Cold War Recognition Certificates

The Secretary of Defense approved awarding Cold War Recognition Certificates to all members of the armed forces and qualified federal government civilian personnel who faithfully and honorably served the United States anytime during the Cold War era. The Cold War era is defined as Sept. 2, 1945 to Dec. 26, 1991.

Cold War Recognition Certificates are available to qualified individuals at no cost.

Applicants must certify that their service was “faithful and honorable”, and they must supply a copy of a supporting document which proves that they served during the Cold War era. The supporting document can be any document which shows that the intended recipient was a U.S. government employee during the Cold War era will be accepted as proof. Examples of acceptable documents include a Leave and Earnings statement, DD214 or other Discharge Paper, or SF50 (Civilian Personnel Action Form.)

The document must contain

• The name of the recipient


• The Social Security Number or Military Service Number or Foreign Service Number


• A date showing at least one day of service within the range of September 2, 1945 and December 26, 1991.

The certificate may be awarded posthumously to those whose relatives apply on their behalf.

National Guard and Reservists are eligible. Contractors and volunteers are not eligible. Those who are currently active duty military or civilian employees of the U.S. government are also eligible if they had at least one day of service during the Cold War era.

Turn-around time for mailing certificates will be 2 to 6 months.