Download the form
DA Form 2385 exists to temporary grave/niche marker (s&i arlington national cemetery, attn: annc-a, arlington, va) — that is the short version. Title of record: TEMPORARY GRAVE/NICHE MARKER. The page covers the download, the entries and the disposition, nothing else. Current here: edition 10/01/2020, status ACTIVE, 1 page(s), near 116 fields. Superseded edition. A newer one is out; stay here only for files already executed on this version.
Authority sits in two places. OAC owns the form, PAM 290-5 says when it is raised and where it goes. Routine cases need neither read in full — the page itself carries the sequence. The entries are completed by their subject or by unit administrative staff working from what that person supplies.
The formats are PDF, XFDL, and the choice comes down to keyboard or pen. Fillable pdf for typing — live fields, tab order, saved entries. Printable pdf for handwriting — same page, no interactive objects, print it blank. Content is identical; only entry method differs.
A standalone reader is the safe choice for fillable work. Browser viewers vary in whether entered data survives the session, and there is no warning when it does not; a one-field save test settles it in seconds. Xfdl means IBM Lotus Forms. The Lotus Forms Viewer opens it; pdf readers and word processors do not.
Nothing is charged and no sign-up applies. Files are served as published, without changes to the page image.
What the form asks for
- BRNSER
- CHANGES
- ContentArea1
- DATE
- DAY_A
- DAY_B
- DAY_C
- DENOMIN
- GRADE
- GRAVENO
- Group1
- MO_A
- MO_B
- MO_C
- NAME
- NICCRT
- NUMBER
- PVTMON
- Page1
- R100
- R101
- R102
- R103
- R104
Start at the top and get the header exactly right. Official spelling of the name, identification number, unit, date. Everything downstream finds the record through those entries; nothing else on the page has that consequence.
Tab through the fields rather than clicking. The tab order was fixed when the form was built and generally follows the page, which catches boxes a mouse skips past. Check boxes and option buttons take a click, and an exclusive group clears the previous selection when you make a new one. Single-line fields do not wrap — text past the field width prints truncated while still showing in full on screen, which is why the loss is discovered after printing. Overflow goes to remarks or a continuation sheet. A field that does not apply gets the mark meaning none; blank space reads as an omission.
Sign last. An unsigned form is a draft whatever else is on it, and additional signatures — reviewer, approver, witness — follow printed block order with each signer dating the day they sign, not the day of preparation. Four faults account for most returns: a blank mandatory field, transposed digits in an identification number, day and month reversed in a date, and leftover entries in a working copy reused instead of a fresh blank. Read the form once from the top before releasing it.
Read the Privacy Act statement at the point it appears. Authority, purpose, routine uses, mandatory or voluntary — four facts, and they govern what you are about to enter. A completed copy holds personal data and takes the handling rules that attach to it.
Routing follows PAM 290-5 and nothing else — a named office, the unit administrative channel, or the individual's file, according to why the form was raised. Copy it before it leaves. Retention is fixed by the records schedule for the series, which local practice does not shorten or extend.
Related forms are found by series and number. DA series documents under the same proponent or the same prescribing directive are commonly required as a set, and any form named on the face of this one goes forward with it. Assemble continuations, covers and transmittals before submitting, not after the query comes back.
Edition date is the version number, printed on the page. Hold a locally saved copy against the current edition before reuse, since nothing on your machine signals a revision. Work already executed under a superseded edition remains as filed.
The files are copies of published Department of the Army forms. This site has no official connection, no authority to issue anything, and no basis for saying whether an office will accept a given submission. None of the text is legal advice. Real questions — entry, requirement, eligibility — belong with OAC or the administrative office servicing your unit.
Questions and answers
- What is DA Form 2385?
- TEMPORARY GRAVE/NICHE MARKER
- Which edition is current?
- 10/01/2020
- Who is responsible for this form?
- OAC
- In which formats can it be downloaded?
- PDF, XFDL, PDF