WASHINGTON - The U.S. government will begin automatically registering all eligible men between the ages of 18 and 25 for the military draft starting in December 2026. The change ends more than four decades of requiring young men to register on their own.
The Selective Service System, the federal agency that maintains the draft database, submitted the rule to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs on March 30, according to the office’s website. The proposal is under review and must be approved before taking effect.
The move was mandated by Congress in December 2025 when President Donald Trump signed the fiscal year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act into law, according to the agency’s website. The law shifts the registration responsibility from individual men to the Selective Service System by linking federal databases.
Currently, most male U.S. citizens and immigrants between ages 18 and 25 must register within 30 days of their 18th birthday. Late registration remains allowed until a man turns 26. Failure to register is a violation of the Military Selective Service Act. Penalties can include a fine up to $250,000, up to five years in prison, and loss of eligibility for federal student aid and government jobs.
Compliance with the current self-registration system fell to 81% in 2024, down from 84% the previous year, according to congressional data.
Forty-six states and territories already automatically register eligible men when they apply for a driver’s license or state ID, according to a 2024 Selective Service System report. The new rule would create automatic registration nationwide.
Supporters say the change will save money. The Selective Service System costs about $30,000 a year. Representative Chrissy Houlahan, a Pennsylvania Democrat who sponsored the language, said automatic registration allows the government to “rededicate resources … towards readiness and towards mobilization … rather than towards education and advertising campaigns driven to register people”.
The rule has raised concerns among some Americans about the possibility of a future draft. The United States has not activated the draft since 1973 during the Vietnam War and has relied on an all-volunteer military since then. Selective Service registration was reinstated in 1980 by President Jimmy Carter after the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News in early March that a draft is “not part of the current plan right now” but said the president “keeps his options on the table”. A draft would require both a formal declaration of war by Congress and an authorization from the president.
The automatic registration applies to male U.S. citizens and male immigrants living in the country, including green card holders, refugees, asylum seekers and undocumented men, according to the National Defense Authorization Act. Men on non-immigrant visas are exempt.
Women remain exempt from Selective Service registration.