Honorable Discharge

• Honorable discharge is offered to service members who have met or exceeded their required standards of duty for both personal conduct and performance. This is offered when they complete their tour of duty or in situations when the reason for involuntary discharge is not because of the service member's misconduct. For instance, if a member of the Marine Corps was injured in the line of duty and was unable to return to duty, yet before being injured was exemplary in performance and personal conduct, she will be given an honorable discharge. Similarly, those who fail the Marine Corps rigorous fitness program but otherwise serve well may be given this discharge. With an honorable discharge, most veterans receive the full rights of veterans who fulfilled their tour of duty.
  
  

General Discharge

• Sometimes a member of the Marine Corps will be discharged under honorable conditions, but will receive a general discharge. This means that the service member's conduct while serving or performance were not meritorious enough to earn an honorable discharge. General discharge limits some of the benefits the service member can receive. For instance, Marines discharged under a general discharge are not qualified to receive educational assistance or the Civil Service Retirement Credit.
  
  

Under Other Than Honorable Conditions Discharge

• Under Other Than Honorable Conditions discharge is the military's most severe form of administrative discharge, and it usually indicates that the former Marine either used violence inappropriately or was guilty of security violations. These are considered gross departures from the code of conduct for the Marines, but are not considered serious enough to require a court marshal. Those discharged with under other than honorable conditions cannot enlist in another branch of the military, nor can they receive most of the benefits offered to veterans, but their dependents or survivors may be eligible for survivor benefits, such as educational assistance.
  
  

Bad Conduct Discharge

• The bad conduct discharge requires a special or general court marshal and is considered a punitive discharge, rather than an administrative discharge. This form of discharge is used for those who are court marshaled for poor conduct while enlisted. Often the crimes that lead to a bad conduct discharge also require the individual to serve time in jail, but this will be determined by the jury at the court marshal. In the Marines, some benefits offered to veterans, such as prosthetic appliances or a burial flag, can still be offered to those with bad conduct discharge as determined at the court marshal.
  
  

Dishonorable Discharge

• Dishonorable discharge must be given through a general court-marshal, and is typically reserved for those who have committed serious crimes, such as murder, rape or desertion. This form of discharge causes the individual to lose all veterans benefits and may require jail time. Because it involves criminal offenses, many members of the military who receive a dishonorable discharge struggle to find work afterwards.