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USCIS reportedly launches a large-scale denaturalization operation

  1. Original Date Announced

    June 11, 2018

    According to the Associated Press, USCIS has hired several dozen lawyers and immigration officers to review cases of immigrants who were ordered deported and are suspected of using fake identities to later get green cards and citizenship through naturalization. Since January 2017, DHS has already referred 95 cases for denaturalization to the DOJ. In January 2018, USCIS stated its intention to refer approximately 1,600 additional citizens to DOJ for prosecution. In its 2019 budget request, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) revealed its intention to review the files of 700,000 U.S. citizens, putting even more individuals into the denaturalization pipeline. [ID #622]

  2. Effective Date

    June 11, 2018

Current Status

Fully in Effect

Original Trump Policy Status

Status: Reported
Trump Administration Action: Change in Practice
Subject Matter: Citizenship
Agencies Affected: USCIS

Associated or Derivative Policies

Pre Trump-Era Policies

  • June 11, 2018 As noted in the ACLU Fact Sheet, denaturalizations were pursued in previous years in small numbers, averaging 11 per year from 1990 to 2017. Under the Trump administration, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has already referred 95 cases for denaturalization to the Department of Justice (DOJ) since January 2017. In January 2018, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) stated its intention to refer approximately 1,600 additional citizens to DOJ for prosecution. ACLU Fact Sheet on Denaturalization

Commentary

Documents

Trump-Era Policy Documents

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