The Idaho military affidavit

How Idaho handles it

Idaho does not publish a freestanding military affidavit for ordinary civil cases. The certification is paragraph 5 of the motion that asks for entry of default, and the Administrative Office of the Courts issues one version per case type: CAO Cv 7-1 for district court civil, CAO UD 7-1 for evictions, CAO FL 7-1 for family law, CAO GCS 7-1 for guardianship and child support matters, and CAO SC 5-1 for small claims. The motion itself cites Rule 55(a)(1) of the Idaho Rules of Civil Procedure as its authority.

That rule is worth reading before you rely on it. Rule 55(a)(1) requires only that the failure to plead or defend "is shown by affidavit or otherwise," and adds a three-day notice requirement if the party has appeared. Rule 55(b)(1) demands an affidavit of the amount due, an original instrument, and a written certification of the defendant's name and the address most likely to give notice of the default judgment. Nothing in Rule 55 mentions military service, which is why the wording that satisfies 50 U.S.C. Section 3931 lives on the form and not in the rule. Read at isc.idaho.gov on August 15, 2026.

CAO Cv 7-1 puts three checkboxes in paragraph 5, each naming the statute the same way. First, the defendant "is not in the uniformed services as defined by the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act of 2003," followed by a blank line beginning "I know this because." Second, "I am unable to determine whether Defendant is in the uniformed services as defined by the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act of 2003." Third, the defendant is in the uniformed services "and has waived in writing Defendant's rights under the Act." Paragraphs 1 through 4 handle who is signing, that proof of service is on file, that the 21-day answer window ran out, and that the defendant is over 18 and mentally competent.

The eviction version is not the same document with a different caption. CAO UD 7-1 tracks the expedited eviction hearing rather than the answer deadline, and it drops the written-waiver box entirely, leaving only "not in the uniformed services" and "unable to determine." Small claims splits the job two ways: CAO SC 5-1 rolls default, competence, non-military service, and the amount owed into one affidavit with an interest and fee computation and an attachment requirement, while CAO SC 5-1A is the standalone Affidavit of Competence and Non-Military Service for filers who only need the status piece.

Every form in the set is offered in both PDF and RTF from the Idaho Court Self-Help Center, so the RTF is the practical choice when the "I know this because" answer runs long. None of the forms asks you to attach a Defense Manpower Data Center status report, and none prints the DMDC address, so the supporting facts you type into that blank line are the whole record the judge sees on military status.

What trips filers up here

• Every Idaho form says "Servicemembers Civil Relief Act of 2003," which is the enactment year rather than a code citation. The sections now live at 50 U.S.C. Section 3901 and following, and the default provision is Section 3931.
• The eviction form CAO UD 7-1 has no written-waiver option, so a landlord whose tenant signed an SCRA waiver has nowhere on the form to say so.
• The small claims index and the form disagree on the name. The forms list calls it "Affidavit for Default, Competence, Non-Military Affidavit, and Amount Due," while the document's own caption reads "Affidavit for Default, of Competence, Non-Military Service, and Amount Due."
• CAO SC 5-1 has a "Not Applicable, Defendant is a business entity" box ahead of the military choices. The civil and eviction versions have no such box, so a plaintiff suing only a company still has to pick a military answer on those.

Signing it: declaration, no notary

The block is headed CERTIFICATION UNDER PENALTY OF PERJURY and reads "I certify under penalty of perjury pursuant to the law of the State of Idaho that the foregoing is true and correct." Date, printed name, signature. No notary or clerk appears anywhere in the Idaho default set.

No notary is needed. The signature block is an unsworn declaration under penalty of perjury, which is what 50 U.S.C. § 3931(b)(4) expressly allows. Signing it knowing the military statement is false is still a federal crime, and a state perjury exposure on top.

Idaho law on top of the federal rule

Idaho Code § 46-409: The Militia Civil Relief Act. When an active member of the Idaho National Guard is called or ordered by a governor to state active duty, or to Title 32 duty other than for training, in time of war, armed conflict, or a proclaimed emergency, the SCRA and USERRA "shall apply." The adjutant general or a designee issues the certificates of service the federal act refers to. Read at legislature.idaho.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 Idaho and looking for what the state adds to your own protections rather than court procedure? That is a different page: Idaho SCRA benefits.