DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY 
BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF NAVAL RECORDS 
701 S. COURTHOUSE ROAD, SUITE 1001 
ARLINGTON, VA 22204-2490 

Docket No: 2481-19 
Ref: Signature Date 
From: Chairman, Board for Correction of Naval Records 
To: Secretary of the Navy 

Ref: (a) 10 U.S.C. §1552 
     (b)OSD/DOD Name Change Provisions/Guidance 

Encl: (1) DDForm 149 with attachments 
      (2)Case Summary 

1. Pursuant to the provisions of reference (a), Petitioner, a former enlisted member of the Navy, filed enclosure (1) with this Board requesting achange to her naval record, specifically, to correct the record to reflect a name change.  Enclosures (1)and (2) apply. 

2.  The Board consisting of   reveiwed Petitioner's allegations of error and injustice on 13 June 2019, and pursuant to its regulations, determined the corrective action indicated below should be taken on the available evidence of record.   Documentary material considered by the Board consisted of the enclosures, relevant portions of Petitioner’s naval records, and applicable statutes, regulations, and policies. 

3. The Board, having reviewed all the facts of record pertaining to Petitioner's allegations of error and injustice finds as follows: 

a. Beforeapplying to this Board, Petitioner exhausted all administrative remedies available under existing law and regulations within the Department of the Navy. 

b. Although enclosure (1) was not filed in a timely manner, it is in the interests of justice to waive the statute of limitations and review the application on its merits. 

c. At the time of Petitioner’s enlistment into the Navy, Petitioner’s legal name was “.” On 18 December 1973, Petitioner was discharged from the Navy with an honorable characterization of service. In this regard, Petitioner was issued a Certificate of the Navy, specifically, “ 

d. Followingactive duty obligated service, Petitioner affiliated with the Naval Reserve.  On 15 February 1976, Petitioner was discharged from the Naval Reserve with an honorable characterization of service. In this regard, Petitioner was issued a “Record of Discharge from the U.S. Naval Reserve (Inactive)” serving in the Navy Reserve, specifically, “ 

e. After discharge from the Naval Reserve, Petitioner, who is a transgender woman, had her 

f. Based on theguidance reflected in reference (b)from the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) and Department of Defense (DOD), former military personnel who have legally changed their name and sex, or are the subject of gender reassignment, mayhave their DD Form 214 changed to accuratelyreflect their present name and sex/gender.  In this regard, thechange mayallow them to obtain various benefits, services, employment, etc., without being subject to otherwise invasive questions.  However, the provisions/guidance onlyapplyto the service­member’s DD Form 214, and as such, no further changes will be made to the record, including changinggender identifiers, except as specifically noted below. 

CONCLUSION: 

Upon reviewand consideration of all the evidenceof record, theBoard concludes Petitioner’s request warrants favorable action.  

The Board notedPetitioner has provided sufficient legal evidence (specifically, the 
Name Change Order from the Circuit Court of dated 23 February 1998, the Change of Gender Status Order from theCircuit Court of dated 27 October 1999, a birth certificate from the in the name of 
reflecting the gender identifier “Female,”a driver’s license from in the name of reflecting the gender identifier “F,”and a U.S. Passport in the name of supporting her request.  The Board found the legal actions taken by civilian authorities to change Petitioner’s name to align with her gender identity, along with the provisions/guidance of reference (b), support a change to her DD Form 214 and NAVPERS 1070/615 (Inactive) to reflect Petitioner’s legal name. 
In this regard, the Board noted that normallya DD Form 215 would be issued to correct the record, however, the Board concluded a new and updated DD Form 214 and NAVPERS 1070/615 (Inactive) are both warranted to eliminate the possibility of invasive questions. The Board further concluded that no other changes should be made to Petitioner’s record (including not making changes to gender identifiers), and that both the previously issued DD Form 214 and 
bearing the name “ should remain in the record for historical purposes.  


RECOMMENDATION: In view of the above, the Board directs the following corrective action. 

Petitioner's naval record, specifically, Block 1 of the DD Form 214, be corrected to reflect the 

Petitioner's naval record, specifically NAVPERS 1070/615 (Inactive) be corrected to reflect the 
appears. 

That no furtherchanges be made to the record. 

That, upon request, the Department of Veterans Affairs be informed that the Board received Petitioner’s application on 26 February 2019. 

4. It is certified that a quorum was present at the Board’s review and deliberations, and that the foregoing is a trueand complete record of the Board’s proceedings in the above-entitled matter. 

5. Pursuant to the delegation of authority set out in Section 6(e) of the revised Procedures of the Board for Correction of Naval Records (32 Codeof Federal Regulations, Section 723.6(e)), and havingassured compliance with its provisions, it is hereby announced that the foregoing corrective action, taken under the authority of reference(a), has been approved by the Board on behalf of the Secretary of the Navy. 

Executive Director