Registrants May Need Xmas Travel Permits

Undergraduates who have registered under the Selective Service Act and who are planning to spend their Christmas vacations outside of the United States are advised to obtain a permit to that effect, according to a statement made yesterday by Livingston Hall, Professor of Law and Chairman of Advisory Board 47.

The statement is made with particular reference to travel in Canada, although it applies to any foreign country. Students who are planning to go directly through Canada to the western part of the United States, without stopping, for instance, do not need the permit, but those who intend to drive through or remain in Canada should have it.

The statement follows:

Under Selective Service Regulations No. 161, "The local board may issue to a registrant a permit to leave the United States (Form 351), provided the registrant's absence is not likely to interfere with the proper administration of the selective service law."

1. Students spending a substantial part of their vacation in Canada or elsewhere outside the United States. A permit is absolutely necessary to avoid a clear violation of the law.

2. Students driving home by automobile through Canada. It is recommended that such students should secure a permit from their local board. There is a good chance that a permit might be required to leave the United States, and a student who had an accident or was stopped or delayed in Canada might got into trouble with the Canadian authorities, or on re-entry into the United States, if he could not produce such a permit.

3. Students going home by train nonstop through Canada. It is hardly conceivable that a permit would be required.