Selective Service: Status Information Letter - Different Information

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jasmine7103

Registered Users (C)
My husband just received the notice for interview. On the document checklist it says

If registered with the selective service, bring proof of such. If you did not register with the selective service and you (1) are male, (2) over 26 years old, (3) were born on or after January 1, 19060, and (4) were a permanent resident between the ages of 18 and 26 when you failed to register, explain your failure to register and bring:

A status information letter from the selective service. (Call 1-847-688-6888 for more information)​

Now, my husband came here when he was 19 on B2 (Tourist visa) then his family applied for GC the same year. He became PR when he was 29. According to the checklist, he did not have to register for SS. (he was not PR between ages 18-26). Just to be safe, I called SS to confirm. After randomly pressing numbers (you can’t easily talk to representatives but if you make mistake or did not respond well, they’d let you talk to reps!) I was able to talk to a person who was very nice.

She told me that he WAS supposed to register even on B2! :eek: A tourist has to register?? She told me to have my husband call SS and request the information letter on the phone which is easier than requesting by mail. The reason we didn’t request by mail was that he lost some of the INS documents from the past. She said that they’d send him information letter which he can take to the interview but it is still up to INS to decide. She said to tell the INS that he didn’t know he had to register.

I am still unsure if he had to register but I am glad I checked.

Please share if you were in a similar situation. Thanks.:)
 
jasmine7103 said:
My husband just received the notice for interview. On the document checklist it says

If registered with the selective service, bring proof of such. If you did not register with the selective service and you (1) are male, (2) over 26 years old, (3) were born on or after January 1, 19060, and (4) were a permanent resident between the ages of 18 and 26 when you failed to register, explain your failure to register and bring:

A status information letter from the selective service. (Call 1-847-688-6888 for more information)​

Now, my husband came here when he was 19 on B2 (Tourist visa) then his family applied for GC the same year. He became PR when he was 29. According to the checklist, he did not have to register for SS. (he was not PR between ages 18-26). Just to be safe, I called SS to confirm. After randomly pressing numbers (you can’t easily talk to representatives but if you make mistake or did not respond well, they’d let you talk to reps!) I was able to talk to a person who was very nice.

She told me that he WAS supposed to register even on B2! :eek: A tourist has to register?? She told me to have my husband call SS and request the information letter on the phone which is easier than requesting by mail. The reason we didn’t request by mail was that he lost some of the INS documents from the past. She said that they’d send him information letter which he can take to the interview but it is still up to INS to decide. She said to tell the INS that he didn’t know he had to register.

I am still unsure if he had to register but I am glad I checked.

Please share if you were in a similar situation. Thanks.:)
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Whoever you spoke to gave the wrong information. People on tourist visas are not required to register. See the link below. But you need to provide us with more information what happened in the period of your husband's entry on a b2 and when he got the GC. If he enter on a b2 and overstay his visa, that would make him illegal at that time and illegal aliens have to register (see the link). You said his family applied for GC for him, what status was he in during that time? If he was in any immigrant status he would have to register. Did he have an Employment Authorization Document?

Here is the link

http://www.sss.gov/MUST.HTM
 
Obviously he couldn't have stayed with a visitor visa all the years he was in US. During the 10 years between when he was 19 and 29, what was his status?
 
Yep all residents and non-residents are required to sign up. Now excluding a B-2 visa which is about the only one you don't need to register with as they are only temporary usually 6 months or so. So yes, he had to have gotten a different status and that status required him to register. So you'll need to contact them to get them to send in a letter stating it's all ok.

If he was here illegally I believe you still needed to register. That's one that's been popping up quite a bit that many people weren't aware of...
 
Jasmine,
Just send copy of his passport and his visitor visa with explanation that he was not aware he had to register since he was not PR.All they do is check their database to see if he was notified,9 times out of 10 they will send you letter stating .He was eligible ,but they dont have any records that he was notified to register. That's all INS needs to see and I dont know of anyone who was turned down by not having letter.
plus he will need it when he goes to apply for Gov job.So keep it handy;)
 
Actually there are all sorts of statuses who don't need to register. If you are a "legal non-resident" (like TN or H1 or even a visitor) you don't need to resident.

However, it would be impossible to stay in the country 10 years in visitor status. If you go out of status, then you need to register.
 
So the crux of this matter is what was his status between arriving on a B1/B2 tourist visa at age 19, and getting his GC at age 29.

If the answer was "he was out of status" or "illegal", then he very much WAS required to register. This little detail may cause some discomfort during the naturalization interview, and although it isn't a permanent bar to naturalization, he should still try to obtain a Status Information Letter.
 
Thank you all for the responses.

On his old passport, it has a B1/B2 stamp (multiple) that says good from 92 - 97. He's from Australia and he said that Aus Gov have some sort of agreement with US Government. he visited short period of time in 92 and 95 and went home.

His step mom who is US citizen sponsored his GC in 95, and when he got his AP and Work permit in 99, he came here and has been here since.

He called SS and gave dates (guessed as much as possible). SS said they will be sending the letter.

Will the letter from SS have detailed information which he gave them? I am worried that those dates wouldn't match what I have on excel sheet. (He didn't have it on him so he just guessed...)
 
jasmine7103 said:
Thank you all for the responses.

On his old passport, it has a B1/B2 stamp (multiple) that says good from 92 - 97. He's from Australia and he said that Aus Gov have some sort of agreement with US Government. he visited short period of time in 92 and 95 and went home.
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There are plenty of B1/B2 visas issued for long periods of time (up to 10 years), but a person with such a visa still can not stay in the US for longer than 6 months at a time. There is no agreement between the US and Australia that bypasses this rule. The only agreement that exists concerns Visa Waivers. I believe Australia is a member of the visa waiver program, but that simply means that Australian citizens can visit the US without a visa for a maximum of 6 months at a time.

It would depend on how "short" the visit was. If any of his visits between 1992 and 1999 lasted longer than 6 months, he was illegal. That means he was required to register with selective service. If they were not longer than 6 months, then you're good to go.
 
So he wasn't in the country continuously from age 19 thru 29? That being the case, and assuming he never overstayed his B2 visa when he did make his visits, he clearly wasn't required to register with selective services.

If you'd given us this information up front, we probably could have saved a whole lot of typing!
 
boatbod said:
If you'd given us this information up front, we probably could have saved a whole lot of typing!
Click to expand...

I just re-read my original post. I should have mentioned that he was not living here until he turned 29. His visits were less than 6 months both times.

Thanks again.
 
Got the status letter in the mail

For those who might be interested in to know... We got the status letter in the mail. It says that...

...A search of our files, and an examination of the information you provided reveal that you were required to register with selective service, but have not registered. You cannot register after attaining age 26. No notices were sent to you by the SSS regarding the requirement to register. SS is not required to notify men of their obligation to register.

I guess that's all we need even though the part it says he was required to register on tourist visa (less than 6 months) is not true.
 
jasmine7103 said:
For those who might be interested in to know... We got the status letter in the mail. It says that...

That is the standard format for all requests.Dont know why people make bnig fuss about obtinaing it.Its simple and non pain staking procress.Good luck:D
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well, sometimes it is required and that's why people make fuss about getting it. or we wouldn't care.

I was curious to know what the letter says before getting one. I thought there might be others who would be as well. Just sharing information is all.
 
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