SUBJECT: Army Directive 2018-12 (New Policy Regarding Waivers for Appointment
and Enlistment Applicants)
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4. Conduct Waivers. A conduct waiver is required when the final finding of a court or of
another adjudicating authority is a conviction or other adverse adjudication of any of the
following: one major misconduct offense, two misconduct offenses, or a pattern of
misconduct. Army policy with respect to all conduct waivers not referenced in this
directive remains unchanged. For all waiver requests, the applicant must display
sufficient mitigating circumstances that clearly justify approving the waiver.
a. Waiver authorities and consideration for misconduct offenses identified in
enclosures 2 and 3 are withheld to “the Recruiting Battalion Commander or State
Adjutant General for the Army National Guard (ARNG), unless otherwise noted in this
directive. Any single misconduct offense listed in enclosure 3 that results in a court
sentence of a fine of $500 or more or any confinement will be withheld to the DMPM.
b. The waiver authority for any single offense identified in enclosure 4 is withheld to
the DMPM. This includes a positive drug or alcohol test at the Military Entrance
Processing Station (MEPS). Any other drug-related incident not involving a medical
diagnosis will be treated as misconduct in accordance with this paragraph.
c. Any applicant with a State or Federal conviction, or a finding of guilty in a juvenile
adjudication, for a felony crime of rape, sexual abuse, sexual assault, incest, any other
sexual offense, or when the disposition requires the person to register as a sex
offender, will not be considered for a waiver. Any applicant with a conviction qualifying
under sections 922(d)(9) and 922(g)(9) of Title 18, United States Code, will not be
granted a waiver for entrance into military service.
d. Applicants with prior military service who were separated or discharged from any
branch of military service for conduct identified as misconduct in the enclosures, require
an enlistment, appointment, or induction waiver from the DMPM. Requests will be
submitted through the appropriate waiver authority identified in Army Regulation
(AR) 135-100, paragraph 1-8; AR 601-100, paragraph 1-13; and AR 601-210,
paragraph 4-7, who will provide a recommendation on approval or disapproval to the
DMPM.
5. Education and Trainability for Applicants Requiring Waivers. All applicants
considered for appointment, enlistment, or induction in the Regular Army (RA), ARNG,
and U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) who require waivers for conditions set forth in
paragraph 3, or conduct listed in enclosures 3 and 4, must still meet the education
standards in AR 601-100, paragraph 1-10 and AR 601-210, paragraph 2-7. These
applicants must also meet the trainability standard in AR 601-210, paragraph 2-8. As
an exception to AR 601-210, paragraph 2-8, these applicants must achieve a test score
category of I-IIIA (TSC I-IIIA).