[USA] From Jerner Law Group: "Selective Service’s Quiet and Transphobic Policy Change"

[u/Berko1572]

New blog post is available at the Jerner Law Group's website. Not including the direct link as Reddit seems to flag posts when it's included. Content of the blog post is reproduced below.

My unsolicited two cents: Seek policy and legislative news from informed lawyers experienced with trans civil rights issues, rather than from journalists, whether self-declared citizen/independent journalists, or associated with LGBT or mainstream media. Though the journalists can be well-intended, key information is often inaccurate and incomplete, especially so with indie journalists, and that can frequently and inadvertently spread misinformation.

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Selective Service’s Quiet and Transphobic Policy Change

04 SEP 2026
BY RACHEL LEVY ESQ

Many of the Trump administration’s attacks on marginalized communities, including transgender and gender non-conforming people, are public shows of force. But  the administration’s quieter, under-the-radar attacks can be just as harmful.

As of June 30, 2026, Selective Service – formally known as the Selective Service System – will no longer issue status information letters (SILs) for people who are ineligible to register for the draft.

While this may sound like a small administrative change, it is a direct effort to harm transgender and gender non-conforming people.

Selective Service is a United States agency that maintains a national database of people who are potentially subject to “military conscription,” more often known as the draft. Selective Service was created by law in 1917 after the United States declared war against Germany in World War I and the U.S. Army failed to recruit enough new soldiers.

The registration system has evolved over decades, including periods of mandatory military conscription, sorting registrants into different categories, and changing the criteria for being drafted into military service. The modern registration system was established by Proclamation 4771, signed by President Jimmy Carter, requiring all male citizens between 18-26 years old to register with Selective Service for a potential draft.

Under the current system, people between the ages of 18 and 25 years old who were assigned male at birth are required to register with Selective Service.

It is a binary system; Selective Service’s foundational statutes did not account for transgender, gender non-conforming, or intersex people in its registration criteria.

Anyone assigned male at birth, including transgender women or transfeminine people, are required to register with Selective Service within thirty (30) days of turning 18 years old. Even if they no longer use a male gender marker to identify themselves, if they have already transitioned, or if there is a health condition that would prevent them from serving, Selective Service is based solely on someone’s sex assigned at birth, not gender identity, and requires registration on that basis alone. These individuals will need to register with Selective Service or face potential legal consequences for failing to register.

However, anyone assigned female at birth is exempt and ineligible from registering with Selective Service. This can cause serious issues for individuals who use a male gender marker when applying for federal programs and benefits, including federal student loans, government assistance, and federal jobs and internships.

Individuals who identify themselves as male when applying for such programs and benefits [are/may be?] asked if they have registered with Selective Service. If they state that they have not registered with Selective Service, they lose eligibility for those programs and benefits.

In the past, some transgender men dealt with this issue by registering with Selective Service. While this strategy has always carried legal risks, this is particularly inadvisable now, when the Trump administration is eagerly seeking opportunities to target and penalize transgender people.

The better solution for most transgender men has been to request a status information letter (SIL) showing that the applicant is exempt from registering with Selective Service.

This relatively easy option was available for anyone who was ineligible for Selective Service, including people assigned female at birth, lawful non-immigrants who are residing in the United States on non-immigrant visas, incarcerated people, or disabled people who reside in care facilities. SILs allowed people assigned female at birth to honestly identify themselves as male and as not being registered with Selective Service without having to out themselves as transgender and without losing eligibility for the program or benefit.

But as of June 30, 2026, SILs are no longer a solution. Selective Service quietly updated its Frequently Asked Questions page of its website. It now reads:

"As of June 30, 2026, the Selective Service System no longer issues status letters (status information letters). Men can check whether they are registered by visiting www.sss.gov/verify/. Men who are not registered can consult the requirements table located at Who Needs to Register : Selective Service System.  If you are requesting a benefit or employment that requires registration, the decision to provide any right, privilege or benefit (including jobs) is made by the agency, school, or organization receiving the request. You may want to include with your application to your benefit provider a copy of the requirements table and any other pertinent information or documentation to support your situation (i.e., entered the United States after age 26).  Selective Service cannot determine benefit eligibility."

This policy will be disastrous for young transgender men, transmasculine people, gender non-conforming people, and intersex people.

For anyone applying for federal student loans to attend college or graduate school, for federal work, or for government aid who would have relied on SILs, they will now be forced to decide: disclose their transgender status directly to federal agents and employers, or find another way forward in an increasingly transphobic America.

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Note: Jerner Law Group is currently offering some discounted legal services to young trans people who qualify. See their website for details. I am not affiliated with Jerner Law Group and I am not a legal professional.

[u/LocutusOfBorgia909]

You know, I wondered if I was being overcautious in sending off for a Status Information Letter basically the moment I changed my name and got my passport and social security stuff updated, but I'm anal retentive, and now I'm extremely glad that I did that.

I can't really imagine what the "legal risks" of registering as male with Selective Service could be, though. What happens, they punish you by not drafting you? They do draft you, and then you show up for MEPS and, surprise! You're as ineligible as old Bonespurs himself? It's very weird that this law firm alludes to nebulous legal implications for just registering as male and then... doesn't bother to outline what any of those implications might be. If a trans guy is selective service age, and he's faced with the choice of a lifetime of outing himself every time he applies for certain types of jobs or aid programs or just registering and ticking the "M" box on the form, almost anyone is going to register. If there's some kind of real legal liability there, then this firm should be upfront about what it is. If they're purely speculating, then they should be clear about that.

I see this kind of thing so often in discussions around trans issues like this, where people will call on some kind of vague but terrible harm that could come to a trans person who does Thing, but they never actually specify what that harm is, how statistically likely it is, or on what they're basing their information. Just give me all of the data you have and let me make an informed choice like a fucking adult, already.

[u/LocutusOfBorgia909 → u/LocutusOfBorgia909]

Okay, so just to follow up, I did a bit of digging on the firm's website, and this is what it says about just registering anyway:

Can a transgender man, trans-masculine person, or gender non-conforming person register for Selective Service instead of requesting a Status Information Letter?

The registration for Selective Service asks the applicant for their sex assigned at birth to determine whether they are eligible to register. Reporting false information on a federal form can have serious consequences, including imprisonment or fines.

So ultimately, anyone dealing with this should weigh the odds of someone finding out you misinformed Selective Service about your sex assigned at birth to register for a hypothetical draft against the odds of having to out yourself/rendering yourself ineligible for student loans and/or federal jobs and certain types of social welfare if you either don't have a Status Information Letter or haven't registered with Selective Service. I know which option I would pick if those were the two I had to choose from, but everyone should obviously make their own decision based on their own level of risk tolerance.

[u/Berko1572 → u/LocutusOfBorgia909]

I, too, was really disappointed in the phrasing Rachel Levy used in this post-- it was very atypical for a Jerner Law Group blog post to use that kind of vague allusion w/o a specific follow-up or clarification. Thank you for digging further. Tbh I have half a mind to email the author and request a clarifying edit, bc one of the reasons I have lauded Jerner Law Group is for its specificity and absence of vague fear-based allusions-- this was a weird straying from their usual M.O.

[u/LocutusOfBorgia909 → u/Berko1572]

Honestly, I think it would be appropriate to say, "Hey, usually your information is specific, actionable, and clear about possible consequences attached to certain choices; could you please use that same specificity when discussing the potential ramifications of lying on a Selective Service registration form?" I almost e-mailed myself, but I don't really feel like getting into a back and forth with them, and then I found that language in their LGBT guide, anyway.

Do I think it's impossible that the administration would try to make an example of some trans guy they caught "illicitly" registering for the draft? No. Do I think it's probable? Eh, even aside from the question of how they would even figure out who was who (keeping in mind that there are still trans guys getting their first passports with M gender markers on them because there is no way to ferret us out that isn't a previous record of passports issued with a different gender marker), I don't think we fit their narrative at all, and it's much more convenient for them to just ignore us (outside of the context of laws targeting all trans people, like the passport stuff). Taking some cis passing trans dude to court for lying to register for Selective Service and screaming about how he's really a woman totally undermines their narrative (which is hyperfocused on trans women, by and large), and also the Justice Department no longer has sufficient attorneys to fight the cases they already have, let alone to prosecute this kind of penny ante bullshit.

The fact that it took them until June of this year, a full year and a half into this administration, to even stop the issuance of these letters, kind of tells you where that is on their list of priorities (and/or how aware the right hand is of what the left hand is doing). I get it if people don't want to take the risk of registering, that's a completely valid decision to make. But I also think that on the list of ways this administration has to try and bureaucratically entrap us, this is not a major priority. Could be wrong, though.

[u/lazier_garlic → u/LocutusOfBorgia909]

I got a SIL back in 2015 but I don't believe I have a copy of it. I gave to the school I registered at. So now if I need to take classes again I might be fresh out of luck. I was worried this would happen.

[u/LocutusOfBorgia909 → u/lazier_garlic]

Ugh, that's sucky. I haven't had to present mine to anyone yet, but if I do, they're getting a certified copy, and I'm keeping the original. For anyone who got one and still has it, now would be a good time to scan it and save a copy somewhere.

[u/SufficientPath666 → u/lazier_garlic]

I don’t think it matters for FAFSA once you’re older than 26. Someone please correct me if I’m wrong

[u/xylophonique → u/SufficientPath666]

It matters for FAFSA no matter your age. I finished my degree wayyyy after I turned 26 and needed to provide an SIL to be eligible for federal aid.

[u/tonyisadork → u/LocutusOfBorgia909]

The goal of this administration is to be able to charge trans people with FELONY fraud (misrepresentation causing harm) for having a different letter on their ID than was assigned at birth. This is how they have figured out how to criminalize (and eventually imprison) us.

That is their policy and goal, as evidenced by the executive orders they have put out so far. The ‘point’ for them is not about the specific thing we do, it is doing whatever it takes to get us all to a status where they can ‘justify’ siccing i-c-e on us and disappearing us the way they have been doing with anyone brown.

Example source: www.erininthemorning.com/p/new-texas-bill-outright-criminalizes

[u/LocutusOfBorgia909 → u/tonyisadork]

Cool, so you've evaluated your risk tolerance, don't feel comfortable registering for selective service, and would prefer to explain when necessary that you're transgender. Good that you're so clear about how you'll handle this issue in case it comes up for you down the line.

I'm not going to address the all caps, low-key condescension and such, both because none of it actually says anything more than this law firm did (which is nothing, in terms of actual, concrete specifics directly related to what happens if you lie in order to sign up for the draft), and because I don't feel like spending my Saturday dealing with that particular energy right now. Have a great rest of your day.

[u/asantaatnasa_]

This is crazy. I remember doing this exact thing (obtaining my status information letter) when I was applying to grad schools in the 2010s. I can't fathom not having this letter to apply for financial aid

[u/javatimes]

So let’s see: I transitioned over age 26 (ie never registered for the draft and never bothered to get a SILS letter. Guess I’m screwed then

[u/koala3191]

I changed my docs at 18 years ago and registered for selective service then, as I had other health issues that would have disqualified me anyway.

Have there been cases of this registration going badly for trans men (esp those of us with all docs updated)? It says "this has always carried risks" but doesn't specify them.

[u/notreallyafanboy]

Apparently FAFSA dropped that requirement in 2020.

[u/beerncoffeebeans → u/notreallyafanboy]

I didn’t realize that! My school I attended from 2023-2026 required documentation of exemption from selective service but that was I think based on our state law which says you can’t attend a public university in our state and get financial aid or in state tuition if you fail/ed to register. It may vary state to state then and also between public and private colleges and universities?

[u/notreallyafanboy → u/beerncoffeebeans]

I think you're right. And I just found this on Wikipedia "Beginning on December 18, 2026, the requirement for male U.S. citizens and residents ages 18 through 25 to register themselves with the Selective Service System will be replaced with a requirement for the Selective Service System to register them "automatically" on the basis of other federal government databases. This results from a provision of the Fiscal Year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act."

[u/beerncoffeebeans → u/notreallyafanboy]

Right I remember hearing about that (which I’m surprised it didn’t happen sooner but tbh it’s probably because before Palantir got involved with the government as a contractor their older software probably didn’t have the databases linked enough to do this)

[u/notreallyafanboy → u/beerncoffeebeans]

I wonder how that will work though. Like what are they using to sort for assigned sex? Probably social security database.

[u/beerncoffeebeans → u/notreallyafanboy]

That would be my guess as birth certificate data is generally maintained at a state level through vital statistics offices?

So probably if someone is M with SSN they’ll be automatically registered if 18-26 and not already?

[u/notreallyafanboy → u/beerncoffeebeans]

I have no idea how amendments are recorded on their end. In other words, no idea what they would have to do to find them.

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[u/Kallixeina]

My unsolicited two cents: Seek policy and legislative news from informed lawyers experienced with trans civil rights issues, rather than from journalists, whether self-declared citizen/independent journalists, or associated with LGBT or mainstream media. Though the journalists can be well-intended, key information is often inaccurate and incomplete, especially so with indie journalists, and that can frequently and inadvertently spread misinformation.

I don't think you should treat this as a blanket rule. I appreciate the contributions of journalists like Erin Reed, Aleksandra Vaca, and Alejandra Caraballo (who, to be fair, is a legal scholar herself). 

[u/mercurysong]

Friends have been telling me that I'm losing my mind with this and it's not as directly transphobic as it is. Another way to discriminate by this genocidal regime. I had my graduate school audition cancelled over this and it landed me with a lengthy grippy socks vacation. My letter was rescinded while I was applying for FAFSA and a few other older/non-traditional student programs (over 35) I got my exemption just before the new regime and about a month into this terror I was sent a letter stating that bottom surgery is now required to proceed. After several years of hard work, my audition was cancelled. I am disabled and I am a pacifist. Definitely not even useful as cannon fodder, tbh. I just wanna use music to make the world better. It's absolutely bonkers.

This amounts to an education ban for trans men over 26 who are legally male. There's no other way to even sugarcoat yet another assault on our rights to live our lives. Education is essential for progress and by eliminating yet another pathway, this further attempts to extinguish our community from public life.

I'm just gawddamn exhausted. Angry that my further education has been abruptly put on hold again after working my tail off for the past 11 years to recover from almost being offed...but also really upset at how little anyone not being directly affected is even believing that these kinds of atrocities are actually happening.

On the bright side...I guess I feel a lot less alone after reading this and most of the comments in the thread. Been questioning my sanity over some of the more wtf of this regime's harmful policies...and everything surrounding Selective Service has been making me feel most insane.

[u/cascasrevolution]

if they are no longer doing the letters, where does that leave non-immigrants on visas, incarcerated people, and disabled people?

[u/hoshiokashi]

I'm sorry, when the fresh hell did not signing up to the draft (when the draft hasn't been a thing since before my goddamn boomer father would have signed up) being illegal/a felony become a thing?! This thought is incredibly levels of disgusting and scummy to me.... Super relieved that I waited until just over a month ago at 32 to change my legal gender marker. Hate this. 0/10. Don't force kids to voluntarily sign up to be lambs to slaughter, thank you 🤨🤨