The Alaska military affidavit

How Alaska handles it

Alaska asks the military question in step one, before any money is on the table. Form CIV-855, Default Application, revised 2/26, is filed separately for each defendant who has not answered or been dismissed, and it produces an entry of default only. The form itself explains that the court "will usually not enter a default judgment (Step 2) until claims against all of the defendants are resolved."

Item 5 is the whole of it: "Is the defendant in the U.S. Armed Forces?" with the bracketed instruction "[See Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) website to look up military status.]" There are two answers. "No. I know this, because:" gives you a free-text line plus a checkbox for "I looked on the U.S. Department of Defense Servicemembers Civil Relief Act website" and an "Other" line. "I don't know. I tried to find out by doing the following:" gives you a block to describe your attempts. There is no box for a defendant who is serving, because a defendant who is serving does not belong on this form.

The rest of CIV-855 sits around that question in a specific order: proof of service more than 20 days old with the return, certified mail card, electronic receipt or posting certificate attached; a statement that nothing was filed; then age and mental capacity questions with guardian-service follow-ups; then item 5; then whether this is a contract case, where you must attach the original contract or explain its absence and, if you bought the debt, attach the documents proving you own it. Principal, prejudgment interest, costs and actual attorney fees follow.

Evictions run on a different form and use three boxes instead of two. CIV-740, Default Application and Affidavit (in F.E.D. Action), dated 8/23, puts military status at item 4 with "Defendant is in active military service," "Defendant is not in military service," and "I am unable to determine whether or not Defendant is in military service," a facts line beneath them, and the instruction "[You may check for military service online at https://scra.dmdc.osd.mil/ and attach a copy of the results from this military website search to this request.]" It cites Civil Rules 55 and 85(a)(5) and requires the proposed Default Judgment (F.E.D.), form CIV-745, to be attached. Its signature block warns: "Wait to sign below until you are in front of a notary public or court clerk. Bring your photo ID to show the notary."

Service of the application goes through TrueFiling when both sides use it, or when you use it and the other party gave the court an email address. Otherwise you complete the certificate of service printed on page 3 of CIV-855, checking mail, hand delivery, TrueFiling or email, and email only if the other party gave the court an address.

What trips filers up here

• Civil Rule 55 asks for the affidavit twice. Rule 55(b)(1) requires it for a clerk's judgment on a sum certain, and Rule 55(c)(2) requires it again when application is made to the court, alongside a memorandum of the default showing when and against which parties it was entered. The rule's own Note says the affidavit "incorporates the requirements of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 App. U.S.C. § 521)," which is the pre-2015 appendix numbering of what is now 50 U.S.C. § 3931.
• A yes answer triggers a second document. Under Rule 55(c)(2), if the record shows the party is in military service, counsel must also file a memorandum stating whether that person is represented in the action by a general guardian, committee, conservator, attorney or other representative who has appeared.
• The Alaska Court System forms index prints the warning above the form lists rather than burying it: "You must determine if the defendant is in the military. See U.S. Dept. of Defense website to look up military status."
• The two forms are three years apart and word the same federal duty differently. CIV-740 (8/23) uses the statutory phrase "unable to determine." CIV-855 (2/26) uses "I don't know." Both satisfy the same prong of section 3931(b)(1), and both expect you to write down what you actually did.

Signing it: notarization required

CIV-855 ends "I swear or affirm that the facts listed above are true to the best of my knowledge" over a block reading "Subscribed & sworn to or affirmed before me," with a seal box and lines for a court clerk, notary public, or other person authorized to administer oaths and their commission expiration date.

This form carries a notary block, so budget for a notary before your filing date. Federal law sets a floor, not a ceiling: 50 U.S.C. § 3931(b)(4) permits an unsworn declaration under penalty of perjury, but a state is free to require more on its own form, and this one does.

Alaska law on top of the federal rule

Alaska R. Civ. P. 55(b)(1), (c)(2): Alaska puts the military-affidavit duty in its rules of court rather than a state civil relief statute. Both subsections require an affidavit stating whether the person against whom judgment is sought is in active military service or that the plaintiff is unable to determine that fact, and the rule's trailing Note ties the requirement to the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. Read in the Alaska Court System's civil rules PDF at courts.alaska.gov on August 15, 2026.

Getting the military-status answer right

The affidavit is only as good as the search behind it. The Defense Manpower Data Center runs the free lookup that courts and creditors rely on, and since 2026 it requires a free account even for a single record. Our guide to the DMDC SCRA website covers the search itself, what a "no information found" result does and does not prove, and the batch route for high-volume filers. The federal rules behind this form, including what happens when you genuinely cannot determine status, sit on the hub page.

If one was filed against you

A false affidavit is not a technicality. In May 2026 the Justice Department settled with a Florida property manager that swore a Navy sailor was not on active duty, took a default eviction judgment, and left him with an eviction on his record that a dozen landlords then refused to rent around: $60,000 to one servicemember plus a civil penalty . If a default judgment was entered against you while you were serving, it can be reopened; the default-judgment shield walks the deadlines.

Serving in Alaska and looking for what the state adds to your own protections rather than court procedure? That is a different page: Alaska SCRA benefits.