IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 31 March 2023 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20220009436 APPLICANT REQUESTS: in effect, remission or cancellation of debt and ensuring interest incurred as the result of Serviceman Group Life Insurance (SGLI) payments; and rectification of his credit scores. APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENT(S) CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: * DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record), 27 June 2022 * Self-authored Statement, 29 March 2023 * email from Recruiter, U.S. Army Health Care Recruiting Center, Deerfield, to applicant, 18 April 2017 * email from Applicant to Recruiter, USAHCRC, Deerfield, 11 May 2017 * email from Recruiter, USAHCRC, Deerfield, to Applicant, 16 May 2017 * Defense Finance Accounting Center (DFAS) invoice, 29 April 2022 * DFAS letter, 29 April 2022 * DFAS invoice, 31 May 2022 FACTS: 1. The applicant did not file within the 3-year time frame provided in Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1552(b); however, the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) conducted a substantive review of this case and determined it is in the interest of justice to excuse the applicant's failure to timely file. 2. The applicant states, in effect: a. In 2017 he was an Indian citizen living in the U.S. on a J1 visa. In 2016, he began an application process to enter the Army as an officer in the medical corps in the specialty pediatric cardiologist under the Miliary Accessions Vital to National Interest (MAVNI) program. Due to administrative delays in his background check and delays with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) verification of his status, he was unable to complete his accession into the Army. His recruiter also informed him the MAVNI program may be ending. b. He found other employment as a pediatric cardiologist, he signed a contract, and he notified his recruiter by email that he was not able to complete his contract to become a medical officer. It was the last communication he had with the Army in 2017. c. He never received any benefits or pay from the Army and was not an American citizen. We wanted to join the Army to help him get citizenship but due to the delays he had to find other employment. d. In June 2022, he received a letter from DFAS notifying him he had SGLI debt. His debt was reported to the credit bureau and has affected his credit score. e. Since then he has not been able to contact his recruiter and the recruitment center in had closed since the Covid pandemic. His wages were garnished from the debt and his credit score was adversely affected since the debt collection agencies reported him to the credit bureau. f. He hopes his situation is clear and the miliary review board sees the injustice done to him. 3. The applicant provided copies of: a. His DD Form 214 application with a self-authored statement. b. Email sent between the applicant and his recruiter, 18 April 2017, 11 May 2017, and 16 May 2017, in which delays in the accession process resulting in him having to seek employment elsewhere. He notified his recruiter that he had not heard back from USCIS or Homeland Security, so he was moving on with other employment options. His recruiter confirmed he received the email. c. A DFAS letter, 29 April 2022 with an invoice for SGLI debt of $16,73.81 with $0.91 interest for a total of $1,674.72 in arrears. The debt reason noted was for SGLI premiums paid on his behalf for the period 24 July 2017 through 23 September 2021. The invoice further reads, the premiums were paid because he had an active payroll account that was not separated until recently by his prior unit/finance office. Please contact your prior unit/finance office. If you feel the debt is in error, the finance office must submit a DD Form 139 or provide a copy of your discharge orders showing you were separated in a status which is prohibitive from being covered in the SGLI program. d. A DFAS invoice, 31 May 2022, showing SGLI debt of $1674.22 with interest of $1.41 for a total of $1676.13 in arrears. 4. A review of the applicant’s available service records shows: a. On 14 June 2016, he completed an entrance medical examination (DD Form 2808), he gave a medical history (DD Form 2807), and he was found qualified for service. b. His records are void of a DD Form 4 (Enlistment or Reenlistment Document – Armed Forces of the United States), or a DA Form 71 (Oath of Office) showing he accessed into the Army Reserve Component. His records are void orders to active duty for training, a DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty), and separation orders. c. No other documents are available in iPerms for review. BOARD DISCUSSION: After reviewing the application, all supporting documents, and the evidence found within the military record, the Board found that relief was warranted. The applicant’s contentions, the military record, and regulatory guidance were carefully considered. Documentation of record shows that the applicant was to enter the Army as an officer in the medical corps in the specialty pediatric cardiologist under the Miliary Accessions Vital to National Interest (MAVNI) program. His record is void documentation indicating he served any period of active duty or was otherwise eligible for Serviceman Group Life Insurance. However, at no fault of his own, DFAS documentation reflects indebtedness in the amount the applicant contests. Based on the preponderance of evidence available for review, the Board determined the evidence presented sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. BOARD VOTE: Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 :X :X :X GRANT FULL RELIEF : : : GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF : : : GRANT FORMAL HEARING : : : DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined the evidence presented is sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by: * immediate cancellation of any remaining erroneous debt * repayment of any monies recouped, the amount of which to be determined by the Defense Finance and Accounting Services I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case. ? REFERENCES: 1. Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military records must be filed within 3 years after discovery of the alleged error or injustice. This provision of law also allows the ABCMR to excuse an applicant's failure to timely file within the 3-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines it would be in the interest of justice to do so. 2. Army Regulation 15-185 (Army Board for Correction of Military Records) prescribes the policies and procedures for correction of military records by the Secretary of the Army acting through the ABCMR. The ABCMR begins its consideration of each case with the presumption of administrative regularity. The applicant has the burden of proving an error or injustice by a preponderance of the evidence. 3. Miliary Accessions Vital to National Interest (MAVNI) Recruitment Pilot Program. The Secretary of Defense authorized the military services to recruit certain legal aliens whose skills are considered vital to the national interest. Those holding critical skills – physicians, nurses, and certain experts in language with associated cultural backgrounds – would be eligible. To determine its value in enhancing military readiness, the limited pilot program will recruit up to 5,200 people in Fiscal Year 2016 and would continue through September 30, 2016. a. Eligibiltiy. The applicant must be in one of the following categories at time of enlistment: (1) asylee, refugee, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), or (2) nonimmigrant categories E, F, H, I, J, K, L, M, O, P, Q, R, S, T, TC, TD, TN, U, or V 2. b. The applicant must have been in valid status in one of those categories for at least two years immediately prior to the enlistment date, but it does not have to be the same category as the one held on the date of enlistment; and c. An applicant who may be eligible on the basis of a nonimmigrant category at time of enlistment (see 1b above) must not have had any single absence from the United States of more than 90 days during the 2 year period immediately preceding the date of enlistment. d. An applicant who is eligible under a-c above is not rendered ineligible by virtue of having a pending application for adjustment of status to lawful permanent residence. In the specific case of an alien with H nonimmigrant status at the time of filing a pending application for adjustment of status who has lost such status while his or her application for adjustment was pending, and who is otherwise eligible for enlistment under the MAVNI program, the military Service may on a case-by-case basis waive the requirement that the alien be in a status described in a above at the time of enlistment. e. Individuals who have been granted deferred action by the Department of Homeland Security pursuant to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals process are eligible for consideration. 4. Title 10, United States Code (U.S. Code), section 1552 states the Secretary of a military department may correct any military record of the Secretary’s department when the Secretary considers it necessary to correct an error or remove an injustice. 5. Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1552, the law which governs the operation of the Board, states that “The Secretary may pay, from applicable current appropriations, a claim for the loss of pay, allowances, compensation, emoluments, or other pecuniary benefits, or the repayment of a fine or forfeiture, if, as a result of correcting a record under this section, the amount is found to be due the claimant on account of his or another’s service in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps or Coast Guard, as the case may be.” //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20220009436 1 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1