Membership Eligibility

To be eligible for The American Legion, a man or woman must have served at least one day of active duty in one of the armed forces of the United States during one of the eligibility eras below.
They are:

World War I
April 6, 1917 to November 11, 1918;

World War II
December 7, 1941 to December 31, 1946;

Korea
June 25, 1950 to January 31, 1955;

Vietnam
February 28, 1961 to May 7, 1975;

Lebanon & Grenada
August 24, 1982 to July 31, 1984;

Panama
December 20, 1989 to January 31, 1990;

Persian Gulf
August 2, 1990 to the date of cessation of hostilities as determined by the Government of the United States (This means that all military personnel now on active duty are eligible for membership in The American Legion).

Current and past members of the National Guard and Reserve may also be eligible for membership provided that they had periods of at least four months of duration for training in one or another of the aforementioned eligibility eras. Annual summer camps and weekend drills do not constitute eligible periods of service. Active duty is the key to Legion membership. A person need not have served overseas to be eligible, but must possess an Honorable Discharge (DD Form 214)

The American Legion

Department of Connecticut

Membership Eligibility