Criteria: Awarded to any member of the United States Army completing a standard overseas tour of duty. Such tours are normally for two to three years and must be served outside the contiguous United States, including Alaska and Hawaii. The Army Overseas Service Ribbon was first issued in August of 1981. Additional awards of the Army Overseas Service Ribbon are denoted by bronze numerals. For those Army service members performing overseas duty prior to 1981, the Army Overseas Service Ribbon may be awarded retroactively, provided that a service member was on active duty subsequent to 1981. The Army also issues an Overseas Service Bar which is an entirely different decoration from the Overseas Service Ribbon.

Note: This service ribbon is one of the few awards issued by the military as a ribbon only. There is no accompanying medal.