text: FM 2-22.3 _________________________________________________________________________________
  support of critical operations rather than their retention at detainee and
  refugee holding facilities at echelons corps and below. This forward
  deployment gives HUMINT collectors earlier access to sources and is
  facilitated by enhanced communication and automation capabilities down to
  the collection team level.
  5-3. All operations are different, and deployment of HUMINT assets is
  METT-TC dependent. Brigades need the capability to provide 24-hour
  HUMINT collection capability to each battalion AO. The command
  relationship of the HUMINT collection capability is also METT-TC
  dependent. The OMT should be located at the echelon that is best able to
  manage and support the HCTs and to provide the best capability to answer
  the commander’s PIRs.
  5-4. The Division and Corps elements should cover their respective areas not
  covered by their subordinate commands. They also, as needed, reinforce those
  target areas that are most effective in answering their respective command
  PIRs already covered by subordinate command capability. EAC HUMINT
  units normally are responsible for supporting theater or national
  requirements and providing HUMINT support at theater level facilities such
  as the JIDC. The EAC units will also augment the echelon below corps units
  and conduct source operations in the Corps area as required. Operations,
  particularly in challenging terrain and in stability and reconstruction
  environments, may require additional HUMINT assets normally obtained
  from the RC.
  HUMAN SOURCE CONTACT OPERATIONS
  5-5. HUMINT collection requires the contact between the HUMINT collector,
  who attempts to gather information through a variety of HUMINT collection
  techniques, and a human contact, who hopefully has the information that the
  HUMINT collector wants and who can be convinced to divulge the
  information. Operations with formal contacts are only conducted by
  HUMINT collectors and CI agents who are specifically trained and
  authorized to do so. There are three levels of contacts:
  • One-time contact.
  • Continuous contact.
  • Formal contact.
  5-6. The basic goal of all levels of contact is to collect information in response
  to collection tasking; however, only under certain conditions can HUMINT
  collectors task contacts to get information for them (see para 5-28).
  Understanding the types of contacts is key to understanding each type of
  human source contact operation. The following levels are not all-inclusive nor
  are the listed categories exclusive. For example, a contact who was initially a
  one-time contact (such as a walk-in) may later be developed into a continuous
  contact. A continuous contact may be developed into a formal contact, who
  can then be tasked, trained, and paid. There is no limit on the number of
  times a team can meet contacts without recruiting them and making them
  into a formal contact.