Service members who are deploying to combat zones may be entitled to as many as 15 days of extra leave, in addition to the annual leave they earn, under a new Defense Department policy. Participants in the Non-Chargeable Rest and Recuperation Leave program who are slated for tours in Afghanistan and Iraq could qualify for days of administrative absence, if they meet certain criteria. The program begins March 23. Deployments must be to locations where combat operations took place within the last six months and are expected to continue. Also, deployment sites must meet R&R leave program criteria, be designated as combat zones by the president, and must subject service members to “the most arduous conditions,” DoD stated in a March 22 blog.