If You've Had a Medical Grooming Exception for More Than a Year, Read This

A new MARADMIN just updated the rules around medical uniform and grooming exceptions.

It introduces a formal separation process, a hard timeline, and a new form.

If you or a Marine in your unit has a grooming accommodation for a medical condition, this affects you directly.

Reference: MARADMIN 192/26, signed 23 April 2026. Updates MARADMIN 124/25. Underlying authorities include MCO 6310.1C (PFB policy), MCO 1020.34H (Uniform Regulations), and MCO 1900.16 (Separations and Retirement Manual).

The old problem

MARADMIN 124/25 set interim policy for medical grooming and uniform exceptions.

It was a placeholder. The separation process was vague. The form wasn't officially released. And the timeline for when separation could actually happen wasn't locked in.

Marines and commanders were working with incomplete guidance.

The new rule, in one line

If your medical condition keeps you out of standard grooming or uniform compliance for more than 12 months, you are now on a formal clock that can end in administrative separation.

What actually changed

Three things are new:

The official PFB accommodation form is now released and available.
The 12-month rule is now hardwired into the policy.
A step-by-step separation process is now in writing.

Here is how that process works.

Step 1. The form

The Pseudofolliculitis Barbae (PFB) Grooming Accommodations form is now live.

It is NAVMC Form 11830(03-25)(EF).

Download it from the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) forms website at https://forms.documentservices.dla.mil/order/.

You must download it to your desktop. It does not work properly in a browser window.

(Yes, it is that specific.)

Step 2. The 12-month clock

Any Marine requiring a medical grooming or uniform exception starts accumulating time from the first day of continuous treatment.

Twelve months is the ceiling before separation becomes a formal option.

No separation packages will be approved before 1 October 2026. That is a firm hold date built into this policy.

Step 3. The separation process, broken down

This is sequential. Commanders must follow it in order.

At 6 months of continuous treatment:

✦ Commander conducts an initial counseling session. ✦ That counseling is documented on a Page 11 (Administrative Remarks, NAVMC 118(11)). ✦ The Marine is formally notified that if their condition is not resolved within 12 months, separation is possible.

At 12 months of continuous treatment:

✦ Commander evaluates the Marine for continued service. ✦ Separation can be initiated if all three of these are true: the condition has not improved, it is not classified as a disability, and it adversely affects good order and discipline.

Before any separation action moves forward:

✦ The command must get a medical recommendation endorsed by a Medical Evaluation Board (MEB) Convening Authority. ✦ No separation proceeds without that endorsement.

Once the MEB-endorsed recommendation is received:

✦ Commander conducts a final counseling, again documented on a Page 11. ✦ Then separation is processed as follows:

For enlisted Marines: separation is processed as "Condition Not a Disability."

For officers: separation is processed as "Condition Not Constituting a Physical Disability."

Reenlistment code assigned: RE-3P (medical/physical standard).

Why this is a big deal

Before this, the policy had teeth but no spine.

Now it has both.

The Department of War issued guidance reinforcing that medical grooming modifications are temporary accommodations, not permanent exemptions. The Marine Corps is aligning with that guidance and formalizing what happens when the 12-month window closes.

For Reserve Marines, this is especially worth paying attention to.

If you drill monthly and are accumulating treatment time, that clock does not pause between drill weekends. Continuous treatment is continuous treatment. Talk to your unit S-1 now if you have any question about where you stand on the timeline.

The other shift is the MEB endorsement requirement. That is a meaningful guardrail. Commanders cannot move toward separation on their own judgment alone. A medical body has to weigh in first.

That protects Marines. But it also means the process, once started, is real.

A smaller note for active-duty Marines

This policy applies to the Total Force, so active-duty Marines are fully subject to the same 12-month rule, counseling steps, and separation process. The 1 October 2026 hold date on final separation approvals applies to you as well.

The bottom line

Medical grooming and uniform exceptions are temporary.

Twelve months is the limit. After that, a formal process begins that can end in separation. The process requires counseling at 6 months, evaluation at 12 months, MEB endorsement before action, and a final counseling before processing.

No separation can be finalized before 1 October 2026.

What to do with this

If you have a current PFB or medical grooming accommodation:

✦ Find out exactly how many months of continuous treatment you have accumulated. ✦ Ask your unit S-1 whether your timeline has been tracked. ✦ Download the updated NAVMC Form 11830(03-25)(EF) from the DLA site if you have not already used the correct version.

If you are a commander or staff NCO with a Marine in this situation:

✦ Audit your unit. Find out who has an active accommodation and how long they have been in treatment. ✦ If anyone is approaching or past 6 months, the initial counseling and Page 11 entry should already be done or scheduled now. ✦ Contact your SJA and medical officer before initiating any separation action.

If you are in the IRR or IMA and have a past accommodation:

✦ Check whether your condition or treatment history is documented in your record. ✦ If you return to an active drilling status, that history may be relevant. Talk to your gaining unit S-1.

For all Reserve Marines:

✦ Do not wait for your commander to find you. If you are affected, get ahead of it. ✦ Your unit S-1 is the right first call. Not this article.

This is written by a reservist, for reservists. It is not an official publication of HQMC or MARFORRES. Always verify guidance with your command or unit S-1 before acting on any article or summary.

Need a shorter version of this? A one-paragraph summary is available on request. Want a deeper breakdown of the MEB process or the RE-3P code implications? Happy to go longer on either.

CHANGE 1 TO MARADMIN 124/25, UNIFORM AND GROOMING STANDARDS FOR MEDICAL CONDITIONS