SF 52: Request for Personnel Action
SF 52 is the internal federal form that starts a personnel action: appointments, promotions, reassignments, pay changes, separations, and more all begin with a Request for Personnel Action.
This is the genuine OPM PDF, unmodified. Source: OPM official page.
What is SF 52?
SF 52, Request for Personnel Action, is the OPM-prescribed form supervisors, managers, and HR offices use to request and clear personnel actions within a federal agency. It records the requested action with its nature-of-action codes, the position and pay information, and the approvals needed before the action is processed. Once approved, the action is documented on SF 50, Notification of Personnel Action, which becomes part of the employee's official personnel folder.
Employees themselves encounter the SF 52 mainly in Part V, where a resigning or retiring employee can state the reason for and effective date of a separation. Agency instructions and OPM's Guide to Processing Personnel Actions govern how each block is completed, and most agencies now initiate these requests in electronic HR systems modeled on the form.
Who files SF 52?
- Supervisors and managers requesting an appointment, promotion, reassignment, or other action for a position they oversee
- Agency HR specialists processing and approving requested actions
- Federal employees documenting a resignation or retirement in the separation section
- Administrative officers tracking requests as they move through agency approval chains
How to fill out SF 52
- Identify the action being requested and enter the appropriate action and legal authority information, following your agency's processing guidance.
- Complete the employee and position data: name, position title, series and grade, pay, and organizational location.
- For a resignation or retirement, the employee completes the separation section with the effective date and reason.
- Obtain the requesting and authorizing signatures your agency requires on the form.
- Route the completed SF 52 to your servicing HR office, which processes the action and issues the SF 50 that makes it official.
Quick fill SF 52 on this page
Prefer to see the form itself while you type? Open SF 52 in the editor to fill it on the actual pages, add a signature, and download.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between SF 52 and SF 50?
The SF 52 is the request; the SF 50 is the result. An SF 52 asks HR to process an action, and once it is approved and effected, the SF 50 Notification of Personnel Action documents it in the employee's official record. For proof of employment history, the SF 50 is the document that matters.
Do I use SF 52 to resign from a federal job?
Many agencies have the employee complete the resignation portion of the SF 52, or an electronic equivalent, stating the effective date and reason. Check with your HR office, since the exact procedure and notice expectations vary by agency.
Where does a completed SF 52 go?
It stays inside the agency. The form moves from the requesting office through any required approvers to the servicing human resources office. It is never sent to OPM by the employee.