Last month, the U.S. Army drastically relaxed its tattoo policy as a way to bring in more recruits.
As it scrambles to handle a recruitment crisis, its newly relaxed policy has made the Army the branch with some of the most relaxed rules for ink.
During a press conference during the Association of the United States Army Global Force Symposium and Exposition, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno said the service regularly reviews and makes updates to Army Regulation 670-1.
The changes to the policy came after discussion with senior enlisted leaders and listening to soldiers’ feedback.
The new rules allow soldiers to have one visible tattoo on each hand, which includes the palm and are allowed to have unlimited tattoos between the fingers as long as they are not visible when their hands are closed.
Soldiers will also no longer be limited to a particular size or number of tattoos permitted on the arms or legs provided those tattoos are not extremist, indecent, sexist, or racist.
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"As part of the regular process that we go through in reviewing regulations, covering the wear and appearance of the Army uniform, and the appearance of our soldiers, we will be releasing in the coming weeks, an update to that policy, and the most notable change is going to be the change in the tattoo policy in the Army," Odierno said.
Soldiers may also have a single tattoo on the back of the neck, but must not exceed two inches in all directions, and may also have one tattoo behind the ear that doesn’t exceed one inch or reach in front of the earlobe.
Tattoos will continue to be prohibited on the face and rest of the head, with some exceptions for permanent makeup. Tattoos inside the mouth, ears, and eyelids are still forbidden.
The new policy has taken place due to the Defense Department’s struggle to recruit new troops this year due to the increasingly competitive job market as well as more screenings for new recruits.
The new screenings can cause rejection for many potential recruits due to minor criminal infractions, including the use of marijuana.
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Prior to the new tattoo policy, potential recruits with forbidden tattoos were in many cases granted waivers to serve.
In 2020, around 1,400 waivers were requested, with 1,100 being approved, according to Linden St. Clair, assistant deputy for recruiting and retention of the Army.
When the waiver is requested, it can take around two weeks to be approved, which can add to the long stretch between a potential soldier’s initial meeting with a recruiter and the time they take their oath.
St. Clair said that anything that slows down the process to get a recruit into the Army can give them time to lose interest.
“This is the most challenging recruiting environment in 20 years,” he said. “It isn’t going to be one of those things that causes folks to start flocking into the military.”
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