How to Get and Renew the DD Form 2A Military ID Card

The DD Form 2A military ID card is the legacy paper-laminate Uniformed Services ID that the Department of Defense stopped issuing when it rolled out the Next Generation Uniformed Services Identification (USID) card in 2020. If you already carry a DD Form 2A, it remains valid through the expiration date printed on it. When you need a new card or a replacement, you will receive the Next Generation plastic version. Getting it requires enrollment in the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System (DEERS), a completed DD Form 1172-2, two original forms of identification, and either a visit to a RAPIDS office or, if you qualify, an online renewal through the ID Card Office Online (IDCO) portal.

Is Your Old DD Form 2A Still Good?

The Department of Defense began issuing the Next Generation USID card on July 31, 2020, and finished the rollout across all card facilities by December 2020. The new card is printed on plastic cardstock rather than paper laminate and carries updated security features intended to deter counterfeiting and fraud.¹

If your legacy DD Form 2A shows a printed expiration date, keep using it until that date. If it shows “INDEF” for indefinite, you can walk into a RAPIDS office at any time and swap it for the Next Generation version. Eligibility rules did not change with the redesign; the same populations who qualified for the old card qualify for the new one.¹

Who Qualifies for the Card

One clarification up front: active-duty service members do not receive a USID card. They carry the Common Access Card (CAC), which functions as both a military ID and a smart card for DoD computer systems. The USID card is for a different group. Eligible populations include retirees receiving retired pay, members of the Individual Ready Reserves and Inactive National Guard, reservists and National Guard members not on active duty, dependents of active-duty and retired service members, Medal of Honor recipients, and veterans with a 100-percent disability rating, among others.¹

Dependents of reserve component service members on active duty for more than 30 days also qualify for a dependent identification and privilege card.² The governing regulations are in 32 CFR Part 161.³

What to Bring Before You Apply

DD Form 1172-2

The DD Form 1172-2, “Application for Identification Card/DEERS Enrollment,” is the gateway document. It enrolls you in DEERS and initiates the card request in a single step. Without it, there is no enrollment and no card.⁴

Section I captures the sponsor’s information: full name, Social Security number or DoD ID number, status code, branch or organization, pay grade, citizenship, date and place of birth, current address, and duty location. For a dependent card, Section V collects the dependent’s name, date of birth, relationship to the sponsor, and Social Security number or DoD ID number.⁵

Sponsors with a CAC can digitally sign and submit the form through the IDCO portal, and a digital signature does not require notarization. If the sponsor signs with a wet signature but is not present at the RAPIDS appointment, that signature must be notarized. The form can also be signed using a general power of attorney with either a wet or digital signature.⁶

Two Original Identity Documents

Federal regulations require two identity documents in original form; photocopies are not accepted unless they are certified copies. The primary document must be a state or federal government-issued photo ID, such as a passport, driver’s license, or current DoD ID card. The second can be any acceptable document from the list specified in FIPS Publication 201-3. Neither document can be expired or cancelled.³

Non-U.S. persons must present a valid foreign passport as the primary identity document. A foreign government-issued photo ID can serve as the secondary document, and anything not in English must come with a certified English translation.³

Getting the Card at a RAPIDS Office

You pick up the physical card at a Real-Time Automated Personnel Identification System (RAPIDS) site. Book an appointment through the ID Card Office Online portal at idco.dmdc.osd.mil, where the site locator lets you search for nearby offices and reserve a time slot.⁷

Bring your two original identity documents and, if you are a dependent, your completed DD Form 1172-2. At the appointment, a Verifying Official inspects your documents, confirms your eligibility in DEERS, and takes your photograph and fingerprints. Once everything checks out, the card is printed on site.⁸

Renewing the Card

Renewing in Person

The renewal process mirrors initial issuance. Schedule a RAPIDS appointment, bring your two forms of ID, and have the Verifying Official process the renewal. Start within 90 days of your card’s expiration to avoid any gap.

Renewing Online

Eligible cardholders can skip the RAPIDS visit and renew through IDCO. The sponsor logs into the portal with a CAC, DS Logon, or myAuth credential, selects the card recipient, and submits the renewal request. The new card is printed and mailed via U.S. mail. Once it arrives, the sponsor or recipient acknowledges receipt through IDCO, which activates the new card and terminates the old one.⁹

To qualify for online renewal, the card recipient must have benefits extending more than 30 days into the future, a photo saved in DEERS taken within the last 12 years, an email address in DEERS with correspondence permissions enabled, and a U.S. mailing address (APO, FPO, and DPO addresses count). Records that are locked or restricted are not eligible, and neither are cardholders who need to present documentation to update their status. Those cases require a RAPIDS visit.⁹

Lost, Stolen, or Returned Cards

If your card is lost or stolen, go to the nearest RAPIDS site for a replacement. DoD policy requires that lost, stolen, or compromised cards be revoked in DEERS to prevent unauthorized use, so report quickly. Bring the same two original identity documents required for initial issuance.¹⁰

All DoD ID cards remain property of the U.S. government. When you separate, resign, retire, or otherwise end your affiliation with the Department of Defense, you are required to return the card. Retirees and others who remain eligible after leaving active service receive a new card reflecting their updated status rather than keeping their old one.¹⁰

What the Card Lets You Do

A valid USID card grants access to military installations and lets you shop at commissaries and exchanges. You must show the card at the commissary entrance or checkout.¹¹ The privileges attach to you as the cardholder; lending the card or allowing unauthorized use can get it revoked.

At civilian healthcare providers, you show the card at check-in for TRICARE coverage. Providers are permitted to copy it for their records. Claims are filed using the 11-digit DoD Benefits Number printed on the back, not the 10-digit DoD ID number on the front; using the wrong number can cause a denial.¹²

Uniformed service members and DoD civilians receive TSA PreCheck for both official and personal travel. The 10-digit DoD ID number doubles as your Known Traveler Number. Add it to your Defense Travel System profile for official trips and to your airline frequent flyer profiles for personal travel. If the number is not printed on your card, you can look it up in the “My Profile” section of IDCO.¹³

1
Department of Defense. Next Generation Uniformed Services ID Card
2
Military OneSource. How to Get or Renew a Military ID Card for Spouses, Dependents, Veterans and Retirees
3
eCFR. 32 CFR Part 161 – Identification Cards for Members of the Uniformed Services, Their Dependents, and Other Eligible Individuals
4
Department of Defense. DD Form 1172-2 – Application for Identification Card/DEERS Enrollment
5
Department of Defense. Instructions for Completion of DD Form 1172-2
6
Department of Defense. Getting Your Uniformed Services ID Card
7
Department of Defense. ID Card Office Online
8
Department of Defense. ID Card Lifecycle
9
Department of Defense. Online Uniformed Service Identification Card Renewal
10
Department of Defense. Managing Your Uniformed Services ID Card
11
Defense Commissary Agency. FAQs – Authorized Shopping
12
TRICARE. Showing Your ID to Providers
13
Defense Travel Management Office. TSA PreCheck