SELECTIVE SERVICE REGISTRATION
By: Allen E. Kaye
I registered already. How can I find out
my Selective Service registration number?
Call the Selective Service registration information line
at 1-847-688-6888.
I registered two months ago and still haven't
gotten a registration acknowledgment card. I also received
a letter from Selective Service reminding me to register.
What should I do?
It may take as long as 90 days to process your registration.
Please disregard all other reminders to register you may get
from this Agency until that time. If, after 90 days you still
haven't received a registration acknowledgment, call Selective
Service at 1-847-688-6888 and use the automated system to
check to see if you're in our system. If you've already registered
and you're in the system, please disregard all other reminders
to register. If you're not in the system, please re-register.
My son just turned 18 and will be attending
the United States Naval Academy in the fall. He just received
a registration reminder letter. Does he need to register?
If a young man turns 18 at any time prior to actually attending
one of the service academies (like the U.S. Naval Academy),
he is required to register. If he turns 18 while attending,
he does not have to register. If he leaves the Academy and
active military duty prior to his 26th birthday, he will be
required to register then.
Where do I send my registration form?
Send registration forms to: Selective Service System, P.O.
Box 94739, Palatine, IL 60094-4638.
What is Selective Service registration?
Registration is a way our government keeps 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 Selective Service ensures that a future
draft will be fair and equitable.
Where can I get a Selective Service registration
form?
Forms are available at any U.S. post office. You can now
register on-line.
How can I register?
Men 18 through 25 years old can register by completing a
form at the post office. Some high schools have a faculty
or staff member who serves as a Selective Service Registrar.
Most men turning 18 can also register by mail, if they receive
a Selective Service form in the mail.
Why do we need Selective Service if there
may never be a draft?
As President Clinton informed Congress in 1994, "Maintaining
the Selective Service System and draft registration provides
a hedge against unforeseen threats and a relatively low cost
'insurance policy' against our underestimating the maximum
level of threat we expect our Armed Forces to face."
What is the penalty for not registering?
If you do not register, you could be prosecuted and fined
up to $250,000 and/or be put in jail for up to five years.
Registration is also a requirement to qualify for Federal
student aid, job training benefits, and most Federal employment.
I lost my registration acknowledgment card.
How can I get another one?
Copies of proof of registration may be obtained by calling
the Selective Service at (847)688-6888. You may also obtain
a copy by writing to: Selective Service System, P.O. Box 94638,
Palatine, Illinois, 60094-4638. Make sure to provide your
name, date of birth, Social Security Number, and current mailing
address.
What if it's been more than 30 days after
I've turned 18 and I still haven't registered?
You should register on-line immediately. If you are unable
to register on-line, you must obtain a Selective Service registration
form from any U.S. post office. Selective Service will accept
a late registration.
Why did I receive a registration reminder
card at my home? How did Selective Service get my name?
Selective Service got your name from one of the many lists
used to identify people who may be eligible to register. It
may have been a driver's license list from a state Department
of Motor Vehicles, a list from a Federal or state agency such
as the Department of Education, the Immigration and Naturalization
Service, the Department of Labor's JTPA or Job Corps Program,
the Department of Defense's recruiting list, or from a high
school list.
Are illegal alien males required to register?
Yes. All immigrant alien males, other than those admitted
on nonimmigrant visas, must register, whether or not they
have a green card.
When was registration reinstated?
President Jimmy Carter reinstated the Selective Service
registration requirement in the summer of 1980.
What if I'm a U.S. citizen living or visiting
out of the U.S. when it's time to register?
Visit the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate. They will help
you register. How can I find out if someone I know was ever
drafted? Call the Selective Service records division at (703)
605-4049. Provide the person's full name, date of birth, and
his address at the time of registration.
What if I am over age 26 and haven't registered?
Once you reach age 26, it's too late to register. Even though
you may not be prosecuted, you will be denied student financial
assistance, Federal job training, and most Federal employment
unless you can provide convincing evidence to the agency providing
the benefit you are seeking, that your failure to register
was not knowing and willful.
Virtually all men must register with Selective Service.
The exceptions to this rule are very few and include: nonimmigrant
aliens on student, visitor, tourist, or diplomatic visas;
men on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces; and cadets and
midshipmen in the Service Academies and certain other U.S.
military colleges. All other men must register upon reaching
age 18 (or before age 26, if entering and taking up residence
in the U.S. when already older than 18). Disabled men, clergymen,
and men who believe themselves to be conscientiously opposed
to war must register because there is no draft in effect,
nor is there a program to classify men at this time. Should
the Congress and the President reinstate a draft, a classification
program would begin. Registrants would be examined to determine
suitability for military service, and they would also have
ample time to claim exemptions, deferments, or postponements.
To be inducted, men would have to meet the physical, mental,
and administrative standards established by the military services.
Local Boards would meet in every American community to determine
exemptions and deferments for clergymen, ministerial students,
and men who file claims for reclassification as conscientious
objectors.
Are disabled men, or men with medical conditions,
required to register with Selective Service?.
The only process now in effect is that men between the ages
of 18 and 26 register with Selective Service and keep their
registration record current during that period. Neither the
Military Selective Service Act nor the Presidential proclamation
provide an exemption from registration because of a man's
mental or physical condition unless Selective Service is provided
with documented evidence that the man is hospitalized or institutionalized;
or home-bound and unable to function outside the home, with
or without physical assistance; or is in such a physical or
mental condition that he would not comprehend the nature of
his registration with the Selective Service System. A determination
is then made by Selective Service as to whether or not the
man qualifies for exemption from registration.
What do I do if my name or date of birth
on my Selective Service Acknowledgment card is incorrect?
How long will it take to correct this?
If your name is misspelled, indicate what the correct name
should be. Sign and date the card, and return it to Selective
Service. If you have legally changed your name, indicate the
new name, attach supporting documentation, sign and date the
card, and return it to Selective Service. If the month or
day in your date of birth is listed incorrectly, indicate
the correct date of birth, sign and date the card and return
it to Selective Service. If the year of birth is incorrect,
indicate the correct year of birth, attach supporting documentation,
sign and date the form, and return it to Selective Service.
Corrections will take four to six weeks to process, after
which you will be mailed a new acknowledgement card.
Am I required to give my Social Security
Number when I register with Selective Service?
If you have a Social Security number, you are required to
provide it. [50 U.S.C. App.453(b); 32 CFR 1615.4(a)]. However,
you are not required to have a Social Security number to register
with Selective Service.
How does the Military Selective Service
Act apply to individuals who have had a sex change?
Individuals who are born female and have a sex change are
not required to register. U.S. citizens or immigrants who
are born male and have a sex change are still required to
register. In the event of a resumption of the draft, males
who have had a sex change can file a claim for an exemption
from military service if they receive an order to report for
examination or induction.
My last name is hyphenated. Why isn't the
hyphen printed on my acknowledgment card?
Our computer system does not allow any punctuation in the
name fields. Any punctuation provided will be replaced with
a space.
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