Army Correspondence: the practical AR 25-50 guide

What AR 25-50 is really doing

AR 25-50 is the Army's baseline for preparing and managing correspondence. For most everyday administrative work, the practical questions are simple: what correspondence form should you use, what belongs in the heading block, how should the body be organized, and what must be reviewed before signature. MilAdmin treats those as separate decisions instead of forcing every product into one generic memo template.

The 4 October 2024 administrative revision matters. It removed older font-direction references, shifted font choice authority for certain senior-leader correspondence, updated Army Addresses Online references, and changed the general convention from one space after ending punctuation back to two spaces. That last change sounds tiny until a unit is using an old template copied from a 2020-era shared drive.

Choose the right product

Use a Memorandum for Record when you are documenting facts, decisions, conversations, events, or other information that needs to be preserved for the record. Use a standard Memorandum For when the correspondence is directed to a person, office, organization, or command. Use Memorandum Thru when the correspondence must pass through one or more offices before reaching the final addressee. Decision memorandums are built around a clear issue and a decision requirement. MOAs and MOUs should only be used when the agreement or understanding is real and the parties and authority are known.

Do not use a fancy product merely because it sounds more official. The best Army correspondence is usually the simplest form that accurately fits the purpose.

Letterhead, office symbol, and date

Army memorandums normally begin with the authorized organization letterhead information, followed by the office symbol and date in the prescribed positions. If the office symbol is unknown, do not invent one. A guessed office symbol is not a formatting fix; it is fabricated administrative data.

For routine Army correspondence, spell out the month in the date, such as 14 September 2026. That is different from the Navy-style abbreviated date convention used elsewhere on MilAdmin, which is why Army has its own formatter.

MEMORANDUM FOR / THRU and SUBJECT

The addressee line identifies who the memorandum is for. A THRU line identifies intermediate routing. Keep these lines precise enough that a reader can understand the routing without deciphering local shorthand. SUBJECT should be concise and specific. It should tell the reader what the memorandum is about, not repeat an entire opening paragraph.

A useful test: if someone sees only the SUBJECT line in a staffing package, can they tell what decision, information, request, or action the document concerns?

Body structure and numbering

Army correspondence favors direct writing. Start with the purpose, action, or issue. Then provide the facts and supporting detail. Use numbered paragraphs and subparagraphs when the content needs hierarchy. Do not create extra levels just to make the memo look complicated.

A good first paragraph often answers one of these questions: What is being requested? What is being documented? What decision is needed? What action is required? What information does the reader need immediately?

Signatures, enclosures, and distribution

The signature block must reflect the actual signer and authority. MilAdmin should never invent a rank, title, delegation, or acting authority. Enclosures should be listed when material accompanies the memorandum. Distribution should be used when copies are intentionally provided beyond the primary addressee or when local procedure requires it.

If local policy, a higher headquarters SOP, or a command-specific template adds a requirement that does not conflict with AR 25-50, follow the controlling local requirement.

Common mistakes MilAdmin should catch

Before you send it

Confirm the product type, addressee, routing, subject, facts, references, authority, signer information, enclosures, and local staffing requirements. Read the first paragraph by itself. If the reader cannot quickly tell why the memo exists, rewrite the opening before worrying about cosmetics.