Army IG FAQs

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Before you request Army Inspector General action, please review the Frequently Asked Questions below.
We encourage you to contact your local IG Office to ensure fastest possible response.

For more detail on what IGs do and don't do, please see the What's an IG page.

What is the role of an IG?
IGs are confidential advisers and impartial fact-finders for their commander, also known as a directing authority. Whenever possible, IGs work through and within the chain of command to maintain their viability, effectiveness, and relevancy. For more information, go to our What's an IG? page.
Who can ask for Army Inspector General assistance?
If you have a question, need assistance, or have a concern that your supervisor or chain of command cannot address, you should contact a local IG office for guidance. Anyone—including Service members, DOD, and Army Civilians, Family members, retirees and their dependents, contract employees, Army non-appropriated fund (NAF) employees, and members of the general public—may submit a complaint, allegation, or request for information or assistance to any Army IG concerning a matter of Army interest; however, not all matters are appropriate for IG action.
Can someone tell me not to talk to an IG?
NO. While Inspectors General advise you to work with your chain of command to solve a problem, no one can tell you to not talk to an IG. (Per Army Regulation 20-1, para. 1-14, 23 MAR 2020)
How do I contact an Inspector General?
1. Find your local IG office on our Find an IG page.
2. Use our Request IG Action form.
3. Call the Department of the Army IG directly at comm (703) 545-1845, toll-free at (800) 752-9747, or DSN (312) 865-1845.
Will going to a higher-level IG expedite my case?
NO. In almost all instances, the higher-level IG office will simply send your Request for IG Action back to your local level. In doing so, it likely will delay action on your request.
Are my interactions with IGs kept confidential?
Per AR 20-1, para. 1-13a:
"All IGs have a duty to protect to the maximum extent possible the personal identity of a complainant, witness, or any other individual providing information to the IG, particularly when the individual specifically requests confidentiality. Persons who ask the IG for help; make a complaint; provide testimony, information, or evidence as part of an IG inspection or investigation; or otherwise interact with an IG often do so because they have an expectation of confidentiality. Their expectation often centers on the safeguarding of the individual’s personal identity and the nature of the individual’s contact with the IG. Although confidentiality and the measures necessary to protect it will vary from circumstance to circumstance, the IG always treats confidentiality carefully and as a priority. While IGs will never promise confidentiality, IGs will endeavor to maintain confidentiality as a matter of primary importance and as a key to the IG system’s viability and success."
Do IGs give legal advice?
NO. If you need legal advice about an issue, please visit your local Staff Judge Advocate's office.
Do IGs investigate crimes?
NO. In cases where criminal activity is suspected, Military Police or the Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID) will investigate.
Do IGs handle all issues reported to them?
NO. The scope of an IG's duties is limited by law and regulation, and there are many issues IGs don't handle. However, if you talk to an IG about an issue that is not within the IG's scope, the IG will find the appropriate office or agency for you to discuss the matter with.

Examples of issues not handled by Inspectors General:
– Criminal allegations
– Issues that have other means of redress (If the appropriate redress procedures were used, IGs will advise complainants that IG involvement focuses on ensuring that the complainant received due process and the protection of rights as intended by law and regulation)
– Courts-martial actions
– Nonjudicial punishment
– Officer evaluation reports
– NCO evaluation reports
– Enlisted reductions
– Type of discharge received
– Pending or requested discharge
– Complaints that a commanding officer has wronged a Soldier
– Financial liability investigations of property loss
– Relief for cause
– Adverse information filed in personnel records (except for allegations of reprisal)
– Claims
– The issue is not Army-related
– Soldier EO complaints
– Civilian allegations of reprisals
– Department of Defense civilian employee redress through other channels
– Hazardous work conditions
– Equal Employment Opportunity
– Collective bargaining agreements
– Appeals of adverse actions within the purview of 5 USC 7701-7703 (Labor-Management and Employee Relations)
Can the IG direct an action or make a new policy?
NO. Inspectors General can objectively look at a given situation and make recommendations. IGs have no authority to direct an action or institute a new policy - that's up to the commanding officer.
Does the IG just do whatever the Commanding General says?
NO. Inspectors General take each request for action seriously. IGs will do an impartial, thorough, and detailed analysis of an issue and ensure it is handled appropriately. However, IGs can't guarantee the desired outcome. IGs are bound by regulations, policies and directives. In short, Inspectors General are impartial and don't 'take sides.' Think of IGs as umpires who call balls and strikes.
Do Inspectors General encourage Soldiers to bypass the chain of command?
NO. The first thing IGs ask those seeking assistance is, “Have you tried to solve this issue through your chain of command?” Army leadership expects IGs to work with the chain of command to solve issues.
Do Inspectors General ‘call you out’ for every infraction they find?
NO. IGs will always strive to identify areas where a unit is not meeting Army or organizational standards. They will also identify the root cause of the noncompliance and work with the chain of command on the best solution. Most problems an IG finds at the company level can, and should be, fixed at the company level as soon as possible.
Will ‘failing’ an Inspector General inspection end my career?
NO. IG inspections are usually systemic in nature. These inspections do not focus on an individual unit’s “compliance” with standards or regulations, but rather with the performance and efficiency of Army or organizational systems. An IG systemic inspection is non-attributable. If IGs inspected 10 units and 3 had “issues” executing the system, process, or policy, IGs would not name the 3 underperforming units in the report; instead, they would inform the commander that approximately 30 percent of units did not meet the standard. All recommendations in an IG systemic inspection report will focus on how leaders can optimize the system, process, or policy, so that in the future the number of underperforming units decreases.
Inspectors General are the commander’s ‘spies’ and ‘executioners,’ right?
NO. IGs act only as an extension of the commander’s eyes, ears, voice, and conscience. They merely inform the commander of what they have observed, and it is the commander’s decision to act.
How does someone become an IG?
Inspectors General are drawn from all branches of the Army. Commissioned officers (O-3 promotable through O-6), Warrant officers (W-2 through W-5), and NCOs (E-6 promotable through E-9) can be considered for Inspector General duty. Many IG positions are held by civilians. For more information, go to our Become an IG page.
What's the difference between an inquiry and an investigation?
Inquiry: An informal factfinding examination into allegations, issues, or adverse conditions that are not significant in nature—as deemed by the command IG or directing authority—and when the potential for serious consequences (such as potential harm to a Soldier) are not foreseen.

Example: When the IG wants to know why a Soldier hasn't been paid recently, an inquiry will be conducted.

Investigation: A formal fact-finding examination into allegations, issues, or adverse conditions of a serious nature that provides the directing authority a sound basis for making decisions and taking action. An IG investigation involves the systematic collection and examination of evidence that consists of testimony recorded under oath; documents; and, in some cases, physical evidence.

Example: When an allegation is made against another Soldier, and it falls within the purview of the IG, an investigation will be conducted.
What's a Whistleblower, and are they protected under law?
In accordance with Title 10 USC 1034, whistleblower reprisal is the act of taking, (or
threatening to take) an unfavorable personnel action, or of withholding (or threatening to
withhold) a favorable personnel action because a Service member made, or was
thought to have made, a protected communication:
– To Members of Congress;
– To IGs;
– To DOD audit, inspection, investigation, or law enforcement organizations;
– To any person or organization in the chain of command;
– As part of a court-martial proceeding; or
– To any other person designated pursuant to regulations or established administrative procedures to receive such communications (e.g., EO, Equal Employment Opportunity, Safety Office, etc.).

Note: Any lawful communication to a Member of Congress or an IG, no matter the topic,
is a protected communication. Communications to the other listed individuals or
agencies are only protected when presenting information regarding what an alleging
party reasonably believes to be a violation of statute, regulation, rule, etc.

The actions considered for purposes of (10 USC 1034) to be a personnel action prohibited by this subsection shall include any action prohibited by paragraph (1), including any of the following:
– The threat to take any unfavorable action.
– The withholding, or threat to withhold, any favorable action.
– The making of, or threat to make, a significant change in the duties or responsibilities of a member of the armed forces not commensurate with the member's grade.
– The failure of a superior to respond to any retaliatory action or harassment (of which the superior had actual knowledge) taken by one or more subordinates against a member.
– The conducting of a retaliatory investigation of a member.
Can the IG take rank/pay, put someone in jail, or relieve a commander?
NO. Inspectors General can only assess a given situation or allegation and determine if the issue is substantiated or unsubstantiated. It's up to the commander to initiate punitive actions.
Can the IG change an OER or NCOER?
NO. Per AR 20-1, para 6-3g, evaluations have their own channels for redress. IGs limited to a review of the redress process to determine if the Soldier was afforded the due process provided by law or regulation.
I don’t like or agree with the answer I got from my local IG. Will going to the next higher echelon IG change that?
NO. A higher-level IG will refer it back to your local IG, and will also have noted your case is in the IG tracking system.