Army Raises Age Limit as Women Draft Debate Returns
The U.S. Army is expanding who can sign up, raising the maximum enlistment age from 35 to 42 as lawmakers also revisit a separate but politically charges issue: whether women should be required to register for the draft.
According to updated Army regulations, the higher age cap takes effect April 20 and applies to the Regular Army, Army Reserve and Army National Guard. The move is part of a broader effort to widen the recruiting pool after the Army struggled to meet enlistment goals in recent years. It also brings the branch more in line with the Air Force, Space Force and Coast Guard, which already allow older recruits.
It’s not the first time the Army has gone this route. The enlistment age was previously raised to 42 during the Iraq and Afghanistan war era, before being lowered again in 2016. Military officials say older recruits can bring maturity, technical skills and life experience, especially as the armed forces continue trying to modernize and fill specialized roles.
At the same time, Congress is again weighing whether women should be added to the Selective Service System, which currently requires only men ages 18 to 26 to register in case a draft is ever reinstated. The idea has been debated for years, especially since women were formally allowed into all military combat roles in 2015. Lawmakers and legal experts have argued that keeping draft registration male-only may no longer reflect how the military actually operates.
For now, there is no active draft, and no law requiring women to register has passed. But with recruiting challenges and the war in Iran, both issues are back on the table and likely to remain part of a much bigger national conversation.
This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed for accuracy.
