US to automatically register eligible men for military draft pool from December

Dan McDonald
Thu, 09 Apr 2026 03:47:45 +0000

The US will begin automatically enrolling men aged 18 to 25 into its military conscription database from December, it has been announced.

The regulatory change was submitted by the Selective Service System - the agency responsible for maintaining records of Americans eligible for military service.

“This statutory change transfers responsibility for registration from individual men to SSS through integration with federal data sources,” the agency posted on its website.

The proposal is now under review by regulatory authorities before it can be finalised.

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The US last implemented conscription during the early 1970s at the height of the deeply contentious Vietnam War.

While there has been no active draft since, men aged 18 to 25 have still been required to register with the Selective Service System in case conscription is reinstated.

The agency said the change simply streamlines the existing process as part of a “workforce realignment".

Efforts to expand draft registration to include women have been proposed in recent years, but none have passed into law.

Men who fail to register currently face penalties including fines of up to $250,000, prison sentences of up to five years, and disqualification from federal programmes.

The move comes as the White House has declined to rule out conscription amid the ongoing conflict in Iran.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News on Sunday: “President Trump wisely does not remove options off of the table.

"I know a lot of politicians like to do that quickly,”

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Mr Trump has publicly downplayed the prospect of deploying ground forces, saying he would only do so “if necessary” and that it would be a “waste of time.”

However, reports suggest the President has privately shown “serious interest” in sending troops on the ground.

“It’s not part of the current plan right now, but the President, again, wisely keeps his options on the table,” Mrs Leavitt repeated.

She added that Mr Trump “wants to continue to assess the success of this military operation” before making a decision on ground forces.

Fox News host Maria Bartiromo told the senior White House official that “mothers are worried” their sons could be sent to war through a draft.

Polling over several decades has shown strong opposition among Americans to conscription.

The sentiment is believed to be shaped in part by the legacy of the Vietnam War and a preference for a professional volunteer military.

Any move to reinstate the draft would require approval from Congress, including changes to the Military Selective Service Act.