PROCEDURAL GUIDANCE FOR MCO 1900.16 NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS IN ACCORDANCE WITH DODI 1332.14
MARADMIN 267/26 · June 9, 2026 · Source
If You Were Involuntarily Separated After Reporting a Sexual Assault, You Now Have a New Right to Fight It
A new message from Headquarters Marine Corps just changed how separation paperwork must be written.
It applies to every Marine facing involuntary separation. But there is a specific protection buried inside it that every Reserve Marine should know about.
Reference: MARADMIN 267/26, signed 08 June 2026. Implements DoD Instruction 1332.14 (Enlisted Administrative Separations, Aug 2024) via MCO 1900.16, the Marine Corps Separation and Retirement Manual (MARCORSEPMAN).
(Note: If those MCO links redirect or break, search "MARCORSEPMAN" at the Marine Corps Publications Electronic Library.)
The old problem
DoD updated its instruction on enlisted administrative separations in August 2024.
That update included a new protection for Marines who had made an unrestricted report of sexual assault and were then recommended for involuntary separation.
The problem: the Marine Corps separation notification templates were never updated to reflect it.
Commands were using forms that did not tell Marines this right existed.
Marines were being notified of separation without being told they could ask a General Officer to review their case first.
The new rule (in one line)
If you made an unrestricted report of sexual assault and your command tries to involuntarily separate you within one year of the final disposition of your case, you have the right to request a General Officer review before that separation is approved.
What this actually means
Here is the protection, translated out of the legalese:
The trigger conditions. Three things must all be true:
✦ You made an unrestricted report of sexual assault.
✦ You are recommended for involuntary separation.
✦ That recommendation happens within one year of the final disposition of your sexual assault case.
What you can do. You may submit a written request to the first General Officer or Flag Officer in your Separation Authority's chain of command.
That General Officer must review the circumstances and the grounds for your involuntary separation before the Separation Authority can approve the final action.
(This is a meaningful pause, not just a rubber stamp.)
The clock matters. You must submit that request before the final separation action is complete.
If you miss the window, the request will not be considered.
Your remaining option at that point is applying to the Board for Correction of Naval Records.
What changes on the paperwork. Commands must now add new language to four specific notification forms (Figures 6-2, 6-2A, 6-3, and 6-3A in the MARCORSEPMAN).
- The notification letter you receive must now include a paragraph explaining this right in plain terms.
- The acknowledgment form you sign must now include a checkbox confirming you understand it.
Both the letter and the acknowledgment have specific new language that commands are required to use verbatim going forward.
If you were already notified before this MARADMIN dropped. You are not locked out.
If your notification came before 08 June 2026 and you meet the trigger conditions above, you may still submit a written request to your first General Officer in the chain before final separation action is taken.
Do not wait.
Why this is a big deal
This closes a real gap.
A Marine could report a sexual assault. Then, within that same year, face involuntary separation. And never be told they had the right to have a General Officer look at whether that separation was appropriate.
Now they have to be told. In writing. At the time of notification.
For Reserve Marines, this matters for a specific reason. Involuntary separation proceedings can move differently across components, and the paperwork does not always get the same scrutiny that active-duty commands apply. If you are in the SMCR or IMA space and you find yourself in separation proceedings, you and your unit S-1 both need to know this language is required.
Do not sign an acknowledgment form that is missing it.
A smaller note for active-duty Marines
This MARADMIN applies to the Total Force, so active-duty commands are equally required to update their notification procedures.
If you are an active-duty S-1 or legal officer and your templates have not been updated yet, that is the immediate action item.
The bottom line
New mandatory language must appear in every involuntary separation notification going forward.
That language tells Marines who reported a sexual assault that they have the right to a General Officer review before separation is finalized.
If you were already notified and were not given this information, you may still be able to act. But the clock is running.
What to do with this
If you are a Reserve Marine currently facing involuntary separation:
- Check whether your notification paperwork includes the new language about the General Officer review right.
- If it does not, and you made an unrestricted sexual assault report within the past year of your case's disposition, contact your unit S-1 immediately.
- Do not sign the acknowledgment form until the correct language is present or you have spoken with a JAG officer.
If you are a Reserve unit S-1 or adjutant:
- Pull your current separation notification templates.
- Compare them against the new required language in MARADMIN 267/26.
- If your forms pre-date 08 June 2026, update them before processing any new separation actions.
- Brief your commanding officer that this is a compliance requirement, not optional.
If you are a Marine in the IRR who receives a separation notice:
- Read every paragraph of the notification carefully.
- If you made an unrestricted sexual assault report and your case was adjudicated within the past year, the new language should be in that notice.
- If it is not, contact MMSR-2 directly (POCs: Mr. Lucas X. Roman, lucas.x.roman@usmc.mil, or GySgt Jiawei Lin, jiawei.lin.mil@usmc.mil) or talk to a legal assistance attorney.
If you are unsure whether any of this applies to you:
Go to your S-1 first. If your unit does not have organic S-1 support, reach up to your supporting IRR management office or contact MARFORRES.
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 single-paragraph summary exists. Need a deeper breakdown of how the MARCORSEPMAN separation process works from notification to final action? That can be written too. Let me know.