The Citation is carried on the receiving unit's colors in the form of a blue streamer, 4 ft (1.2 m) long and 2.75 in (7.0 cm) wide.

[8] Citations "to Naval and Marine Corps Units for Outstanding Performance in Action" was established by Executive Order 9050 on 6 February 1942.

To commemorate the first submerged voyage under the North Pole by the nuclear-powered submarine USS Nautilus (SSN-571) in 1958, all members of her crew who made that voyage were authorized to wear their Presidential Unit Citation ribbon with a special clasp in the form of a gold block letter N.[13] U.S. Navy sailors assigned to the USS Nautilus memorial at the Submarine Force Museum in Groton, Connecticut, are permitted to wear the Navy Presidential Unit Citation with "N" device while serving there.

[14] To commemorate the first submerged circumnavigation of the world by the nuclear-powered submarine Triton during its shakedown cruise in 1960, all members of her crew who made that voyage were authorized to wear their Presidential Unit Citation ribbon with a special clasp in the form of a golden replica of the globe.

The original Coast Guard Presidential Unit Citation was established under the authority of Executive Order 10694 (signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on January 10, 1957), and amended by Section 74 of Executive Order 13286 (signed by President George W. Bush on February 28, 2003) to transfer the award of the USCG PUC to the Secretary of Homeland Security.

[18] On 19 January 2021, President Donald Trump presented the citation to all Commissioned Corps officers serving from 2020 to 2021, for their extraordinary performance of duty during the COVID-19 pandemic.

[19][non-primary source needed] A gold frame is placed around the Presidential Unit Citation ribbon to indicate a second award.