Justice Department Files 25 New Denaturalization Cases, Part of Record Push to Revoke Citizenship

What Happened

The Justice Department, in coordination with USCIS, has filed 25 new civil denaturalization complaints against naturalized citizens over the past several weeks, USCIS announced. The agency says this brings the total number of denaturalization complaints filed since January 20, 2025 to 123, which it describes as the largest such effort in U.S. history.

Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, the government can seek to revoke a person's citizenship if it was "illegally procured" or obtained by concealing material facts or lying during the naturalization process. The 25 cases announced this round span a wide range of alleged underlying conduct: several involve people accused of concealing prior deportation orders or using a second identity to reapply for immigration benefits after being ordered removed. Others involve individuals who, prosecutors allege, hid serious crimes — including sexual abuse of children, spousal assault, attempted murder, and fraud — that they committed before naturalizing, then lied about their criminal history during their naturalization interviews. Two cases involve service members allegedly discharged from the military under other-than-honorable conditions before completing the honorable service required to keep citizenship obtained on that basis.

All complaints are civil actions, not criminal prosecutions, and the individuals named have not been found liable — the filings are allegations that must still be proven in federal court.

What It Means

The pace of denaturalization filings has grown sharply. Historically, the government pursued only a small number of denaturalization cases each year, largely reserved for war-crimes-era cases or extreme fraud. The current administration has made denaturalization enforcement an explicit priority, and 123 complaints in roughly a year and a half is a substantial escalation.

For naturalized citizens, the practical takeaway is that citizenship is not entirely immune from later review if the naturalization application or interview contained a material misrepresentation — even one from years or decades earlier. Common triggers seen in this batch include undisclosed prior removal orders, use of an alias, and failure to report an arrest, conviction, or prior marriage during the naturalization interview, as N-400 applicants are required to do. This does not mean routine, honest naturalization applications are at risk; the cases described involve specific concealment of disqualifying facts, not ordinary imperfect memory. But applicants currently preparing an N-400 should treat the "good moral character" and disclosure questions with care, and anyone with an old, unresolved immigration or criminal history question should consider consulting a qualified immigration attorney before filing.

Source

Original — USCIS

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