Decision
5.0.2.0. Which of the two situations is this?
Required
The Guide answers this question in two different places with two different answers. Time away from a Scouting America program is topic 5.0.2.0 and needs nobody's approval. Advancement from another country's Scouting association is topic 5.0.4.0 and needs a review.
Notes and warnings
Note. Get this wrong and the whole plan is wrong. A Scout who moved to the United States and was never registered with Scouting America is on the foreign association branch even if they have lived here for years. A Scouting America member who lived abroad and advanced in a different association is also on that branch, not the returning one, because the advancement itself came from elsewhere.
Where this step comes from
- Guide to Advancement (2025), Section 5.0.2.0 · The absence branch: no review, no approval.
- Guide to Advancement (2025), Section 5.0.4.0 · The foreign association branch, including that it covers members who advanced abroad.