Federal authorities are implementing a significant expansion of denaturalization proceedings for naturalized U.S. citizens, directing U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) field offices to refer an unprecedented number of cases to the Department of Justice next fiscal year.
Internal guidance from a federal source directs USCIS to send 100 to 200 denaturalization cases per month to the Justice Department’s Office of Immigration Litigation in fiscal 2026, a goal that could result in more than 1,000 denaturalization actions in a single year—far surpassing recent historical totals.
Denaturalization, defined as the legal process by which the government revokes citizenship from naturalized Americans, has traditionally been rare.
From 1990 through 2017, an average of about 11 cases were opened per year, and roughly 120 denaturalization cases have been investigated in the past eight years, according to Department of Justice figures.
USCIS officials emphasize that the initiative focuses on individuals who fraudulently obtained U.S. citizenship.
A USCIS spokesperson stated the campaign is part of a broader “war on fraud,” aimed at those who misrepresented themselves during the naturalization process.
A DOJ spokesman reiterated that authorities will pursue denaturalization proceedings for those who lie or misrepresent themselves, underscoring that the effort targets illegal procurement of citizenship.
Under U.S. law, denaturalization may occur only when citizenship was “illegally procured” or obtained through “willful misrepresentation of material facts.”
The Supreme Court has held that citizenship is a constitutional right that cannot be revoked absent proof of fraud or illegal procurement at the time of naturalization.
Critics warn that the new targets risk politicizing what has long been a narrowly used legal tool.
“Imposing arbitrary numerical targets on denaturalization cases risks politicizing citizenship revocation,” said Sarah Pierce, a former USCIS official.
“Requiring monthly quotas that are 10 times higher than the total annual number of denaturalizations in recent years turns a serious and rare tool into a blunt instrument,” she added.
Advocates for immigrant rights argue that the surge in denaturalization actions could sow fear among the nation’s 26 million naturalized citizens, who make up about half of the foreign-born population in the United States.
While denaturalization remains limited to fraud and similar cases, expanded enforcement may trigger broader anxieties in immigrant communities.
Legal experts also note that denaturalization proceedings are complex, resource-intensive, and often take years to resolve.
A federal court must ultimately rule on any effort to strip citizenship, and the burden of proof on the government is high. Critics say achieving the administration’s goals without substantial increases in investigative and legal resources could be difficult.
The move aligns with President Donald Trump’s broader immigration agenda, which has included travel restrictions, efforts to curb both legal and illegal immigration, and a controversial pause on immigration applications from countries in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.
Supporters of the policy argue that enforcing denaturalization against those who lied to obtain citizenship protects the integrity of the immigration system.
However, the scale of the new targets represents a sharp departure from past practice, raising constitutional and civil liberties questions that are likely to face scrutiny in courts and Congress in the months ahead.
By Theodore Bunker
