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Selective service ??


liber
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What exactly is this?  Is it like a list of names in case there is a draft?  I ask because we are Canadians that were living in the US when my son turned 18.  We were under my husbands visa that was good for three years.We came back to Canada this July.  Today a registration acknowledgment letter came in the mail for him.  Since we are no longer living in the US do I need to do anything about it?  I tried calling today and could not get a hold of a real person.  I don't even know how they got a hold of our Canadian address.  Is he considered registered if he received this letter?

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Well, they track a variety of ways including through school records, vaccination records, identity documents, etc. and mass notify 18 year old males. He is not obligated in any way as a non American citizen, but if you want to get off the mailing list, you will want to get in touch and let them know he is a Canadian citizen residing in his home country.

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It's possible that they got his name from school or driving records (w/ the assumption that he was a US citizen).

 

My sil (who was a permanent resident but not a citizen) used to get jury summons. I think they used real estate records to create the jury pools & her name kept showing up, even though she wasn't eligible to do jury duty. It took quite a few trips to the courthouse to get them to finally remove her from the list.

 

I'd definitely follow-up & try to get something in writing saying that it doesn't apply to your ds (just in case it would somehow affect future travel for him if he was coming back into the US).

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In our state, when a young man applies for a driver's permit, driver's license or state-issued ID card, he agrees that his name will be submitted to the Selective Service when he turns 18yo. If he doesn't want to be registered with them, he must forfeit his license or ID card before his 18th birthday. It is part of what you agree to when you sign the application. 

 

I pointed this out to all three of my sons before they signed their applications, and yet all three were surprised when they received their registration card in the mail shortly after their 18th birthdays. 

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And as follow up, wouldn't you know it, ds received a letter yesterday claiming they are going to prosecute him for not registering accept that he is registered, he has his selective service number from back in February when he registered and his card. He was on hold so long yesterday afternoon that he had to give up due to afternoon classes, and their own $&!#()@ system shows him registered.

 

I am seriously going to have someone's head for this! He is really upset.

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No he's not.  We are Canadian citizens.  That is why we don't understand why this letter was sent to him.

 

Actually, he wishes he was an American so  he could join the US military.

 

 

Actually, he might be able to join the U.S. Military, but he would not be able to get a Security Clearance, and that would severely limit the different things he might be able to do.

 

The next time you are in the states, he might stop in at a Recruiting Office (U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force, etc.) and discuss that possibility with a Recruiter.

 

Many years ago, when I was on Active Duty in Mississippi, there was a guy in our barracks who had a strange history. As I recall, he had been in the Canadian Army. I am assuming that he was a Canadian Citizen, which may or may not be true. Then, he joined the U.S. Air Force.  He was in the process of getting out of the U.S. Air Force, so he could join the U.S. Army and become a Helicopter Pilot.  That was a very strange thing and I am surprised I can remember him...

 

So, if your son is interested in joining the U.S. Military, he should check to see whether or not that is possible. There may be a requirement that one is a legal "Permanent Resident" of the United States, but they might waive that. 

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Even non-US male citizens under 26 are expected to register.   I know when Dh was applying for a job at the VA, he needed to prove either than he registered or entered the country after he turned 26.  

 

 

Yes, it is basically used if we ever have a draft again... although we haven't had one since Vietnam.

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