AR · Independent reference
AR 600-8-4 — LINE OF DUTY POLICY, PROCEDURES, AND INVESTIGATIONS
AR 600-8-4: line of duty program, investigation process, special considerations. Explore the scope overview and open the official Army source.
Official Army source
GreenBook provides independent scope overviews and catalog metadata. The official source controls the text, applicability, changes, and status; check associated directives before applying policy.
On the official record, choose the PDF link under Unit Of Issue(s) to read the publication.
What this publication covers
AR 600-8-4 addresses line of duty determinations for injury, illness, disease, and death. Its structure separates program elements, the investigation process, special considerations, and determination procedures. A line of duty question is therefore a fact-finding and administrative subject with its own standards; it should not be answered from a profile, training record, or generic medical readiness summary.
Identify the event and the official process before looking for a procedure. AR 40-502 addresses medical readiness and profiling, while AR 635-40 addresses disability evaluation, both distinct from a line of duty determination. Personnel staff and the responsible medical and legal professionals may need to coordinate their separate roles. This overview shows where those subjects meet without assigning a determination, predicting benefits, or interpreting an individual's records. Use the linked official edition for the relevant investigation and processing instructions.
- Line of duty program
- Investigation process
- Special considerations
- Determination procedures
Who commonly uses it
Commanders, personnel staff, investigating personnel, and Soldiers locating the line of duty administrative framework.
Where to start in the official publication
These headings were checked against the linked edition's contents. Open the PDF and use its contents or find function; page numbering can differ by viewer.
- Chapter 3: Line of Duty Investigation Process
- Chapter 5: Line of Duty Determination Procedures
Common questions
What regulation covers Army line of duty investigations?
AR 600-8-4 establishes the line of duty framework. Its investigation and determination sections should be read for the actual event and process.
Is a line of duty determination the same as a profile?
No. Medical profiling and disability evaluation are separate subjects. AR 40-502 and AR 635-40 provide connected references for those processes.
Publication details and freshness
- Publication number
- AR 600-8-4
- Publication type
- AR
- Issuing authority / proponent
- Department of the Army · G-1
- APD source status
- ACTIVE
- Publication date
- 2020-11-12
- Revision date listed by APD
- 2026-07-22
- Last source verification
- 2026-10-09
- Distribution
- A APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE; DISTRIBUTION IS UNLIMITED
APD change entries: 004 - 07/22/2026 003 - 07/11/2025 002 - 10/26/2023 001 - 07/23/2021
Earlier editions replaced by this publication: SUPERSEDED AR 600-8-4, 03/15/2019. This is edition history, not a claim that the displayed publication is superseded.
APD status and distribution evidence ↗Last verification records a manual source check. GreenBook does not automatically guarantee that no later guidance has been issued.