OF 306, the Declaration for Federal Employment, is Optional Form 306 of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM). The information on it is used to determine your acceptability for federal and federal contract employment and your enrollment status in the Government's Life Insurance program. Applicants and appointees answer background questions on it, and the agency may ask for it at any time in the hiring process. On this page you can fill out the form online on FillingPDF and download or print the completed PDF; the form is published at gsa.gov.
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What is OF 306?
The Declaration for Federal Employment (Optional Form 306, OF 306) is the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) form on which a job applicant or appointee gives personal data, answers background questions and certifies that the answers are true.
According to the form's instructions, the information is used to determine your acceptability for federal and federal contract employment and your enrollment status in the Government's Life Insurance program. The form carries OMB No. 3206-0182 and is marked "Revised October 2019"; previous editions are obsolete and unusable.
The form has these parts:
- General Information (items 1 to 6): name, Social Security number, place and date of birth, citizenship, other names and phone numbers.
- Selective Service Registration (item 7) and Military Service (item 8).
- Background Information (items 9 to 13): convictions, court-martial, pending charges, firings and delinquent federal debt.
- Additional Questions (items 14 and 15): relatives in the agency and retirement pay.
- Continuation Space / Agency Optional Questions (item 16).
- Certifications (items 17 and 18): signatures and, for returning federal employees, life insurance history.
If you are selected, you are asked to update your responses before appointment and recertify that they are true. The form may also be used in an investigation of suitability or ability to hold a security clearance.
Who needs to file OF 306?
Anyone the hiring agency asks to complete it uses OF 306. The form says it is used for federal employment and may also be used to assess fitness for federal contract employment.
- Applicants: if you are applying for a position and have a tentative or conditional job offer, or have not yet been selected, review your answers carefully.
- Appointees: if you are being appointed, you update your answers and other application materials as of the date you sign, and sign item 17b.
- Returning federal employees: only appointees who have been employed by the Federal Government before answer item 18 on life insurance.
- Selective Service: item 7 applies to males born after December 31, 1959; if you were not born a male after that date, answer NO to 7a and go to item 8.
Giving your Social Security number and other information is voluntary, but the form's Privacy Act Statement says that if you do not provide it, the agency cannot process your application. The form does not describe anyone completing it on another person's behalf.
When to file OF 306
You may be asked to complete OF 306 at any time during the hiring process, so the trigger is the request from the hiring agency. Follow the instructions the agency gives you. The form sets no calendar deadline of its own.
If you are selected, you will be asked, before you are appointed, to update your responses on this form and on other materials submitted during the application process, and then to recertify that your answers are true. Changes made at that point must be initialed and dated.
Some questions look back over a fixed period: items 9 and 10 cover the last 7 years, and item 12 covers the last 5 years. The OPM burden statement estimates 5 to 30 minutes per response, averaging 15 minutes.
Documents you need
- Letter-size sheets (8.5" X 11"), only if you need more space: each must show your name, Social Security Number and item number, and every address must include a ZIP Code.
- Attached sheets with the details requested in items 7 through 15 and 18c, if you do not use the space in item 16.
- Updated or additional sheets, initialed and dated, if you are an appointee and any information needs correction as of the date you sign.
How to fill out OF 306
Enter your full name
Item 1: give your first, middle and last name and any suffix such as Jr. or Sr. If you have only initials, enter them and indicate "Initial only"; if you have no middle name, indicate "No Middle Name".
Add Social Security number and birthplace
Item 2: your Social Security Number. Item 3a: your place of birth, with city and state or country.
Answer citizenship and date of birth
Item 3b: check YES or NO for U.S. citizen; if NO, give your country of citizenship. Item 4: date of birth as MM / DD / YYYY.
List other names and phone numbers
Item 5: other names ever used, such as a maiden name or nickname. Item 6: day and night phone numbers, with area codes.
Complete Selective Service and military items
Item 7a asks if you were born a male after December 31, 1959; if YES, answer 7b on registration and explain a NO in item 16 (7c). Item 8: if you served, list the branch, From and To dates (MM/DD/YYYY) and type of discharge for all active duty.
Answer background questions 9 to 13
Check YES or NO for convictions, imprisonment, probation or parole in the last 7 years (9), court-martial in the past 7 years (10), current charges (11), firing or similar events in the last 5 years (12) and delinquent federal debt (13). Give details for every YES in item 16 or on attached sheets.
Answer relatives and retirement pay
Item 14: check YES or NO for relatives working for the agency or government organization receiving the form; if YES, give name, relationship and department, agency or branch in item 16. Item 15: check YES or NO for retirement pay, pension or other retired pay from military, federal civilian or D.C. Government service.
Use item 16 for details
Provide the details requested in items 7 through 15 and 18c, and answer any agency optional questions printed there. Identify attached sheets with your name, Social Security Number and item number, and include ZIP Codes in all addresses.
Read the certification and sign
Read item 17, then sign and date as the form directs: 17a for the applicant and 17b for the appointee. The appointing officer enters the date of appointment or conversion.
Answer item 18 if it applies
Only appointees previously employed by the Federal Government answer: date you left your last federal job (18a), whether you waived Basic Life Insurance or optional life insurance (18b), and whether you later canceled the waiver (18c).
Review and download the completed PDF
Check every answer against the item instructions, including the periods of 7 and 5 years. Download or print the completed PDF from FillingPDF, keep a copy, and return it as the hiring agency instructs.
How to submit OF 306
The form names no mailing address, portal or office of its own; the agency that asks you for it decides how to return it, and the form tells you to follow the instructions that agency provides.
- Hiring agency: return the completed form to the agency or contractor that requested it, by the method it gives you.
- Extra sheets: if you need more room, attach letter-size sheets (8.5" X 11") with your name, Social Security Number and item number on each, and include ZIP Codes in all addresses.
- Your copy: OPM recommends that you keep a photocopy of the completed form for your records.
The address in the form's Public Burden Statement is only for comments on the burden estimate, not for sending the form. FillingPDF lets you fill out and download the PDF; submission follows the channels the hiring agency gives you.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Giving an answer that is not truthful and complete; the form says a false statement may be grounds for not hiring you or for firing you, and may be punished by fine or imprisonment (18 U.S.C. 1001).
- Answering NO to item 8 or YES incorrectly: if your only active duty was training in the Reserves or National Guard, the form says to answer NO.
- Answering NO to item 7b without describing your reason in item 16.
- Answering YES to items 9 to 13 without giving the dates, explanation, place and agency or court details in item 16 or on attached sheets.
- Listing offenses that items 9, 10 and 11 say to omit, such as violations before your 16th birthday or convictions with expunged records, or leaving out nolo contendere (no contest) convictions that they say to include.
- Attaching extra sheets without your name, Social Security Number and item number, or listing addresses without ZIP Codes.
- Answering item 18 when you have never been employed by the Federal Government; only appointees with prior federal employment respond.
- Answering NO to item 18c without using item 16 to identify the insurance types whose waivers were not canceled.
- Not updating and recertifying your answers before appointment, or changing an answer without initialing and dating the change.
Frequently asked questions
What is OF 306 used for?
OF 306 is the Declaration for Federal Employment from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Agencies use the information to determine your acceptability for federal and federal contract employment and your enrollment status in the Government's Life Insurance program.
When do I have to fill out OF 306?
When the hiring agency asks. The form says you may be asked to complete it at any time during the hiring process, and that if you are selected you will update your responses before appointment and recertify that they are true.
Where do I send the Declaration for Federal Employment?
Return it to the agency that asked you to complete it, by the method that agency gives you. The form prints no address for submission; the OPM address in its burden statement is only for comments about the burden estimate.
Can I fill out OF 306 online?
You can fill out the OF 306 PDF online on FillingPDF and download or print it. FillingPDF is independent, does not submit the form to any agency and is not affiliated with OPM; you return it through the channel the hiring agency specifies.
What happens if I give a false answer on OF 306?
A false statement on any part of the declaration or attached sheets may be grounds for not hiring you or for firing you after you begin work. You may also be punished by a fine or imprisonment under 18 U.S.C. 1001.
Do I have to give my Social Security number on OF 306?
Providing your Social Security number and other information is voluntary, but the Privacy Act Statement says that if you do not give it, the agency cannot process your application. Item 2 asks for it, and attached sheets must also show it.
Who answers item 18 on life insurance?
Only appointees who have been employed by the Federal Government before. Item 18 asks when you left your last federal job and whether you waived life insurance and later canceled the waiver, so the personnel office can make a correct determination.
How long does it take to complete OF 306?
OPM estimates 5 to 30 minutes per response, with an average of 15 minutes, including reading instructions and gathering the data. Allow more time if you have details to list in item 16 or on attached sheets.
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