Naturalization and Selective Service
A client of mine who is applying for naturalization couldn’t recall whether he registered with the Selective Service Agency and it was easy enough to find out. Since he is a male who was in the United States in immigrant status between the ages of 18 and 26, it was required that he register and registering is a prerequisite (under the circumstances I describe below) for naturalizing. We were able to go to the Selective Service Agency’s website and by inputting his name, Social Security number and date of birth we were able to confirm he did register (and got an instant, printable confirmation that he had done so) back in 1980.
Here are the basic rules about registering with Selective Service before applying to naturalize to U.S. citizenship.
First, the law (technically the Military Selective Service Act) requires every male citizen of the United States, and every other male person residing in the United States who is between 18 and 26 years old to register with the Selective Service Agency. “Male person residing in the United States” makes the law applicable to green card holders—permanent residents. The law does not apply to any female and it doesn’t apply to males who are in non-immigrant status. For example, it doesn’t apply to male students holding F student visas. It also doesn’t apply to any male who wasn’t even in the U.S. when they were between the ages of 18 and 25.
Second the law requires any naturalization applicant to prove (among several other things) that he or she declare a willingness to bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by law. Therefore, the USCIS will not approve a naturalization application for a male who knowing and willful failed to register for Selective Service if he was required to do so.
So what happens if a naturalization applicant was supposed to register with Selective Service but didn’t? Fortunately, the failure to register is not a permanent bar to naturalization. However, if the applicant simply refused to register or knowingly and willfully failed to register if he was required to, then his application is going to be denied.
A male under 26 years of age who has refused to register for Selective Service will not be
naturalized although his naturalization examination will be continued to a later date to give him a chance to do so. If he still refuses, then his application will be denied.
A male between 26 and 31 years of age who was required to register for Selective Service and who knowingly and willfully failed to register can’t be naturalized but if his failure wasn’t really knowing and willful, he’ll be given the chance to gather evidence to try to prove that.
For a male over the age of 31, generally a failure to register for Selective Service won’t prevent him from naturalizing. Even if he was required to register and even if his failure was knowing and willful, his failure would have occurred outside of the period of time when he must show the required “attachment to the good order and happiness of the United States.” Basically, the failure, at that age, is no longer relevant (unless, of course, there’s some other evidence that the applicant should be denied).
As I said, it’s easy enough to get proof that you registered. You can go to the Selective Service web site, enter your name, Social Security number, and birth date, and make a print out showing that you registered. Or you can call (847) 688-6888 or (847) 688-2576 to get proof that you registered. You should submit this with your naturalization application.
