FILE — U.S. Army soldiers. (U.S. Army / Jensen Guillory via MGN
Washington
The U.S. Army is raising its maximum enlistment age while loosening rules for recruits with certain drug convictions.
According to revised Army Regulation 601-210, the maximum age to enlist is moving from 35 to 42, effective April 20. The minimum enlistment age remains 18, or 17 with parental permission.
In addition to the age requirement change, the Army is also eliminating its restrictions for recruits who have a single conviction for possession of marijuana or drug paraphernalia.
The Army’s enlistment age will now align more closely with other military forces. The Air Force and Space Force have a maximum enlistment age of 42. The Coast Guard and Navy set their limits at 41, while the Marine Corps’ maximum is 28.
This is the second time the Army has raised its age cap in the past two decades. In 2006, the service temporarily increased its maximum enlistment age to 42 amid combat operations in the Middle East, then dropped it back to 35 in 2016.
The policy changes come as the Iran conflict continues in the Middle East, with announced deployment plans for soldiers from the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division and thousands of Marines aboard several Navy ships in the region.