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A member of the Naval Reserve, serving on inactive
duty, may be transferred to the Individual Ready
Reserve or Standby Reserve when the hardship prevents
participation in the Selected Reserve but not
mobilization of the member, or may be discharged when
the hardship would prevent the member’s mobilization.
Cases of members on inactive duty are approved by
the appropriate SPCMCA and on completion sent to the
CHNAVPERS (PERS 913). In any case, the decision of
whether a hardship discharge should be granted is at the
discretion of the Navy. No member has an absolute right
to request discharge from the Navy due to hardship.
HARDSHIP DISCHARGE CRITERIA
The member’s request must show that the hardship
meets the following criteria:
A severe hardship exists, not normally
encountered and resolved by other members of the naval
service.
The hardship affects the service member’s
immediate family. Immediate family is defined as
spouse, son, daughter, stepchild (if stepchild is, in fact,
dependent on the member), parent, brother, sister, or
other person including a stepparent acting in loco
parentis for a period of 5 years before the member
became 21 years of age, or any bona fide dependent of
the service member. In-laws and grandparents are not
considered members of the immediate family solely by
virtue of their relationship as in-laws or grandparents.
The hardship is not of a temporary nature and
cannot reasonably be expected to be resolved within the
near future by using leave (including emergency leave
if overseas) or a period of TEMDU for humanitarian
masons to better the situation.
The hardship has occurred or has been severely
aggravated since entry into the service.
The member and family have made every
reasonable effort to ease the hardship.
There are no other family members or relatives
nearby who are capable of providing the necessary
assistance.
The discharge or release of the member will
result in the reduction of the hardship.
REASONS UNDER WHICH MEMBER MAY
NOT BE SEPARATED
Except under extraordinary circumstances as
decided by an SPCMCA, separation under the
MILPERSMAN, Article 3620210, will not be
authorized when the member is under charges or
confined. Additionally, separation will not be authorized
solely for the following reasons:
Financial or business reasons (including the
operation of a family business unless the business is the
sole income of the family and there are no other family
members capable or willing to operate it).
Indebtedness.
Personal convenience.
The member’s physical or mental health.
Moral support to an immediate family member
whose life expectancy is estimated by the attending
physician as less than 6 months. In this situation a
request for humanitarian reassignment should be sent
following
g u i d e l i n e s c o n t a i n e d i n t h e
ENLTRANSMAN, chapter 18.
Custody battles or divorce proceedings.
REASONS THAT MAY NOT BE USED
SOLELY TO PREVENT DISCHARGE OF A
MEMBER
A separation will not be disapproved for the sole
reason that the member is:
required in assigned duties, or
indebted to the government or to an individual.
Although an SPCMCA is charged with closely
monitoring special entitlement programs; for example,
selective reenlistment bonus (SRB), disapproval cannot
be made solely on failure of the government to recoup
monies for a hardship discharge.
CASES THAT WARRANT SPECIAL
CONSIDERATION
Extraordinary circumstances involving members of
the applicant’s family normally warrant special
consideration when it is proved that the member’s
presence is essential to ease the hardship and, in addition
to other requirements, includes but is not limited to the
following:
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