Selective Service Registration and Naturalization

Selective Service registration is a legal requirement for male U.S. residents between the ages of 18 and 25. For naturalization applicants, failure to register when required is a serious concern because it is evaluated as a good moral character issue. The impact on your application depends on whether you were required to register, whether you actually registered, and how old you are now.

What the Selective Service System Is

The Selective Service System is a federal agency that maintains a registry of males who would be eligible for military service in the event Congress reinstates a military draft. Registration is required by law for male U.S. residents between the ages of 18 and 25, regardless of immigration status. This includes lawful permanent residents, undocumented immigrants, and most visa holders.

Where This Appears on Form N-400

Part 12 of Form N-400, which covers good moral character, includes a question asking whether you are a male who lived in the United States between the ages of 18 and 26 and whether you registered with the Selective Service. If the answer is yes, you must confirm your registration. If you were required to register but did not, you must disclose that.

Scenario 1: You Are Currently Ages 18 to 25

If you are between 18 and 25 and have not registered, register immediately at sss.gov. Registration is free and takes about two minutes online. Once you register, you are in compliance, and the issue should not affect your naturalization application.

Scenario 2: You Are Over 26 and Did Not Register

If you are older than 26 and did not register before your 26th birthday, you are past the registration deadline and cannot register now. USCIS will evaluate whether your failure to register was willful. A willful failure is one where you knew about the requirement and consciously chose not to comply.

If your failure was not willful, such as if you were recently arrived in the country, were unaware of the requirement due to language barriers, or received no information about it from any government agency, you may be able to present evidence to that effect. You can request a Status Information Letter from the Selective Service System (at sss.gov) which documents your registration status for USCIS review.

What USCIS Looks For

USCIS officers consider the totality of the circumstances. Relevant factors include: your age at the time you arrived in the United States (if you arrived after age 26, you were never required to register), the length of time between when you became required to register and when you failed to do so, and whether any government agency ever informed you of the requirement.

Applicants who arrived in the United States after age 26 as permanent residents or immigrants were never within the registration window and have no Selective Service issue. The question on Form N-400 specifically asks about living in the United States between ages 18 and 26.

Applicants Who Are Not Required to Register

Women are not required to register for Selective Service. Males who were not residing in the United States between the ages of 18 and 25 were not required to register during those years (though they may have been required to register during any period they did live in the U.S. within that age window). Males born before 1960 are not required to register and have no Selective Service issue with their naturalization applications.