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Draft 

NIJ Specification

Threat Levels and Associated Ammunition to Test Equipment 

Intended to Protect U.S. Law Enforcement Against 

Handguns and Rifles

National Institute of Justice

January 2018
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Introduction

This draft document specifies the threat levels and associated ammunition intended for use with 

voluntary National Institute of Justice (NIJ) Standards that specify a minimum performance 

requirement for equipment intended to protect U.S. law enforcement against handgun and rifle 

ammunition. It defines ballistic threats identified by U.S. law enforcement as representative of 

prevalent threats in the United States. Its primary purpose will be for use by the NIJ Compliance 

Testing Program (CTP) for testing and evaluation of ballistic-resistant body armor for 

certification by NIJ. It will be used by both ballistics laboratories that test body armor and body 

armor manufacturers participating in the NIJ CTP. This standard will be included in the Personal 

Body Armor scope of accreditation used by the National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation 

Program (NVLAP) to accredit ballistics laboratories.

The final version of this document is anticipated to be published in late 2018 as a companion to 

NIJ Standard 0101.07, which will revise NIJ Standard 0101.06, Ballistic Resistance of Body 

Armor, published in 2008.1 This draft ballistic test threats document is incorporated by reference 

into the draft version of NIJ Standard 0101.07, which specifies minimum performance 

requirements and test methods for the ballistic resistance of body armor used by U.S. law 

enforcement that is intended to protect the torso against handgun and rifle ammunition. A 

standalone threats specification may also enable testing of a variety of ballistic-resistant 

equipment, not just ballistic-resistant body armor, against contemporary U.S. law enforcement 

threats.

Threat level nomenclature has been revised from NIJ Standard 0101.06 to be more descriptive of 

threats and to reduce confusion among law enforcement end users of body armor. Level II and 

level IIIA have been replaced with “HG1” and “HG2,” respectively, to represent handgun (HG) 

threats. Level III and level IV have been revised to three levels representing rifle (RF) threats—

“RF1,” “RF2,” and “RF3”—with RF1 and RF3 replacing level III and level IV, respectively. 

RF2 is a new intermediate threat level introduced in this draft specification.

This document uses the following in accordance with international standards:

— “shall” indicates a requirement;

— “should” indicates a recommendation;

— “may” indicates a permission;

— “can” indicates a possibility or a capability.

Please send all written comments on this draft document to Mark Greene, Policy and Standards 

Division Director, Office of Science and Technology, National Institute of Justice in electronic 

format by email at mark.greene2@usdoj.gov.

 1 NIJ Standard 0101.06, Ballistic Resistance of Body Armor, National Institute of Justice, U.S. Department of 

Justice, Washington, DC, July 2008, https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/223054.pdf.
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Please send all other written comments and suggestions to the Director, National Institute of 

Justice, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, 810 7th Street NW, Washington, 

DC 20531.

Nothing in this document is intended to create any legal or procedural rights enforceable against 

the United States. Moreover, nothing in this document creates any obligation for any individual 

or organization to follow or adopt this voluntary standard nor does it create any obligation for 

manufacturers, suppliers, law enforcement agencies, or others to follow or adopt voluntary NIJ 

equipment standards.
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Table of Contents

1. Scope ....................................................................................................................................... 5

2. References ............................................................................................................................... 5

3. Terms and Definitions............................................................................................................. 6

4. NIJ Threat Levels and Ballistic Test Threats .......................................................................... 6
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1. Scope

1.1. This document specifies the threat levels and associated ammunition as defined by the 

National Institute of Justice (NIJ). It is intended for use with NIJ Standards that specify a 

minimum performance requirement for equipment intended to protect U.S. law 

enforcement against handgun and rifle ammunition.

1.2. This document defines ballistic threats identified by U.S. law enforcement as 

representative of prevalent threats in the United States. 

1.3. The ammunition detailed in this document is classified into five threat levels: NIJ HG1, 

NIJ HG2, NIJ RF1, NIJ RF2, and NIJ RF3.

1.3.1. HG represents handgun.

1.3.2. RF represents rifle.

1.4. This document, when used with an appropriate NIJ standard, is applicable for 

certification testing or research and development testing.

1.5. The primary unit of velocity is specified as ft/s (feet per second). Additional units in 

parenthesis of m/s (meters per second) are for reference only. Units where referenced 

from external documents are referenced in their native, published format.

2. References

The following references form a basis, and provide support, for the requirements and procedures 

described in this standard. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated 

references, the latest edition of the referenced document applies, including any amendments.

• ANSI/SAAMI. Glossary of Industry Terms. Newtown, CT: Sporting Arms and Ammunition 

Manufacturers’ Institute (SAAMI).

• ANSI/SAAMI. American National Standard ANSI/SAAMI Z299.3 -2015, Voluntary 

Industry Performance Standards for Pressure and Velocity of Centerfire Pistol and Revolver 

Ammunition for the Use of Commercial Manufacturers. Newtown, CT: Sporting Arms and 

Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute (SAAMI).

• ANSI/SAAMI. American National Standard ANSI/SAAMI Z299.4 -2015, Voluntary 

Industry Performance Standards for Pressure and Velocity of Centerfire Rifle Ammunition 

for the Use of Commercial Manufacturers. Newtown, CT: Sporting Arms and Ammunition 

Manufacturers’ Institute (SAAMI).

• ASTM E3005-15, Standard Terminology for Body Armor and Related Items. West 

Conshohocken: PA: ASTM International.
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3. Terms and Definitions

3.1. ammunition, n – one or more loaded cartridges consisting of case, primer, propellant, and 

one or more projectiles. (ASTM E3005)

3.2. cartridge, n – single assembled unit consisting of a bullet, propellant, primer, and casing. 

Synonymous with round. (ASTM E3005)

3.3. reference velocity, n – The specified velocity for a given test threat.

3.4. test threat, n – the projectile that is used in laboratory testing to impact the test item at a 

specific velocity or energy to assess performance of body armor. (Adapted from ASTM 

E3005)

Discussion: In this standard, test threat only refers to bullets fired from specified barrels.

4. NIJ Threat Levels and Ballistic Test Threats

4.1. Table 1 lists the NIJ HG threat levels, the associated ammunition for each level, and the 

reference velocity to be used during testing. Table 2 lists the NIJ RF threat levels, the 

associated ammunition for each level, and the reference velocity to be used during 

testing. These tables were developed based on input from experienced practitioners and 

subject-matter experts.

4.2. The projectile firing system shall be capable of consistently and reproducibly propelling 

the test projectiles at the required aiming point with acceptable accuracy, impact velocity, 

and angle of impact yaw.

4.2.1. SAAMI specifications provide a good starting point to achieve a system capable of 

achieving acceptable accuracy, impact velocity, and angle of impact yaw.
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Table 1. NIJ HG Threat Levels and Test Threat Ammunition

NIJ HG Threat Level Test Threat Ammunition Manufacturer

& Model ID

Reference 

Velocity

NIJ HG1

(Formerly NIJ 0101.06 

Level II)

9mm Luger FMJ RN 124 

grains Remington #23558

1305 ft/s

(398 m/s)

.357 Mag JSP 158 grains Remington #22847

1430 ft/s

(436 m/s)

NIJ HG2

(Formerly NIJ 0101.06 

Level IIIA)

9mm Luger FMJ RN 124 

grains Remington #23558

1470 ft/s

(448 m/s)

.44 MAG JHP 240 grains Speer #4453 or 

#47361

1430 ft/s

(436 m/s)

Notes on Table 1:

1 These rounds may be special ordered from Speer or purchased from surplus.
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Table 2. NIJ RF Threat Levels and Test Threat Ammunition

NIJ RF Threat

Level

Test Threat 

Ammunition

Manufacturer

& Model ID

Reference 

Velocity

NIJ RF1

(Enhanced 

version of NIJ 

0101.06 Level 

III)

7.62x51mm M80 Ball 

NATO FMJ Steel Jacket

Spire PT BT

149 +0/-3 grains

U.S. military supply or 

rounds meeting NATO 

specifications

2780 ft/s

(847 m/s)

7.62x39mm Surrogate 

test round See Figure 1a, b & c

2380 ft/s

(725 m/s)

5.56mm M193 BT

56 +0/-2 grains

U.S. military supply or 

rounds meeting NATO 

specifications

3250 ft/s

(990 m/s)

NIJ RF2

(Same as NIJ 

RF1 plus 5.56 

mm M855)

7.62x51mm M80 Ball 

NATO FMJ Steel Jacket

Spire PT BT

149 +0/-3 grains

US military supply or rounds 

meeting NATO 

specifications

2780 ft/s

(847 m/s)

7.62x39mm Surrogate 

test round See Figure 1a, b & c

2380 ft/s

(725 m/s)

5.56mm M193 BT

56 +0/-2 grains

U.S. military supply or 

rounds meeting NATO 

specifications

3250 ft/s

(990 m/s)

5.56mm M855 BT

61.8 ± 1.5 grains

U.S. military supply or 

rounds meeting NATO 

specifications

3115 ft/s

(950 m/s)

NIJ RF3

(Formerly NIJ 

0101.06 Level 

IV)

30.06 M2 AP FMJ

Spire PT AP

165.7 +0/-7 grains

U.S. military supply or 

rounds meeting NATO 

specifications

2880 ft/s

(878 m/s)
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Figure 1 a 7.62 x 39 Surrogate drawing: 

Short bullet assembly
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Figure 1 b 7.62 x 39 Surrogate drawing: 

Short bullet core
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Figure 1a. Figure 1 c 7.62 x 39 Surrogate drawing: 

Short bullet jacket