The rules for leaving the army are complicated and depend on whether you enlisted:

1. before 1 January 2008
2. on or after 1 January 2008 but before 6 August 2008
3. on or after 6 August 2008.

Still under 18? If you are still under 18 and are 'genuinely unhappy' in the army, you may apply for special permission to leave and this is normally granted, although it is at the discretion of the army and is not a legal right.  To take this option you must apply to your commanding officer before you turn 18. Your CO can delay departure if he or she is unconvinced that you are permanently unhappy in the army but normally you will be allowed to leave.

If you are now over 18, or if you are still under 18 but want to leave the army by legal right, then read on.

1. If you enlisted before 1 January 2008 (called the 'Open Engagement'):

Assuming that you have served over six months from the date you enlisted, you will now not be allowed to exercise your 'Discharge as of Right' (DAOR) and the earliest you will be able to leave Regular Service by legal right will be your 22nd birthday.  To leave then or any time afterwards you must first have given 12 months' notice in writing.

The above paragraph does not apply if you have spent time Absent Without Leave (AWOL) or have signed a form extending your minimum term of Regular Service (which you might have had to do if you accepted a course of education or training - the extension can be as much as six years but is usually less).  In this case, your legal right to leave the army will be later than your 22nd birthday.  If in doubt, you can ask your commanding officer to tell you when you will have a legal right to leave.  If it is difficult to talk to your CO, you can try contacting At Ease or SSAFA, who will try to help - visit the 'Want to talk to someone?' page.

If you signed a form to extend your minimum term of Regular Service and were under the age of 17 years and six months with you did so, you can cancel the extension if you do so in writing before 28 days have passed after your 18th birthday.  If you think this applies to you, visit the 'Want to talk to someone?' page.

When you leave regular service you will have to serve in the reserve for six years.  Reserve Service means that once you have left Regular Service and become a civilian again, you may still be called out to serve on active duty or to train - this can be anywhere in the world.

If you are now over 18 and have no legal right to leave Regular Service for a long time, then you can still try asking for permission to leave anyway.  Permission is not normally granted but some Commanding Officers have been known to look sympathetically at such requests.  If you want to talk this option through, then visit the 'Want to talk to someone?' page.

If you go Absent Without Leave (AWOL) and are caught, you can be punished with a prison sentence and your legal right to leave the army will be delayed.

If there is a time of 'imminent national danger', for example if the country is attacked, you may not be allowed to leave the army for the duration, whatever your circumstances.

2. If you enlisted on or after 1 January 2008 but before 6 August 2008 (called the 'Versatile Engagement'):

If you have not yet served six months from the date you enlisted (i.e. attested) then you may exercise your 'Discharge as of Right' (DAOR) and leave Regular Service.  If you leave in this way you will not have to serve in the Reserve.

The six-month deadline for DAOR is absolute. If you have now served over six months from the date you enlisted, you will not be allowed to exercise your 'Discharge as of Right' (DAOR) and the earliest you will be able to leave Regular Service by legal right will be four years after the date of your enlistment.  To leave then or any time after then you must first have given 12 months' notice in writing.

The above paragraph does not apply if you have spent time Absent Without Leave (AWOL) or have signed a form extending your minimum term of Regular Service (which you might have had to do if you accepted a course of education or training - the extension can be as much as six years but is usually less).  If either case applies to you then your legal right to leave Regular Service will fall on a later date than four years after you enlisted.  If in doubt, you can ask your commanding officer to tell you when you will have a legal right to leave.  If it is difficult to talk to your CO, you can try contacting At Ease or SSAFA, who will try to help - visit the 'Want to talk to someone?' page.

If you signed a form to extend your minimum term of Regular Service and were under the age of 17 years and six months with you did so, you can still cancel the extension if you do so in writing any time before 28 days have passed after your 18th birthday.  Your Commanding Officer might not know about this rule so you might want to visit the 'Want to talk to someone?' page to get more information.

When you leave Regular Service you will have to serve in the Reserve for six years.  Reserve Service means that once you have left Regular Service and become a civilian again, you may still be called out to serve on active duty or to train - this can be anywhere in the world.

If you are now over 18 and have no legal right to leave Regular Service for a long time, then you can still try asking for permission to leave anyway.  Permission is not normally granted but some Commanding Officers have been known to look sympathetically at such requests.  If you want to talk this option through, then visit the 'Want to talk to someone?' page.

If you go Absent Without Leave (AWOL) and are caught, you can be punished with a prison sentence and your legal right to leave the army will be delayed.

If there is a time of 'imminent national danger', for example if the country is attacked, you may not be allowed to leave the army for the duration, whatever your circumstances.

3. If you enlisted on or after 6 August 2008 (called the 'Versatile Engagement'):

You cannot leave during the first 28 days of paid duty.  If you have served the first 28 days of paid duty with no time spent Absent Without Leave (AWOL) and have not yet served for six months from the date you enlisted then you may leave the army altogether by applying in writing to your Commanding Officer before the six month deadline passes.  This is called 'Discharge As of Right' (DAOR) and if you use it you will not have to serve in the Reserve.

The six month deadline is absolute; if it passes then you will have no legal right to leave Regular Service until your 22nd birthday at the earliest.  Once you do leave Regular Service you will be transferred to Reserve Service for six years.  Reserve Service means that once you have returned to civilian life you may still be called up by the army for active duty or training anywhere in the world.

If you serve in Regular Service for six months from the date you enlisted and take a course of education or training (beyond basic training) then you might be asked to sign a form extending your minimum term of Regular Service.  If you do this then your legal right to leave the army can be delayed by up to six years, although it is usually less - the extension will be stated on the form.  However, if you sign this form when you are still less than 17 years and six months old then you can cancel the extension in writing any time before you are 18 years and 28 days old.  If you think this applies to you, visit the 'Want to talk to someone?' page.

If you go Absent Without Leave (AWOL) you can be punished with a prison sentence and your legal right to leave the army will be delayed.

If there is a time of 'imminent national danger', for example if the country is attacked, you may not be allowed to leave the army for the duration, whatever your circumstances.

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