Selective Service CHAPTER

5
Anyone required to register with Selective Service at any time must have
done so to receive aid. The Department performs a match with Selective
Service to confirm a student’s registration. In this chapter, we discuss
the registration requirement and the Selective Service match.

GENERAL INFORMATION Selective Service requirement

General Provisions
M en of ages 18 through 25 are required to register with
the Selective Service System. This requirement covers both
citizens of the United States and most other men residing in the
34 CFR 668.32(j), 668.37

United States, except that a man who is in the United States as a lawful
nonimmigrant isn’t required to register as long as he maintains that Age and registration
status. There are exceptions to the registration requirement, as The student can be registered with Se-
discussed under “Exemptions.” Students are required to register for lective Service as early as 30 days be-
Selective Service to be eligible for FSA funds, but parents who want to fore his 18th birthday. If the student is
borrow a PLUS loan don’t have to meet the registration requirement. too young, Selective Service will hold the
registration until the student is within 30
The student is given the opportunity to register as part of the days of his 18th birthday. Students 26
and older can’t be registered.
application process. There’s a question on the FAFSA that asks if the
student wants Selective Service to register him. By answering “Yes,” the
student gives the Department of Education permission to submit his
registration information to the Selective Service so that the student Gender and registration
may be registered. A student can also ask to be registered by changing Only males are required to register.
the answer to this question on the SAR to “Yes” and submitting the Whether a person is male or female is a
correction (though the answer to the question “Are you male?” must matter for medical determination. If a
school needs to determine whether a
also be yes). The student may also go directly to the Selective Service
student is male or female for Selective
website at www.sss.gov and register online.
Service purposes, the school should tell
the student to contact the Selective Ser-
In some cases, a student will not be able to register using the vice for a Status Information Letter.
FAFSA or SAR. Generally, however, a male student who is between 18
and 26 and who has not registered previously may use this method.
Students who have questions about Selective Service registration may
contact the Selective Service at 1-847-688-6888 or on the web.

EXEMPTIONS
Men exempted from the requirement to register include:

• males currently in the armed services and on active duty (this

exception does not apply to members of the Reserve and
National Guard who are not on active duty);

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Exemptions • males who are not yet 18 at the time that they complete their
34 CFR 668.37(a)(2) applications (an update is not required during the year, even if a
student turns 18 after completing the application);

Exemption examples • males born before 1960;

Tod has been on active duty in the Army
from the time he was 18, and didn’t • citizens of the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall
register with Selective Service before he Islands, or the Federated States of Micronesia*;
joined the Army. He’s now 24, is
planning to leave the Army, and wants • noncitizens who first entered the U.S. after they turned 26;
to receive financial aid. If he applies
while he’s still on active duty, he doesn’t
• noncitizens who entered the U.S. as lawful nonimmigrants on a
need to be registered with Selective
Service. Once he leaves, he must be
valid visa and remained in the U.S. on the terms of that visa
registered, or else he won’t be able to until after they turned 26.
receive aid in later years. In most cases,
when someone completes an There are certain less common situations in which registration isn’t
enlistment contract he is automatically necessary. Students who weren’t required to register prior to meeting
registered, so Tod is probably already one of these criteria and who meet a criterion for the entire time
registered even though he didn’t through the age of 25 qualify for the waiver if
complete a separate registration form.
• they are unable to register due to being hospitalized,
George was enrolled in an officer incarcerated, or institutionalized;
procurement program at the Virginia
Military Institute, which he started a
• they are enrolled in any officer procurement program at The
month before he turned 18. When he
was 22, he had a serious accident and
Citadel, North Georgia College and State University, Norwich
was hospitalized; he officially dropped University, Virginia Military Institute, Texas A&M University, or
out of school a month after he was Virginia Polytechnic and State University; or
hospitalized. Due to his injuries he was
hospitalized for four years. Because he • they are commissioned Public Health Service officers on active
qualified for a waiver for the entire time duty or members of the Reserve of the Public Health Service on
he was 18 through 25, he was not specified active duty.
required to register with Selective
Service. If the student isn’t required to register, you must document the
student’s status. If the student isn’t clearly exempt from the
requirement to register, you should ask the student to document the
exemption by providing the school with a Status Information Letter
from the Selective Service.

As mentioned above, noncitizens who first enter the U. S. after the

age of 26 aren’t required to register. Only those immigrant men who
enter and live in the U.S. at ages 18 through 25 are required to be
registered. If a male immigrant can show proof that he first entered
the U.S. when he was past registration age, he is clearly not required to
be registered, and no Status Information Letter is needed. The
student’s entry documentation is enough to show whether he was
required to register.

*A citizen or national of the Republic of the Marshall Islands or the Federated States of Micronesia who lives in
the United States for more than one year for any reason except as a student or employee of the government of
his homeland must register.

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 Ch. 5—Selective Service

SELECTIVE SERVICE MATCH Status information letter codes

To check that students who must be registered actually are The Selective Service has different types
registered, the CPS performs a match with the Selective Service of status information letters. A code
appears in the lower left-hand corner to
System. The CPS provides a match flag showing the results in the FAA
indicate the type of letter in question.
Information section of the output document. In addition, the output
The codes are listed below.
document has a comment about the match results. Decisions about financial aid for a
man who failed to register with
Successful matches Selective Service should not be based
If the match shows that the student is registered or exempt, a solely on these letter codes. Financial
comment confirming this fact will be on the student’s output Aid Administrators are obliged to
document. The student is then eligible for aid. review all evidence presented by a
student to determine if he has shown
The student is also eligible for aid if the match shows that the “by a preponderance of evidence” that
student is still too young to register. If the student asks to be his failure to register was neither willful
registered, Selective Service will hold onto that registration request nor knowing.
• E1-E8. A letter with any of these codes
until 30 days before the student’s 18th birthday and will then register
indicates that the student was not
the student.
required to register or was exempt the
entire time he could have registered
Finally, the student is also eligible if the CPS successfully forwards (ages 18 through 25).
the student’s name to Selective Service for registration. • NR. A letter with this code indicates
that the student was born before 1960
Unsuccessful matches and is therefore not required to register.
If the match doesn’t confirm the student’s registration, or the • RR. A letter with this code indicates
student can’t be registered, the output document will have a comment that the student said he attempted to
about the problem. A “C” flag will also be printed next to the register but that Selective Service has no
student’s EFC. Until the student resolves the registration problem, you proof that he attempted to register.
can’t pay FSA funds to the student or certify or originate a loan. • NM. A letter with this code indicates
that the student did not register
although he was on active duty in the
▼ Registration not confirmed. If the match shows that the student
armed forces only for a portion of the
isn’t registered, the student must either register or provide evidence time when he could have registered
that he is registered or is exempt from registration. The student’s (between ages 18 through 25) and was,
Selective Service Registration Acknowledgement or letter of therefore, required to register.
registration shows that the student is registered. You can also go to the • RL. A letter with this code indicates
Selective Service web site at www.sss.gov and check on the student’s that the student was required to register,
registration status—a printout of the web page is acceptable that the Selective Service has no record
documentation that the student is registered. If the student doesn’t of his registration, and that Selective
have an acknowledgement or letter of registration, and the web site Service records show he was sent one
doesn’t confirm his registration, he’ll have to contact Selective Service or more letters requesting his
to resolve the problem. If the conflict is resolved in the student’s favor, compliance with the registration
requirement during the period he was
he’ll receive a letter from the Selective Service documenting that he is
required to be registered.
registered or that he is exempt from registering.
• RD. A letter with this code indicates
that the student provided a reason for
▼ Unsuccessful registration. The CPS won’t be able to forward the not registering (or provided
student for registration if certain information — first and last name documentation proving him exempt
and date of birth — is missing. The student should submit a correction from this requirement) but that the
with the required information and you can check the match results Selective Service determined the reason
from this correction to see if the student is eligible. or documentation to be invalid;
therefore, this code indicates that the
Forwarding the registration will also fail if the student is 26 or student was required to register but did
older. The student can no longer register, and you will have to not. No notices requesting compliance
determine if the student is still eligible despite failing to register; see with the registration requirement were
sent.
“Failure to Register.”

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Unsuccessful registration FAILURE TO REGISTER
example Some students have been denied aid because they failed to register
On his FAFSA, Hector asks the CPS to with the Selective Service before their 26th birthday. The Selective
forward his information to the Selective Service will register only males age 18 through 25, leaving older
Service for registration. However, he’s
students with no way to remedy their situation if they failed to register.
over 26, so the Selective Service can’t
However, the student may still be eligible to receive aid if he can
register him. His output document
comes back with a blank match flag demonstrate that he did not knowingly and willfully fail to register.
and comment 33. Hector didn’t enter
the U.S. until after his 26th birthday, so A student who served on active duty in the armed forces but
he doesn’t have to be registered. who did not register before turning 26 is still eligible to receive FSA
Guerrero University already has funds because it’s reasonable to conclude that he was not trying to
information about his citizenship avoid registering for the draft. Ask the student to provide a copy of
status, including the date he arrived in his DD Form 214, “Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active
the U.S., so it has documentation that Duty,” showing military service in the armed forces — other than the
Hector is exempt from registration. reserve forces, the Delayed Entry pool, and the National Guard — and
The FAA at Guerrero explains to release under a condition other than dishonorable.
Hector that he wasn’t required to
register with Selective Service because
Students without military service who knew of the registration
he didn’t immigrate to the U.S. until
after his 26th birthday. requirement but chose not to register are considered to have
knowingly and willfully failed to register and are therefore ineligible
for FSA funds. Your school’s decision in this case is final and cannot
be appealed to the Department.
Failure to register Determining if nonregistration was knowing and willful
34 CFR 668.37(d),(e)
Unless you can document that the student meets one of the
allowable exemptions regarding registration or can document that the
student served in active duty in the armed forces (and whose
character of service was other than dishonorable), the student must
Veteran Status Match write to the Selective Service to get a Status Information Letter
See the Application and Verification addressing his failure to register. He may also download a request
Guide for information on the veteran form from the Selective Service website (www.sss.gov) to print out,
match and dependency status.
complete, and mail. The student should provide as complete a
description about his situation as possible: where he was living during
the period when he should have registered, whether he was
incarcerated or institutionalized, his citizenship status during the
period, if applicable, and so on.

If the student receives a “general exemption letter” (codes E1-E8)

or a “DOB before 1960” letter (code NR), the student is exempt from
registration and may receive FSA funds. If the student receives any
other type of letter, you must determine based on all relevant evidence
whether the student knowingly and willfully failed to register. The
letter from Selective Service may provide information that is crucial
to your decision. For example, if the student received a letter
indicating a compliance letter had been sent (code RL), this letter
would be a negative factor when you make the determination. If the
student received a “Military Service: Noncontinuous” letter (code
NM), you might reasonably determine that the student did not
knowingly and willfully avoid registration.

Most of the Status Information Letters state that the final decision
regarding the student’s eligibility rests with the agency awarding funds.
For the purposes of the FSA Programs, the decision is made by your

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 Ch. 5—Selective Service

Selective Service Match

Result Comment Action needed
number and text
Match conducted. 029 None
Applicant’s registration status
confirmed by Selective Service.
Match flag Y
Match conducted. 030 The Selective Service reported that you have not Resolution required.
Applicant not in Selective registered with them. If you are female or were born before The student must either
Service database. 1960, registration is not required. Otherwise, if you have not register with the Selective
Match flag N yet registered, are male, and are 18 through 25 years of age, Service, provide proof that
C Code you must either answer “Yes” to both Items 27 and 28 on this he has already registered
SAR, complete a Selective Service registration form at your (such as his registration
local post office, or register on-line at www.sss.gov. If you acknowledgement), or
believe you have already registered or are exempt, please qualify for an exemption or
contact the Selective Service at 1-847-688-6888. waiver.

Match conducted. 026 If you want to register with Selective Service, you may No resolution required.
Student is within 45 days of his either answer “Yes” to both Items 27 and 28 on this SAR, An update is not required
18th birthday. Applicant is complete a Selective Service registration form at your local during the year.
temporarily exempt because post office, or register on-line at www.sss.gov. Selective
he is not yet 18 years old. Service will not process your registration until 30 days before
Match flag T your 18th birthday.

school, which represents the Department of Education. If you Appeals—Selective Service regis-
determine that the student’s failure to register was knowing and willful,
tration
the student loses FSA eligibility. The school’s decision is final and cannot
be appealed to the Department, except
When deciding whether the student had knowingly and willfully in one limited instance. The regulations
failed to register, you should consider the following factors: state that the Department will hear ap-
peals from students who have provided
• Where the student lived when he was age 18 through 25. For their schools with proof that they are in
example, if a student was living abroad, it is more plausible that compliance (i.e., that they are registered
he would not come into contact with the requirement for or exempt from registration) but who
registration. are still being denied federal student aid
based on the registration requirement.
• Whether the student claims that he thought he was registered.
Mistakes in recordkeeping can occur. Correspondence
indicating an attempt to register could form a basis for
determining that the student did not knowingly and willfully fail
to register. On the other hand, a letter from Selective Service
stating that it received no response to correspondence sent to
the student at a correct address would be a negative factor.

• Why the student claims he was not aware of the widely

publicized requirement to register when he was age 18 through
25.

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Results from Selective Service Registration via FAFSA

Result Comment Action needed
number and text
Registration conducted. 031 We have forwarded your name to Selective Service No resolution required.
Forwarded name to for registration, as you requested.
Selective Service for
registration on application
or SAR.
Match Flag Y
Registration conducted. 028 We have forwarded your name to Selective Service for No resolution required.
Forwarded name to registration, as you requested. They will process your
Selective Service for registration request 30 days prior to your 18th birthday.
registration as requested
on application or SAR.
Match Flag T

Registration not 033 We could not send your name to Selective Service as Resolution required.
conducted. you requested because you did not give us enough If the student is18-25, he
Applicant requested that information, you are outside the age range for registration, or should make corrections to
ED send name to you did not sign your form. If you are at least 18 but not yet 26, the SAR/ISIR and submit it. If
Selective Service for you may register by answering “Yes” to both Items 27 and 28 on the information needed to
registration, but this SAR. You must also provide information for Items 1, 2, and register the student is present,
applicant is either not 9. You may also register by completing a Selective Service his name will be sent to the
within age range or registration form available at your local post office, or by Selective Service. Review the
some information registering online at www.sss.gov. If you are a male who has subsequent output document
needed to register him is reached age 26, you cannot use the SAR to register. You must for the updated registration
missing. contact Selective Service at 1-847-688-6888 to resolve your flag.
Match flag blank registration status before you can receive federal student aid.
C Code You are exempt from registering if born before 1960. If the student is 26 or older and
has not registered, he must
obtain documentation from
the Selective Service about his
status. If he is not exempt or
eligible for a waiver, he might
not be eligible for aid. (See
“Failure to Register.”)

Registration not completed. 057 Selective Service did not register you because you did Before the school can pay the
Forwarded name to not answer “Yes” to Item 27. If you want to register, answer student, it must have proof
Selective Service for “Yes” to BOTH items 27 and 28 on this SAR, complete a that the student is exempt or
registration, but Selective Selective Service registration form at your local post office, the student must provide
Service did not complete or register on-line at www.sss.gov. confirmation that he is
registration process. registered (such as his
Match flag N registration
acknowledgment).

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