The Military Selective Service Act of 1967 is a registration program used by the U.S. government to create and maintain a list of names of men from which to draw in case of a national emergency requiring rapid expansion of our armed forces. By registering all young men, the United States Selective Service System ensures that a future draft will be fair and equitable. With that, the Selective Service System was created as a government agency to maintain that information. Here are 7 Facts About the Selective Service.
1. All Male US citizens, permanent resident aliens, refugees and political asylee’s living in the US must register for Selective Service between the ages of 18 through 25.
2. Any US male age 26 and older who has not registered with Selective Service can not do so. The person must contact and petition the Selective Service to describe the circumstances that prevented him from registering during the appropriate time period.
3. Any male born from March 29, 1957 to December 31, 1959 was not required to register because the registration program was not in operation.
4. Lawful non-immigrant males on visas in the US are not required to register.
5. Any US citizen who has served in the military may check “YES” on the Selective Service form having registered for Selective Service.
6. Any permanent resident alien who obtained permanent resident status at age 26 or older does not have to register. However, he must explain on the Selective Service form the reason he was not required to register.
7. Any male who checks “NO” on the Selective Service form must provide documentation from the Selective Service indicating why he did not have to register.
FINAL THOUGHTS: Selective Service registration can be done at high schools, colleges and universities, and via the Selective Service Web site. And, even though the Secretary of Defense has decided to allow women to serve in direct combat roles, the law has not changed to reflect this with regards to Selective Service obligations. So, for now, only males 18-25 must register. That may change soon though.
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