for Norfolk, Virginia, with the remainder of her division (Destroyer Division (DesDiv) 67): , , and division flagship on 14 March. Mooring at the navy yard and discharging her passengers on the 17th, the destroyer proceeded to sea on 6 April, bound for the Caribbean. Arriving at San Juan, Puerto Rico, four days later, Welles departed the same evening. She joined the cruiser on the following morning, and the two ships sailed in company on Neutrality Patrol and conducted exercises until 17 April, when the destroyer returned to San Juan. Welles patrolled the waters near San Juan from 19 to 23 April before taking part in a battle problem and undergoing her annual military inspection on the 26th. The warship subsequently visited Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, on 1 May. She remained there for two weeks before returning to San Juan. Proceeding to sea again on 8 June, Welles conducted exercises en route to Cuban waters and subsequently operated out of Guantanamo Bay over the next few days. During this time, the ship conducted a short-range battle practice. Shifting to Cay Lobos, Great Bahamas, on 20 June, Welles then transported 56 men and one officer from the destroyer to Guantanamo, debarking the men to . Welles then remained at Guantanamo until she sailed for the Canal Zone on 27 July. Anchoring in Limon Bay, Canal Zone, on the 28th, Welles later transited the Panama Canal on 10 August, dropping anchor in Panama Bay on 12 August. She performed target services and conducted exercises and maneuvers with Submarine Division 11 until 16 August, when the destroyer retransmitted the canal, east-bound, and arrived at Coco Solo that day. Welles sailed for Norfolk on 22 August with the rest of DesDiv 67, proceeded via Guantanamo Bay, and arrived six days later. At that time, Welles and 49 of her sister ships were slated to be transferred to the British government as a result of an agreement reached between President Roosevelt and the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill. Welles loaded service ammunition at Norfolk before she sailed for Newport, Rhode Island, where she then exchanged older torpedoes for ones of a later mark on 1 September. Welles soon shifted to the Boston Navy Yard, where she was drydocked, before she sailed—in company with and Herndon on 5 September for Halifax, Nova Scotia, the designated turnover point. Arriving the next day as one of