What you need to know about the possibility of being drafted into the U.S. military
If Congress approves a U.S. military draft amid rising global tensions, here’s what you need to know about how that draft would work.
Eligible men will be automatically registered as candidates for the U.S. military draft by December, according to officials overseeing the program, in an effort to streamline the existing self-registration process.
On March 30, the Selective Service System, the federal agency that oversees a database of men eligible for military service during the draft, submitted proposed rules for automatic enrollment to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, according to its website.
The new automatic enrollment process was authorized by Congress under the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 and signed into law by President Donald Trump in December 2025.
According to the SSS website, the agency plans to implement the switch to automatic registration by December, resulting in a “streamlined registration process and associated workforce restructuring.”
Here’s what you need to know about the new draft registration process.
What you need to know about switching to automatic enrollment for Selective Services
Most male U.S. citizens between the ages of 18 and 25 are required to register with the SSS, which has not been actively drafted since 1973, according to the agency’s website.
The agency is now moving to an automatic enrollment process, rather than requiring eligible men to manually enroll.
According to the bill text, the Selective Service Act amendments that would introduce automatic registration would go into effect one year after the NDAA becomes law.
On March 30, SSS formally submitted automatic registration as a proposed rule to OIRA, which will now consider and finalize regulatory action.
According to the SSS website, the change “transfers registration responsibility from individual men to the SSS through integration with federal data sources.”
How does draft registration currently work?
Currently, eligible male U.S. citizens between the ages of 18 and 25 must register online through the Selective Service System.
To fill out the form, men must enter their full name, home address, date of birth, and social security number.
Men who serve continuously on full-time active duty in the military between the ages of 18 and 26 are not required to register for the draft. Also exempt are people who have been hospitalized or imprisoned for any period between the ages of 18 and 25.
The Selective Service Act requires only men to register for the draft. Women can participate in active combat to serve in the military.
Will there be conscription?
The Iran war and the current ceasefire have raised new questions about whether the United States will institute conscription.
In a March 8 interview with Fox News, White House press secretary Caroline Levitt said reinstating the draft “is not part of our current plans at this time,” but added that Trump “keeps options on the table.”
According to the SSS, a return to active military service would require Congress to amend the Selective Service Act.
When conscription occurs, not all men enrolled in the SSS are called up for duty. The agency determined the order in which each individual would be inducted into the Hall of Fame by drawing randomly from a lottery combination of birthdays and numbers.
When was the last time a draft was used?
According to the SSS, there has been no active recruitment since 1973.
From 1948 to 1973, conscription was actively used to conscript men to fill vacancies in both peacetime and conflict periods.
In July 1980, then-President Jimmy Carter reinstated draft registration under Presidential Proclamation 4771.
Contributors: George Petras and Janet Loehrke, USA TODAY
Melina Khan is USA TODAY’s national trends reporter. Contact her at melina.khan@usatoday.com.
