Unauthorized Absence (UA) Tracking and Reporting

Role and responsibility

S-1 admin specialists own UA declaration and the day-1 to day-30 UA tracking window. The duty officer reports the missing Marine on the muster sheet. The S-1 clerk verifies accountability against MOL, the leave control log, the TAD roster, and MCTFS within the first 24 hours. The S-1 chief cuts the UA UD-MIPS transaction at hour 24 and stops pay effective hour 1 of the absence. The S-1 officer signs by direction on the UA package routing to legal.

Source documents flow from the duty officer report, the muster sheet, the leave control log, the TAD roster, the hospitalization log, and MOL. Outputs include the UA UD-MIPS transaction, the pay stop, the legal notification, the day 30 deserter declaration tickler, and Page 11 entries on the unbroken absence period.

Late UA declarations cause pay overpayment debts running into DoDFMR Vol 16 collection procedures. The UA declaration runs at hour 24, not the next duty day.

Trigger events

• Marine fails to report at morning muster or scheduled work call.
• Duty officer reports the Marine missing on accountability check.
• Marine departs without authorization or fails to return from leave on the scheduled return date.
• Marine fails to return from TAD on the scheduled return date.
• Marine fails to report to a new duty station within the report-no-later-than (RNLT) date.
• Marine returns from hospitalization but fails to report to the parent unit.

Processing workflow

1. Receive the muster sheet from the duty officer. The duty officer reports the Marine missing on the morning accountability check or work call.
2. Verify against MOL and the leave control log. Confirm the Marine is not on authorized leave, TAD, or hospitalization.
3. Verify against MCTFS. Cross-check the Marine record for any open transaction holding the Marine in an authorized absence state.
4. Run a 100 percent muster on the duty section. The duty officer countersigns the verification. The chain of command notifies the parent command within the same day.
5. Cut the UA UD-MIPS transaction at hour 24. Submit through UD-MIPS per MCTFSPRIUMMCTFSPRIUM UA transaction format. Use the duty officer report and the muster verification as KSDs.
6. Stop pay effective hour 1 of UA. The UA transaction triggers the pay stop per DoDFMR Vol 7A Chapter 1 and MCTFSPRIUMMCTFSPRIUM UA pay rules.
7. Notify the chain of command and legal. The S-1 officer routes the UA notification to the chain of command, the trial counsel, and the unit security officer. Trial counsel reviews for UCMJ Article 86 charge preparation.
8. Open the day 30 deserter declaration tickler. The S-1 clerk sets a tickler at day 30 for the deserter declaration per MCO 1620.3AMCO 1620.3A Paragraph 4b.
9. Process Page 11 entries. Document the UA period, the duty officer report, and the muster verification per MCO P1070.12KMCO P1070.12K Chapter 6.
10. File the UA package in the OMPF Field Folder. Place the duty officer report, the muster verification, the UA UD-MIPS transaction record, and the Page 11 entries under the legal tab.

Systems of record and forms

Systems

• MCTFS. Holds the UA state with associated pay implications.
• UD-MIPS. Cuts the UA transaction with the duty officer report as the KSD.
• MOL. Surfaces authorized absences (leave, TAD, hospitalization).
• Unit muster log. Daily accountability record.
• Leave control log. Authorized leave window record.

Forms

• Duty Officer Report. Initial missing Marine notification.
• Unit Muster Sheet. The accountability record at morning muster or work call.
• NAVMC 118 (11) Administrative Remarks. Page 11 documenting UA period.
• NAVMC 118 (3) Chronological Record. Page 3 noting UA dates.
• DD Form 458 Charge Sheet. UCMJ Article 86 charge package on return when judicial action proceeds.

Common pitfalls

• UA transaction cut the next duty day instead of hour 24. Pay continues past the UA declaration window. Cut the UA at hour 24, not the next morning, per MCTFSPRIUMMCTFSPRIUM.
• Accountability not cross-checked against MOL. The Marine sits on authorized leave or hospitalization and the UA is wrongful. Verify MOL and the leave control log before cutting UA.
• Day 30 tickler skipped. The deserter declaration falls past day 30 and NCIC entry stalls. Set the tickler at the moment of UA declaration.
• Page 11 entry skipped at UA. The OMPF lands without UA documentation. Process the Page 11 within 5 working days of UA per MCO P1070.12KMCO P1070.12K Chapter 6.
• Pay stop missed. Pay continues during UA and overpayment routes to DoDFMR Vol 16 debt collection. The pay stop runs with the UA transaction in MCTFS.

Decision points

• UA versus authorized absence. The Marine missed muster but is on emergency leave or hospitalization. The S-1 chief verifies authorization against MOL and the leave control log per MCTFSPRIUMMCTFSPRIUM before cutting UA.
• UA versus straggler. The Marine reports late within 24 hours with a reasonable explanation. The S-1 chief and the commander assess straggler treatment per MCO 5800.16MCO 5800.16 versus UA charge.
• UCMJ Article 86 charge preparation. Trial counsel reviews the UA package for the Article 86 charge timing. The charge sheet attaches when the case proceeds to NJP or court-martial per JAGINST 5800.7G.

Authority

This sub-page maps to NAVMC 3500.3E T-R event 0111-GENA-2016 Process Deserter or Absentee Cases. The processing workflow sits under MCO 1620.3AMCO 1620.3A Paragraph 4 Execution, MCO 5800.16MCO 5800.16 UA reporting rules, MCTFSPRIUMMCTFSPRIUM UA transaction format, DoDFMR Vol 7A Chapter 1 pay entitlement rules, and UCMJ Article 86. Pay reconciliation continues at the pay-reconciliation-for-ua-deserter-and-confined-marines sub-page.

Related references

• MCO 1620.3A Marine Corps Absentee and Deserter Apprehension Program. UA framework and day 30 deserter declaration tie-in.
• MCO 5800.16 Legal Support and Administration Manual. UA reporting rules.
• MCTFSPRIUM. UA transaction format.
• UCMJ Article 86 Absence Without Leave. Statutory authority for UA.
• DoDFMR Vol 7A Chapter 1 Basic Pay. UA pay entitlement rules.
• MCO P1070.12K Individual Records Administration Manual. Page 11 documentation rules.