Navy · Awards & Recognition · OPNAV 1650/3, Rev. AUG-2024 edition

Personal Award Recommendation (OPNAV 1650/3)

The Navy personal award recommendation, blocks 1–34: originating and approval commands, the nominee, award and action type, the summary of action, certification, endorsements, and disposition. Includes a proposed-citation draft.

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Every block on the OPNAV 1650/3

Laid out block for block like the official PERSONAL AWARD RECOMMENDATION (Rev. AUG-2024 edition), with the instruction for each block. Name, rank, and unit prefill from your service profile.

Form details

1
Originating Command — a. Name
b. Address
c. UIC/RUC
2
Approval Authority Command — a. Name
The command with authority to approve the recommended award (see SECNAV M-1650.1 and your chain's awards instruction).
b. Address
c. UIC/RUC
3
Originating Command POC — a. Name
b. Email
4
Phone — a. DSN
b. COM
5
Exp. Date of Active Duty and Retirement/Separation — a. Expiration date of active duty
Format DD MMM YYYY.
b. If retirement/separation, number of years
Years of service for a retirement or separation award.
6
DoD ID or SSN (DoD ID preferred when available)
7
Desig/NEC/MOS
8
Detachment or Ceremony Date (whichever date is earliest)
DD MMM YYYY. It should match the merit end date.
9
Name (Last, First, Middle, Suffix)
10
Award type
11
Component
12
New Duty Station Address (home address for retirement or separation)
13
Paygrade and Rating — a. Pay grade
b. Rating
14
Warfare Qualification
15
Unit at Time of Action/Service
16
Duty Assignment
17
UIC/RUC
UIC/RUC of the unit in block 15.
18
Campaign and Operation — a. Campaign
b. Operation
An operation not listed in 18a, if any.
19
Previous Personal Decorations and Period Recognized (include PH and CR)
Use two-letter award codes with the period recognized.
20
Recommended Award — a. Select recommended award
The full list on the form runs from the Medal of Honor to Letter of Commendation. The two-letter code goes in blocks 19, 22, and 32.
b. Extraordinary heroism recommended
21
Action type
22
Personal Awards Recommended-Not Yet Approved
Two-letter codes and merit dates of any awards already recommended but not yet approved.
23
Recommended Award Number (e.g., 1, 2, 3, etc.)
Which award of this type this would be for the member (a 2nd NAM is 2).
24
Other Personnel Recommended for the Same Action
Rank, name, and component of anyone else recommended for the same act or period.
25
Action Date/Meritorious Period — from
Start and end dates, DD MMM YYYY. The end date cannot include travel or terminal leave.
to
26
Rank, Name, and Component of Predecessor (for O-6 and above)
27
Geographic Area of Action or Service
Pick from the form's list (e.g., US CONUS, Alaska, Territories, Canada; HA Hawaii; MS Mediterranean Sea; IO Indian Ocean; AG Southwest Asia; MU Multiple Locations).
28
If Foreign National, Indicate Foreign Service/Country
29
Summary of Action (For Navy personnel in Navy units, the Summary of Action is optional for the NC and NA)
The justification. Describe the member's specific accomplishments during the period, with dates, scope, and measurable results, and show why they merit this award over a lower one. See SECNAV M-1650.1, Appendix 2D. Keep it to two pages.
30
I certify that the facts contained in the Summary of Action are:
31
Originator — a. Name (Last, First, Middle Initial)
b. Rank/Grade
c. Title of the Originator
d. Component
e. Signature
f. Date
32
Forwarding Endorsements by Via Addressee(s)
One row per command the recommendation passes through. Each endorser can concur or recommend a different award.
33
Personal Award Disposition (to be completed by the approval authority)
34
NDAWS Serial Number

Proposed citation

Proposed citation (submitted with the recommendation per SECNAV M-1650.1; not a numbered block)
A condensation of the summary of action in the award's standard format and length. Use the member's rate and name, the billet and command, and the period. Close with the standard ending for that award.

Draft / worksheet aid. Prepare it here, then transcribe into NDAWS (Navy Department Awards Web Service); the paper form is required for awards routed to the CNO Awards board. This is not an official submission. Check it against the current official OPNAV 1650/3 before use.

How to fill out the OPNAV 1650/3

The Navy's written recommendation for a personal decoration. It identifies the nominee, the award, the action or period, and the summary of action that justifies it, and it carries each endorsement and the final disposition. When: For end-of-tour (transfer, retirement, separation) awards, start 60–90 days before the detachment date so it can clear the approval authority. For a specific achievement, submit soon after the event. NAVADMIN 169/24 requires the AUG-2024 form for awards originated after 30 Sep 2024 that go to the CNO Awards board. Awards built in NDAWS use NDAWS.

Step by step

Blocks 1–4: the originating command, the approval authority, and a POC with email and phone.
Blocks 5–17: the nominee's active-duty expiration, DoD ID, designator/NEC, detachment or ceremony date (whichever is earlier), name, award type, component, new duty station, paygrade and rating, warfare qualification, unit, duty, and UIC.
Blocks 18–28: campaign or operation, previous decorations (two-letter codes), the recommended award and number, extraordinary heroism, action type, pending awards, others recommended, the action date or period, predecessor (O-6 and above), geographic area, and foreign national data.
Block 29: the summary of action. Block 30: certify the facts as a matter of record or known to you. Block 31: originator's name, rank, title, component, signature, and date.
Draft the proposed citation (below) to go with the recommendation.
Route it. Each via addressee completes a row of block 32, and the approval authority completes block 33 and the NDAWS serial in block 34.

What a strong one looks like

Write the summary of action as a record of results: what the member did, how big it was, and what it changed for the command, with dates and numbers.
Keep the summary of action to two pages. Most approval authorities want complete sentences.
The merit period ends at detachment and cannot include travel or terminal leave (block 25 instructions).
Check block 19 against the member's awards record so you don't recognize the same period twice.
Use the award's own wording in the citation ("For professional achievement…" for a NAM, "For meritorious service…" for an MSM) and keep it to the length SECNAV M-1650.1 allows.

Common mistakes

Using an older edition for a CNO-board award. The SEP-2023 form was superseded in August 2024.
A merit period that overlaps a previous award for the same service.
Leaving blocks blank that the form instructions require, which gets the award returned for rework.
Summary of action and citation telling different stories. The citation should condense the summary.

References: SECNAVINST 1650.1 (series), Department of the Navy Military Awards Policy; SECNAV M-1650.1, Navy and Marine Corps Awards Manual; NAVADMIN 169/24, Announcement of OPNAV 1650/3 (Rev. AUG-2024); OPNAVINST 1650.26 (series); OPNAVINST 1700.10 (series) Checked against the official source: Sep 2026 Official blank form

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