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The Special Forces Tab is a service school qualification tab of the United States Army
United States Army

The United States Army is the branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for Army operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S....
, awarded to any soldier completing either the Special Forces Qualification Course
Special Forces Qualification Course

The Special Forces Qualification Course, or "Q-Course", is an intensive selection and training course conducted by the United States Army for the purposes of preparing soldiers to function as members of the United States Army Special Forces, also known as the Green Berets....
, or the Special Forces Detachment Officer Qualification Course (formerly known as the Special Forces Officer Course), at the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School, Fort Bragg
Fort Bragg, North Carolina

Fort Bragg is a major United States Army installation, in Cumberland County, North Carolina, and Hoke County, North Carolina Counties, North Carolina, United States, near Fayetteville, North Carolina....
, North Carolina
North Carolina

North Carolina is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north....
 (previously known as the U.S. Army Institute for Military Assistance). Soldiers who are awarded the Special Forces Tab are authorized to wear it for the remainder of their military careers, even when not serving in a Special Forces
United States Army Special Forces

The United States Army Special Forces is a Special Operations Force of the United States Army tasked with five primary missions: unconventional warfare , foreign internal defense, special reconnaissance, direct action , and counter-terrorism....
 command.

Description and history
The Special Forces Tab was created in 1983 and is an embroidered quadrant patch worn on the upper left sleeve of a military uniform.






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The Special Forces Tab is a service school qualification tab of the United States Army
United States Army

The United States Army is the branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for Army operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S....
, awarded to any soldier completing either the Special Forces Qualification Course
Special Forces Qualification Course

The Special Forces Qualification Course, or "Q-Course", is an intensive selection and training course conducted by the United States Army for the purposes of preparing soldiers to function as members of the United States Army Special Forces, also known as the Green Berets....
, or the Special Forces Detachment Officer Qualification Course (formerly known as the Special Forces Officer Course), at the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School, Fort Bragg
Fort Bragg, North Carolina

Fort Bragg is a major United States Army installation, in Cumberland County, North Carolina, and Hoke County, North Carolina Counties, North Carolina, United States, near Fayetteville, North Carolina....
, North Carolina
North Carolina

North Carolina is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north....
 (previously known as the U.S. Army Institute for Military Assistance). Soldiers who are awarded the Special Forces Tab are authorized to wear it for the remainder of their military careers, even when not serving in a Special Forces
United States Army Special Forces

The United States Army Special Forces is a Special Operations Force of the United States Army tasked with five primary missions: unconventional warfare , foreign internal defense, special reconnaissance, direct action , and counter-terrorism....
 command.

Description and history


The Special Forces Tab was created in 1983 and is an embroidered quadrant patch worn on the upper left sleeve of a military uniform. The cloth tab is 3 1/4 inches wide and is teal blue with yellow embroidered letters. A metal Special Forces Badge is authorized for wear on the mess/dress uniforms and green shirt. The metal badge is teal blue with a gold edge and gold letters.

At the time of its creation, the Special Forces Tab was retroactively awarded to any Army soldiers previously Special Forces
United States Army Special Forces

The United States Army Special Forces is a Special Operations Force of the United States Army tasked with five primary missions: unconventional warfare , foreign internal defense, special reconnaissance, direct action , and counter-terrorism....
-qualified. In addition, as set forth in Army regulations, veterans of certain categories of former wartime service are also eligible for retroactive awards of the tab. Among these are:

  • personnel who served with a Special Forces unit during wartime between 1942 and 1973 and were either unable to or not required to attend a formal program of instruction but were awarded the proper Special Qualification Identifier
    Military Occupational Specialty

    A Military Occupational Specialty code is used in the United States Army and United States Marines. In the United States Air Force, a system of Air Force Specialty Codes is used....
     by a competent authority. U.S. Army Warrant Officers are excluded.
  • personnel with at least 120 days' wartime service prior to 1955 in certain units, including the 1st Special Service Force
    Devil's Brigade

    Properly designated as the 1st Special Service Force, The Devil's Brigade was a joint World War II United States-Canada commando unit organised in 1942 and trained at Fort William Henry Harrison near Helena, Montana, Montana in the United States....
    , OSS Detachment 101
    OSS Detachment 101

    Detachment 101 of the Office of Strategic Services operated in the China Burma India Theater of World War II. On January 17, 1946, it was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation by Dwight Eisenhower, who wrote, "The courage and fighting spirit displayed by its officers and men in offensive action against overwhelming enemy strength reflect the...
    , OSS Jedburgh teams
    Operation Jedburgh

    Jedburgh was an operation in World War II in which men from the British Special Operations Executive, the U.S. Office of Strategic Services joined with men from the Free French Bureau Central de Renseignements et d'Action , and the Dutch or Belgian Army to parachute into Nazism occupied France, Holland, or Belgium to conduct sabotage and...
    , OSS
    Office of Strategic Services

    The Office of Strategic Services was a United States intelligence agencies formed during World War II. It was the wartime intelligence agency, and it was the predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency ....
     Operational Groups, and the Alamo Scouts
    Alamo scouts

    The Alamo Scouts was a reconnaissance unit for the U.S. Sixth Army in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II. The unit is most well-known for their participation in liberating American prisoners of war from the Japanese Raid at Cabanatuan near Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija, Philippines in January 1945....
    , and
  • personnel captain and below awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge
    Combat Infantryman Badge

    The Combat Infantryman Badge is an award of the United States Army which is presented to those officers, Warrant Officer s and enlisted soldiers, in the grade of Colonel and below, who participate in active ground combat while assigned as a member of an infantry or special forces unit, brigade or smaller size, during any period subsequent to...
     or Combat Medical Badge
    Combat Medical Badge

    The Combat Medical Badge is a decoration of the United States Army which was first created in January 1945. The badge is awarded to any member of the Army Medical Department, pay grade Colonel or below, who are assigned or attached to a medical unit which provides medical support to a ground combat arms unit during any period in which the u...
     while serving at least 120 days wartime service between 1955 and 1975 in a Special Forces Operational Detachment-Alpha or certain other units. Does not apply to U.S. Army Warrant Officers.


Before creation of the Special Forces Tab, Special Forces status was indicated by wearing a full-size unit flash on the green beret
Green beret

The green beret is the official headgear as part of the uniform of several military forces....
. A support soldier (signals personnel, parachute riggers, clerical and administrative personnel, etc.) assigned to a Special Forces unit wore a 1/4" high bar below the Special Forces Crest on his green beret
Green beret

The green beret is the official headgear as part of the uniform of several military forces....
. The bar matched the colors of the unit's flash. This was not however the normal course during the Vietnam conflict, when all soldiers assigned to 5th Special Forces wore identical unit flashes. After the creation of the tab and until January 1993, all personnel in a Special Forces unit wore the same beret and flash. Today, only Special Forces-qualified soldiers may wear the green beret, making obsolete the unit flash and bar.

Other tabs


It is currently one of four permanent individual skill/marksmanship tabs authorized for wear by the U.S. Army. In order of seniority, they are the President's Hundred Tab
President's Hundred Tab

The President's Hundred Tab, a full-color embroidered tab of yellow 4 1/4 inches in length and 5/8 inch in height, with the word "President's Hundred" centered in 1/4 inch high green letters, is a badge awarded by the National Rifle Association to the 100 top-scoring military and civilian shooters in the President's Pistol and President's...
, the Special Forces Tab
Special Forces Tab

The Special Forces Tab is a service school qualification tab of the United States Army, awarded to any soldier completing either the Special Forces Qualification Course, or the Special Forces Detachment Officer Qualification Course , at the U.S....
, the Ranger Tab
Ranger Tab

The Ranger Tab is a service school Military badges of the United States of the United States Army signifying completion of the 61-day long Ranger School course in small-unit infantry combat tactics in woodland, mountain, and swamp operations....
, and the Sapper Tab
Sapper Tab

The Sapper Tab is a Military badges of the United States of the United States Army which was authorized on June 28, 2004 by the Army Chief of Staff, General Peter Schoomaker....
. Only three may be worn at one time.

  • The President's Hundred Tab
    President's Hundred Tab

    The President's Hundred Tab, a full-color embroidered tab of yellow 4 1/4 inches in length and 5/8 inch in height, with the word "President's Hundred" centered in 1/4 inch high green letters, is a badge awarded by the National Rifle Association to the 100 top-scoring military and civilian shooters in the President's Pistol and President's...
     is a similar qualification tab which is authorized for soldiers who qualify among the top 100 scoring competitors in the President’s Match held annually at the National Rifle Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio.
  • The Ranger Tab
    Ranger Tab

    The Ranger Tab is a service school Military badges of the United States of the United States Army signifying completion of the 61-day long Ranger School course in small-unit infantry combat tactics in woodland, mountain, and swamp operations....
     is a similar qualification tab authorized upon completion of the U.S. Army’s Ranger School
    Ranger School

    The United States Army Ranger School is an intense, three-month long, combat leadership course, oriented to small-unit tactics, and conducted in three separate three-week-long phases - at Fort Benning, Georgia , U.S.A., , at Camp Rogers and Camp Darby, Georgia, 'the Mountain Phase' at Camp Merrill, near Dahlonega, Georgia, and the Florida P...
    .
  • The Sapper Tab
    Sapper Tab

    The Sapper Tab is a Military badges of the United States of the United States Army which was authorized on June 28, 2004 by the Army Chief of Staff, General Peter Schoomaker....
     is a similar qualification tab which is authorized for completion of the U.S. Army’s Sapper School
    Sapper School

    The term Sapper can be traced back as far as 1501 to the siege of Rouen during the French Wars. Sappers throughout time have proven their abilities to build and repair fortifications, execute field works, and reform the countryside with demolitions and heavy equipment to weaken the enemy and lead the infantry to victory on the battlefield....
    .


External links

  • paragraph 8-49: Special Forces Tab - official information.


See also


  • Military badges of the United States
    Military badges of the United States

    Military badges of the United States are awards authorized by the United States armed forces that signify rating, qualification, or accomplishment in several career fields, and also serve as identification devices for personnel occupying certain assignments....