How to access military service records
Constituents may contact a Member of Parliament seeking advice on how to access military service records. This briefing provides guidance on what information is available, and how to access it.
Constituents may contact a Member of Parliament seeking advice on how to access military service records. This may be their own service record, the record of a member of family (alive or deceased) or if they have a general interest in an individual or regiment.
For several years the National Archive has been the repository for the surviving service records of those who served during the First World War.
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is currently undertaking a project to transfer a further 10 million service records to the National Archives. Those records relate to individuals who were born before, or up to, 1 January 1939 and therefore include those who served in the Second World War and the immediate post-war period (up to 1963). The project is expected to be completed in 2027. Until then, the process for applying for service records that are covered by the project may vary depending on their location.
All other records are retained by the MOD.