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Extension of Benefits to Citizens Serving With Forces of War Allies

Section 104

(50 U.S.C. App. § 514)

Persons who serve with the forces of any nation with which the United States may be allied in the prosecution of any war in which the United States engages while this Act remains in force and who immediately prior to such service were citizens of the United States shall, except in those cases provided for in section 512, be entitled to the relief and benefits afforded by this Act if such service is similar to military service as defined in this Act, unless they are dishonorably discharged therefrom, or it appears that they do not intend to resume United States citizenship.

Sections 104 and 512 of the Act are basically the same in language and attempt to accomplish the same goals. Section 104 covers all the sections of the Act except those contained in sections 501 to 511 inclusive. Section 512 fills this gap and extends the benefits of these eleven sections in Article V to the same persons as stated in section 104. The only appreciable difference between sections 104 and 512 is that section 512 extends the benefits of sections 501-511 to those who die in the service of the armed forces of an allied nation or who die as a result of such service while section 104 does not.

The thrust of sections 104 and 512 is to allow those persons who serve in the armed forces of nations that are allied with the United States in the prosecution of war against a common enemy to receive the protective features of the Act to the same extent as soldiers in the armed forces of the United States.

Both sections contemplate that those who serve in allied armed forces will resume citizenship sometime after their service with these allied forces. In a set of circumstances involving section 104, a United States citizen serving in a foreign armed force allied to the United States in the prosecution of any war would get the benefits of all the sections of the Act, with the exception of sections 501 to 511, as long as he/she received an honorable discharge from the allied armed force. Arguably, the present statutory requirement of section 104 that the former citizen must intend to resume United States citizenship before section 104 would be operative could be avoided as a result of the Supreme Court decision in Afroyim v. Rusk. Section 512 of the Act would likewise be affected.

Extension of Benefits to Persons Ordered to Report for Induction or Military Service

Section 106

(50 U.S.C. App. § 516)

Any person who has been ordered to report for induction under the Military Selective Service Act (50 U.S.C. App. § 451 et seq.), as amended, shall be entitled to the relief and benefits accorded persons in military service under articles I, II, and III of this Act during the period beginning on the date of receipt of such order and ending on the date upon which such person reports for induction; and any member of a Reserve Component of the Armed Forces who is ordered to report for military service shall be entitled to such relief and benefits during the period beginning on the date of receipt of such order and ending on the date upon which such member reports for military service or the date on which the order is revoked, whichever is earlier.

Congress added section 106 to the Act in 1942 with the express intent of providing draftees and enlisted reservists ordered to active duty with the benefits of the first three articles of the Act [50 U.S.C. §§ 510-36 (1946)] in the period between the time they received orders to active duty and the time when they reported for duty. The Selective Training and Service Act of 1940, as amended, and mentioned in section 106, has been replaced by similar updated provisions. The 1991 amendments provided coverage to any member of a Reserve Component, officer as well as enlisted, from the time he or she received orders to report for active duty.

Persons ordered to active duty under the draft law report in accordance with the Military Selective Service Act. An individual ordered to report for induction is within the purview of section 106 even though the induction process has not been completed.

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Above Information Courtesy of United States Army JAG Corps