§ 664. Length of joint duty assignments
(b)
Waiver Authority.—
The Secretary of Defense may waive subsection (a) in the case of any officer.
(c)
Initial Assignment of Officers With Critical Occupational Specialties.—
The Secretary may for purposes of section
661
(c)(1)(B) of this title authorize a joint duty assignment of less than the period prescribed by subsection (a), but not less than two years, without the requirement for a waiver under subsection (b) in the case of an officer—
(d)
Exclusions From Tour Length.—
The Secretary of Defense may exclude the following service from the standards prescribed in subsection (a):
(1)
Service in a joint duty assignment in which the full tour of duty in the assignment is not completed by the officer because of—
(D)
a qualifying reassignment from a joint duty assignment—
(i)
for unusual personal reasons, including extreme hardship and medical conditions, beyond the control of the officer or the armed forces; or
(e)
Average Tour Lengths.—
(f)
Full Tour of Duty.—
An officer shall be considered to have completed a full tour of duty in a joint duty assignment upon completion of any of the following:
(4)
A joint duty assignment outside the United States or in Alaska or Hawaii for which the normal accompanied-by-dependents tour of duty is prescribed by regulation to be at least two years in length, if the officer serves in the assignment for a period equivalent to the accompanied-by-dependents tour length.
(5)
A joint duty assignment with respect to which the Secretary of Defense has granted a waiver under subsection (b), but only in a case in which the Secretary determines that the service completed by that officer in that duty assignment shall be considered to be a full tour of duty in a joint duty assignment.
(g)
Accrued Joint Experience.—
For the purposes of subsection (f)(3), the Secretary of Defense may prescribe, by regulation, certain joint experience, such as temporary duty in joint assignments, joint individual training, and participation in joint exercises, that may be aggregated to equal a full tour of duty. The Secretary shall prescribe the regulations with the advice of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
(h)
Constructive Credit.—
(1)
The Secretary of Defense may accord constructive credit in the case of an officer (other than a general or flag officer) who, for reasons of military necessity, is reassigned from a joint duty assignment within 60 days of meeting the tour length criteria prescribed in paragraphs (1), (2), and (4) of subsection (f). The amount of constructive service that may be credited to such officer shall be the amount sufficient for the completion of the applicable tour of duty requirement, but in no case more than 60 days.