Title 10, Armed ForcesRelease 119-102
§8625 Navy Reserve Flag
Title 10 › Subtitle C — Navy and Marine Corps › PART IV — GENERAL ADMINISTRATION › CHAPTER 861 — SECRETARY OF THE NAVY: MISCELLANEOUS POWERS AND DUTIES › § 8625
Summary
Create a Navy Reserve flag; a U.S.-documented seagoing merchant vessel may fly it only if the Secretary, under his rules, designates it for wartime naval use and the captain plus half the licensed officers are Navy.
Full Legal Text
Title 10, §8625
Armed Forces, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
The Secretary of the Navy shall prescribe a suitable flag to be known as the Navy Reserve flag. This flag may be flown by a seagoing merchant vessel if—
(1)the vessel is documented under the laws of the United States;
(2)the vessel has been designated by the Secretary, under such regulations as he prescribes, as suitable for service as a naval auxiliary in time of war; and
(3)the master or commanding officer and at least half of the other licensed officers of the vessel are members of the Navy.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Historical and Revision Notes
Revised sectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 722550 U.S.C. 1048.July 9, 1952, ch. 608, § 409, 66 Stat. 499. In clause (3) the words “at least half” are substituted for the words “not less than 50 per centum”. The words “or Naval Reserve” are omitted as surplusage, since the Navy includes the Naval Reserve.
Editorial Notes
Amendments
2018—Pub. L. 115–232 renumbered section 7225 of this title as this section. 2006—Pub. L. 109–163, § 515(b)(3)(D), substituted “Navy Reserve” for “Naval Reserve” in section catchline. Pub. L. 109–163, § 515(b)(1)(T), substituted “Navy Reserve” for “Naval Reserve” in introductory provisions.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 2018 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 115–232 effective Feb. 1, 2019, with provision for the coordination of
Amendments
and special rule for certain redesignations, see section 800 of Pub. L. 115–232, set out as a note preceding section 3001 of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
10 U.S.C. § 8625
Title 10, Armed Forces
Last Updated
Aug 21, 2026
Release point: 119-102