History

The Reserve Force Medal was instituted on 20 April 1982 and was awarded to the non-commissioned members of the Australian Reserve Forces. The Medal was one of three awards introduced in 1982 for the permanent and reserve units of the Australian Defence Force. All three awards were replaced with the Defence Long Service Medal in 2002.

In order to qualify for this Medal, an individual had to have completed 15 years of service between 14 February 1975 and 20 April 1999. Only three years of service with the Permanent Force could be used to meet the award criteria. Although this Medal is often thought of as a long service award, it is intended to recognise individuals who fulfilled their obligation to serve their nation, whether they did so voluntarily or were conscripted.

Although the Medal has been discontinued, clasps that indicate every 5 years of additional service are still awarded to the recipients of this award. When the ribbon is worn alone, the first four clasps are denoted with rosettes, and subsequent clasps are denoted in the form of Federation Star emblems.

The oblong medal features a silver-coloured Joint Service Emblem on the obverse. The reverse of the medal has a blank space for the recipient’s name and features the inscription ‘FOR EFFICIENT SERVICE IN THE RESERVE FORCES’ around the rim.The Crown of St. Edward surmounts the medal and attaches to a ribbon suspender. The ribbon is azure blue with a gold stripe on each edge.