementary review is mandatory in three situations: when the senior rater holds the rank of Second Lieutenant through First Lieutenant, Warrant Officer through Chief Warrant Officer 2, or Sergeant First Class through First Sergeant/Master Sergeant; when no uniformed Army-designated rating official exists in the chain (all civilians or sister service members); or when someone outside the rating chain directs a Relief for Cause report. The supplementary reviewer must outrank the senior rater and hold the rank of Command Sergeant Major/Sergeant Major, Chief Warrant Officer 3 through 5, or Captain and above. If no supplementary review is required, mark “NO” in Part II, block c1 and leave that section blank.⁶

Use the Support Form and Counseling as the Foundation

DA Form 2166-9-1A, the NCOER Support Form, is not optional. It provides the documented foundation the final evaluation is built on. The rater completes portions of the support form at the beginning of the rating period, setting the performance objectives that will be measured later. Counseling then occurs quarterly.¹

Quarterly follow-ups let the rater document progress, address shortfalls early, and adjust objectives if the mission changes. The support form is also where ACFT results and body composition data are first captured during the period. When you write the evaluation, the counseling dates on the support form should align with the rating period. Missing or inconsistent counseling dates draw scrutiny during processing.

Complete the Performance Assessment in Part IV

Part IV assesses the NCO against the Army Leadership Requirements Model: three attributes (Character, Presence, Intellect) and three competencies (Leads, Develops, Achieves).⁷ For each area, select one of four performance levels:

Far Exceeded Standard
Exceeded Standard
Met Standard
Did Not Meet Standard

The box check must be supported by the written comments underneath it. A mismatch between the bullets and the box is a reliable way to get a report returned.¹

Bullet Comments on the 2166-9-1 and 2166-9-2

For Sergeants through Master Sergeants, write bullet-style comments for each attribute and competency field. Effective bullets start with an action describing what the NCO did and close with a result showing why it mattered. Each field has a line limit, so every word needs to carry weight.

Narrative Format on the 2166-9-3

For Sergeants Major and Command Sergeants Major, use narrative paragraphs. AR 623-3 directs this format so the report can capture how a senior enlisted leader influenced policy, institutional culture, and large-scale organizational outcomes.⁸ The format changes; the standard for specific, results-oriented evidence does not.

ACFT and Body Composition Entries

The Army Combat Fitness Test replaced the APFT as the fitness test of record on October 1, 2022. No APFT content is authorized on any evaluation with a THRU date of October 1, 2022 or later. Enter the ACFT result in Part IV, block a using the exact format: “ACFT :” followed by PASS, FAIL, PROFILE, or NO ACFT, then the date in YYYYMMDD. For example: “ACFT : PASS 20260315.” A passing numerical score is optional.⁹

Body composition data appears in Part V. As of January 1, 2026, the Department of Defense directed all services to stop using height and weight tables for body composition screening. The current standard is waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), with an upper limit of less than 0.55. Soldiers at 0.55 or above are further evaluated by a body fat calculation.¹⁰ Confirm your unit is applying the current standard before entering this data on the support form and evaluation.

Complete the Senior Rater’s Assessment

The senior rater assesses future potential rather than looking backward at completed performance. There are four labels:

Most Qualified: strong potential for early promotion, ahead of peers.
Highly Qualified: strong potential for promotion with peers.
Qualified: demonstrates potential to succeed at the next level; promote when able.
Not Qualified: does not demonstrate promotion potential; recommend separation.

For NCOs at Staff Sergeant through Command Sergeant Major, no more than 24% of a senior rater’s total ratings in a given grade can carry the “Most Qualified” label. EES enforces this automatically and will not allow a senior rater to exceed the cap. If a senior rater submits a PDF-fillable form outside EES and exceeds 24%, the report is automatically downgraded to “Highly Qualified” on receipt at HQDA, while the senior rater is still charged with a “Most Qualified” selection. This “misfire” permanently affects the senior rater’s profile.¹¹

The senior rater also identifies specific positions, schooling, and broadening assignments the NCO should pursue. A broadening assignment recommendation is included on all three versions of the form.⁵

Sign and Submit Through EES

EES is at evaluations.hrc.army.mil, and every user needs a valid Common Access Card to log in.¹² The signing sequence is enforced by the system; you cannot skip ahead.

Rater verifies the rated NCO’s rank, date of rank, and overall performance rating, then clicks “Rater Lock” followed by the signature button.
Rated NCO reviews and signs. The signature confirms the administrative data in Part I is correct and acknowledges the NCO has seen the evaluation. It does not mean the NCO agrees with the assessment.
Senior Rater reviews the full report, confirms the performance and potential assessments, and signs.
Supplementary Reviewer, if required, signs last to complete the chain.

EES distinguishes between a rated NCO who is unavailable for signature and one who actively refuses. A refusal is documented following procedures in AR 623-3; the report still moves forward, and the refusal becomes part of the record.⁸

Once all signatures are captured, the senior rater electronically submits the report to HQDA through EES. Human resource specialists conduct a final review before the evaluation is posted to the Soldier’s Army Military Human Resource Record.

Errors That Get Reports Returned

Every return delays when the evaluation reaches the Soldier’s record. The most frequent problems are avoidable:

Wrong UIC. An incorrect Unit Identification Code prevents the system from routing the report. Check against the unit’s official code before locking.
Gaps in the rated period. The FROM date on one report must follow the THRU date of the previous report with no unaccounted days. Use nonrated codes to bridge legitimate gaps.
Mismatched box checks and comments. If bullets describe “Met Standard” performance but the rater checks “Exceeded Standard,” the report comes back. AR 623-3 requires the written evidence to support the rating level.
ACFT entry format errors. The entry must follow the exact format (“ACFT: PASS 20260315”) with the colon, spaces, and date in YYYYMMDD. Entering an APFT result on any report with a THRU date after September 30, 2022 triggers a hard stop.⁹
Senior rater profile misfire. Selecting “Most Qualified” when the profile already exceeds 24% on a PDF-fillable form results in an automatic downgrade and a wasted top rating.¹¹

If a finalized report is later found to contain factual mistakes or an unjust assessment, AR 623-3 Chapter 4 and DA Pamphlet 623-3 Chapter 6 lay out administrative and substantive appeal procedures; substantive appeals must be filed within three years of the report’s THRU date.¹³

1
United States Army Human Resources Command. DA Form 2166-9 NCO Evaluation Report Series
2
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Evaluation Entry System 4.3.0 Release Hard-Stop and Soft-Stop Validations
3
Department of the Army. DA Pam 623-3 Evaluation Reporting System
4
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. AR 623-3 Policy Updates
5
Army Human Resources Command. Army Regulation 623-3 Module 2 Policy Updates
6
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Module 1 NCOER Overview
7
Department of the Army. Army Doctrine Publication 6-22 Army Leadership
8
U.S. Army Publishing Directorate. Army Regulation 623-3 Evaluation Reporting System
9
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Army Combat Fitness Test on Evaluation Reports
10
Department of Defense. Additional Guidance on Military Fitness Standards
11
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Senior Rater Profiling
12
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Evaluation Entry System User’s Guide
13
7th Army Training Command. NCOER Appeals