What Is a GOMAR? Military Reprimand, Rebuttal, and Appeal

A GOMAR, more properly spelled GOMOR, is a General Officer Memorandum of Reprimand: a formal written censure signed by a general officer in the U.S. Army that documents conduct falling below the standards expected of a soldier. It is not criminal punishment. It is an administrative action, and that technical status is what makes it both survivable and, when permanently filed, career-ending. A GOMOR sitting in your permanent record is visible to every promotion board and assignment manager for the rest of your service.

GOMAR, GOMOR, and What the Letter Actually Is

The two spellings refer to the same thing. GOMOR is the standard abbreviation; GOMAR is a common variant. Either way, the document is a letter of reprimand written and signed by a general officer, typically a general court-martial convening authority.¹

Lower-ranking officers and NCOs can issue their own letters of reprimand, but those carry far less weight. What gives a GOMOR its force is the rank of the person signing it and the fact that a general officer can direct it to be filed permanently in the Army Military Human Resource Record (AMHRR), where promotion boards and career managers will see it for the remainder of the soldier’s career.

Because a GOMOR is administrative rather than punitive, it does not trigger the constitutional protection against double jeopardy. A commander can issue a GOMOR alongside nonjudicial punishment under Article 15 for the same incident.

Conduct That Leads to a GOMOR

There is no fixed list of qualifying offenses. The issuing general has broad discretion, and a GOMOR can follow any serious conduct deemed below Army standards.¹ Recurring categories include:

UCMJ violations such as failing to obey a lawful order or regulation, dereliction of duty, or conduct that discredits the service.²
Civilian criminal charges, particularly DUI, domestic violence, or drug offenses.
SHARP violations, including sexual harassment and sexual assault, and equal opportunity infractions.
Toxic leadership or abuse of authority.
Ethical failures such as fraud, misuse of government resources, or dishonesty in official matters.

A conviction is not required. GOMORs are often issued where the evidence supports formal documentation but the command chooses an administrative response rather than court-martial.

How the Process Works

The process begins with a written notification that describes the alleged misconduct, summarizes the evidence, and states the soldier’s right to submit a rebuttal. Soldiers generally have seven calendar days from receipt to respond, though extensions are often granted on request.³

After the general reviews the rebuttal, or after the deadline passes without one, three outcomes are possible:

Not filed. The general withdraws the reprimand and nothing goes into the soldier’s record.
Filed locally. The GOMOR goes into a local personnel file visible to the chain of command but not to promotion boards or Human Resources Command. A local filing is removed at the soldier’s next PCS or after three years, whichever comes first.⁴
Filed permanently. The GOMOR goes into the performance section of the AMHRR, where it stays for the rest of the soldier’s career unless successfully appealed.⁴

The gap between local and permanent is enormous. Local stings but fades. Permanent follows a soldier through every career decision from that point forward.³

What a Permanent Filing Does to a Career

A permanently filed GOMOR is visible to promotion boards, assignment managers, and reenlistment authorities. In most cases it derails the career it lands in. The specific effects include:

Promotion boards see the GOMOR and typically pass over the soldier. Repeated non-selection can itself trigger involuntary separation.
A security clearance can be denied or revoked, which may leave the soldier unable to perform assigned duties.
Reenlistment is frequently barred.
PCS moves and special duty assignments can be blocked.
For NCOs, referral to the Qualitative Management Program (QMP) can follow, which reviews whether the soldier should be denied continued service. For officers, a Board of Inquiry or show-cause proceeding can determine whether they should be involuntarily separated.⁵

The QMP applies to NCOs from staff sergeant through command sergeant major.⁶

GOMOR and Article 15 for the Same Incident

Yes, a commander can issue both. Because a GOMOR is classified as an administrative action rather than punishment, double jeopardy does not apply. An Article 15 is nonjudicial punishment; a GOMOR is a written censure. They serve different purposes.

One argument defense counsel sometimes raise is that if the Article 15 already imposes a reprimand as one of its punishments, adding a separate GOMOR is cumulative. That argument occasionally persuades the imposing authority to choose one instrument or the other, but no regulation prohibits both.

Rebutting a Proposed GOMOR

The seven-day rebuttal window is the single most important chance to influence the outcome. Once a GOMOR is permanently filed, reversing it is far harder. A strong rebuttal can persuade the general to withdraw the reprimand entirely or to file it locally instead of permanently.

The right approach depends on the evidence. If the evidence is overwhelming, acknowledging the conduct and focusing on mitigation and context is often more effective than a denial the general will not credit. If the evidence is ambiguous or disputed, a detailed factual rebuttal with supporting documentation gives the general reason to doubt the underlying allegations.

Elements that strengthen almost any rebuttal:

Address the facts directly. Explain what happened from your perspective and, where you dispute the allegations, point out specific weaknesses in the evidence.
Attach supporting documents, such as witness statements, text messages, or official records that corroborate your version.
Include character letters from supervisors, peers, and subordinates. Each should explain how the author knows you, their assessment of your character, and why they believe the GOMOR is disproportionate or unwarranted.
Highlight your service record. Awards, favorable evaluations, deployment history, and successful assignments show that the conduct in question is not representative.

Do not skip the rebuttal even if the outcome feels inevitable. An empty rebuttal package tells the general there is nothing favorable to weigh against the misconduct. Every document and letter submitted becomes part of the record and can support a later appeal if the GOMOR is filed permanently.³

Appealing a Permanently Filed GOMOR

Two levels of formal appeal exist after permanent filing.

Department of the Army Suitability Evaluation Board

The DASEB is the first stop. It reviews requests from soldiers in grades E-6 and above, along with officers and warrant officers. Soldiers below E-6 can appeal only through an exception to policy.⁷ There is no filing deadline, but a denied request cannot be resubmitted for at least one year.

The DASEB can do two things. It can remove the GOMOR entirely, which requires clear and convincing evidence that the reprimand is untrue or unjust. That is a high bar, and appeals that assert injustice without evidence are returned. Or it can transfer the GOMOR to the restricted section of the AMHRR, hiding it from promotion boards while leaving it technically on file. Transfer requires showing that the GOMOR has served its purpose, demonstrating remorse, having at least one positive evaluation since the filing, and no repeat of the conduct. A letter of support from the original imposing authority helps considerably, and the soldier must also explain how the transfer serves the Army’s best interest.⁷

Transfer is a more realistic goal than removal. It does not erase the record, but moving it out of the performance section means routine board reviews no longer surface it.

Army Board for Correction of Military Records

If the DASEB denies the appeal, the next step is the ABCMR, which has broader authority to correct errors and injustices in military records. Soldiers apply using DD Form 149.⁸ The process often takes many months and gives a second independent review of whether the GOMOR should remain in the record.

Effect on Retirement

Soldiers who are already retirement-eligible when a GOMOR is filed face a specific risk. A permanent GOMOR can trigger a grade determination review, in which HRC examines whether the soldier served honorably at their current rank. If the review concludes they did not, the soldier can be retired at a lower grade, which directly reduces retirement pay. In some cases, soldiers have been reduced by more than one grade for retirement purposes.

For soldiers who have not yet reached 20 years, a permanent GOMOR often triggers a board deciding whether they will be allowed to continue serving. Losing that board means separation before retirement eligibility and forfeiture of the pension.

Effect on Discharge and VA Benefits

When a GOMOR leads to involuntary separation, the discharge characterization determines which veterans benefits survive. An officer separation board can recommend an honorable discharge, a general discharge under honorable conditions, or an other-than-honorable discharge, depending on the underlying conduct.⁹

An other-than-honorable discharge is the most damaging. It creates a presumptive bar to most VA benefits, including healthcare, disability compensation, and home loan guarantees. A general discharge under honorable conditions preserves most VA benefits but disqualifies the service member from the Montgomery GI Bill, which specifically requires an honorable discharge.¹⁰ Post-9/11 GI Bill eligibility also depends on discharge characterization along specific pathways.¹¹

Equivalents in Other Branches

The term GOMOR (or GOMAR) is specific to the Army. Every branch has an equivalent mechanism. The Air Force uses letters of reprimand that can be placed in an Unfavorable Information File, visible to commanders and promotion boards for a set period. The Navy and Marine Corps use similar administrative letters of censure from flag officers. The underlying concept is the same: a senior leader’s written finding that a service member’s conduct was unacceptable, placed in a record where it shapes future career decisions. Regulations, filing procedures, and appeal routes differ, so service members outside the Army should consult their branch’s JAG office for the applicable rules.

1
U.S. Army. General Officer Memorandum of Reprimand and Letters of Reprimand
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. United States Code Title 10 – Section 892
3
U.S. Army Fort Bliss. The Importance of Rebutting GOMORs
4
U.S. Army Fort Leonard Wood. The GOMOR Appeal Process
5
Department of the Army. FY22 Qualitative Management Program Frequently Asked Questions
6
DVIDS. What Soldiers Should Know About the Qualitative Management Program
7
U.S. Army. Request for Transfer of General Officer Memorandum of Reprimand
8
Army Review Boards Agency. ABCMR Frequently Asked Questions
9
Department of Defense. DoD Instruction 1332.14 – Enlisted Administrative Separations
10
Veterans Affairs. GI Bill And Other Education Benefit Eligibility
11
Veterans Affairs. Post-9/11 GI Bill