DD Form 285 at a glance
What it is: DD Form 285 is the Appointment of Military Postal Clerk, Unit Mail Clerk or Mail Orderly.
Who signs: Signature of Appointing Official and Signature of Appointee.
A filled-in DD Form 285 example: an appointment as Unit Mail Clerk
How to fill out DD Form 285, box by box
Date effective, date revoked, name of appointee and card number
Enter the Date Effective in Box 1 and the Date Revoked in Box 2.
Enter the Name of Appointee in Box 3: Last, First, Middle Initial.
Box 4, Card Number: Filled out only if DD Form 2260 is used.
Rank or grade, DoD ID number and title of appointee
Enter the Rank or Grade in Box 5 and the DoD ID Number in Box 6.
Box 7, Title of Appointee: Indicate the correct title of the appointee: Military Postal Clerk, Unit Mail Clerk or Mail Orderly.
Organization/activity/unit/section and MPO or CONUS ZIP code
Box 8, Organization/Activity/Unit/Section: State the exact activity, I.e., Sq Gp, Ship's Name, BN, CO, BSO, NCO Club, Exchange, Official Center, etc.
Enter the MPO or CONUS ZIP Code in Box 9.
Mail authorized to receive (check and initial)
Box 10, Mail Authorized to Receive (Check and Initial): Appointing official will check box and initial by each type of mail appointee is authorized to receive.
Mail Authorized to Receive (Check and Initial): Personal (All), Official (Except Accountable), Personal (Except Accountable), Official Pouches Only, Official (All) and Official (Except Registered).
Signature of appointing official and signature of appointee
Signature of Appointing Official: I have appointed the individual named to receive mail indicated addressed to the specific organization/activity shown.
Signature of Appointee: I have studied the instructions in applicable regulations, manuals and other directives, and am thoroughly familiar with my responsibilities and duties. I will carry this authorization whenever I am engaged in mail handling duties and return it to the appointing official when I am relieved of mail handling duties.
More rules for DD Form 285
When this appointment is terminated, the appointing official will (1) notify the agency through which mail is received, (2) destroy DD 285 returned by the individual, and (3) draw a diagonal line across DD 285 and write "REVOKED" over the line on the Post Office and Unit File Copy and retain it for the period specified in applicable service's regulation.
Box 11: This form must be validated by the servicing agency's all purpose date stamp prior to clerk receiving mail. In the case of the Navy mobile units, validation may be by impression of the official seal. Validating official will enter his initials in lower right hand corner.
Sources
[1] DD Form 285 (AUG 2019), Appointment of Military Postal Clerk, Unit Mail Clerk or Mail Orderly (the Official source link on this page).