Permits first cruises were conducted in Philippine waters during 1940–1941. The two-year period of peace time activity gave the submarine's crew valuable training for later war activity. The ship - commanded by Lieutenant Commander Adrian M. Hurst - conducted her first war patrol off the west coast of Luzon from 11 to 20 December 1941. From 22 to 27 December, she made a second patrol in the area. Permit embarked members of Admiral Thomas C. Hart's staff at Mariveles Bay on 28 December and evacuated them to the Netherlands' Submarine Base, Surabaya, Java, arriving on 6 February 1942. En route, she completed a third war patrol, scouting in waters of the southern Philippines.
