be prepared to provide information and
assistance to the person concerning procedures
to be followed in preparing the request.
PROCEDURES FOR REQUESTING
REASSIGNMENT FOR HUMANITARIAN
OR HARDSHIP REASONS
Humanitarian reassignment of Navy and
Marine Corps personnel is sometimes considered
whenever an individual requires more time than
normal leave can provide in order to resolve a
severe personal or family hardship. In some
cases, the RP may be requested to provide
detailed information concerning the procedures
for requesting humanitarian reassignment.
Procedures for documenting a request for a
humanitarian assignment may be found within
the Enlisted Transfer Manual (NAVPERS
15909B) and the MILPERSMAN for Navy per-
sonnel and within the Assignment, Classifica-
tion, and Travel System (ACTS) Manual (MCO
P-1000.6D) for Marine Corps personnel. The
RP should provide members who are requesting
a humanitarian reassignment with a current
copy, or a synopsis, of applicable instructions to
aid them in the preparation of the request.
The general criteria for determining the
eligibility of a Navy or Marine Corps member
for humanitarian reassignment will normally
include meeting one or more of the following
conditions:
The member has a hardship which is not
normally encountered by other members of the
naval service.
The hardship exists within the member’s
immediate family.
The member’s presence is required to
alleviate the hardship.
There are no other family members
capable of rendering the necessary assistance.
The decision as to whether or not a humani-
tarian reassignment will be made is based upon
the merits of each case which must be extensively
documented. If requested, the American Red
Cross (ARC) will assist a service member or
family member in obtaining and preparing the
supporting documentary evidence required by
military regulations.
If it appears that the situation will not be
resolved within the period of the humanitarian
reassignment, a hardship discharge may be
granted if approved by higher authority. Since
the decision to grant a humanitarian reassign-
ment or hardship discharge is made outside
of the local command, the RP should make no
statement about the possible outcome of such a
request.
THE INFORMATION AND
REFERRAL (I&R) DIRECTORY
The purpose of an Information and Referral
(I&R) Directory is to link people in need to the
sources that can provide the services required.
An I&R Directory can be an invaluable tool to
Navy chaplains in their efforts to assist Navy
and Marine Corps personnel and their families
in meeting and overcoming the problems that
they may encounter during periods of stress,
illness, crisis, or other emergencies.
The RP assists the chaplain by compiling,
maintaining, and providing up-to-date informa-
tion within an I&R Directory regarding Navy,
Marine Corps, and civilian programs, facilities,
and organizations which provide the services
necessary to help Navy and Marine Corps per-
sonnel and their families. The effectiveness of
an I&R Directory will largely depend upon the
diligence with which the RP compiles and main-
tains it. A large number of local agencies and
facilities that provide the services needed can
generally be found in most areas. Therefore, the
RP should conduct a needs assessment, with the
guidance of the command chaplain, in order to
identify the human services programs, organiza-
tions, and agencies which can best meet the
needs of Navy and Marine Corps personnel and
their families. Navy and Marine Corps Family
Service Centers can provide excellent advice and
information to the RP when a needs assessment
must be conducted.
Upon completion of the needs assessment,
which should include all quality human services
programs of military organizations and public
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