Title 10Armed ForcesRelease 119-73

§1041 Replacement of certificate of discharge

Title 10 › Subtitle Subtitle A— - General Military Law › Part PART II— - PERSONNEL › Chapter CHAPTER 53— - MISCELLANEOUS RIGHTS AND BENEFITS › § 1041

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary can issue a permanently marked replacement discharge to a person who was honorably discharged, or to their surviving spouse, if the original was lost or destroyed without their fault. The replacement cannot be used to claim pay, bounty, other allowances, or as evidence.

Full Legal Text

Title 10, §1041

Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

If satisfactory proof is presented that a person who was discharged honorably or under honorable conditions has lost his certificate of discharge from an armed force or that it was destroyed without his procurement or connivance, the Secretary concerned may give that person, or his surviving spouse, a certificate of that discharge, indelibly marked to show that it is a certificate in place of the lost or destroyed certificate. A certificate given under this section may not be accepted as a voucher for the payment of a claim against the United States for pay, bounty, or other allowance, or as evidence in any other case.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

10 U.S.C. § 1041

Title 10Armed Forces

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73