The Trump administration reportedly plans to increase efforts to denaturalize foreign-born Americans who committed fraud while applying for citizenship.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has directed its field offices to supply the Justice Department's Office of Immigration Litigation with 100 to 200 potential denaturalization cases per month in fiscal year 2026, according to internal guidance obtained by The New York Times.
If fully implemented, that would mark a dramatic escalation compared with recent years. The Justice Department has filed just over 120 such cases combined from 2017 through this year, the Times reported.
USCIS has been sending experts to field offices nationwide and reassigning staff to identify cases in which citizenship may have been obtained through fraud or misrepresentation, NBC News reported.
The goal, sources told NBC, is to significantly increase referrals to DOJ attorneys, who must ultimately prove their case in federal court.
Under federal law, denaturalization is permitted only in narrow circumstances, primarily when an individual concealed material facts or committed fraud in the naturalization process.
Administration officials insist the renewed push is about enforcing existing law, not changing it.
"We maintain a zero-tolerance policy towards fraud in the naturalization process and will pursue denaturalization proceedings for any individual who lied or misrepresented themselves," USCIS spokesman Matthew Tragesser told NBC News.
He added that the agency will work with the Justice Department to ensure that "only those who meet citizenship standards retain the privilege of U.S. citizenship."
DOJ has also made clear it intends to prioritize such cases.
In a summer memo cited by the Times, the department said its civil division would "prioritize and maximally pursue denaturalization proceedings in all cases permitted by law and supported by the evidence."
Potential targets include individuals linked to gang activity, terrorism, war crimes, financial fraud, or other serious offenses.
Supporters of stricter immigration enforcement argue the effort is long overdue.
Mark Krikorian of the Center for Immigration Studies told the Times that the country is "so far from denaturalizing" individuals who obtained citizenship improperly that concerns about overreach were misplaced.
With roughly 26 million naturalized citizens in the United States and more than 800,000 new citizens sworn in last year, proponents say safeguarding the integrity of the system is essential.
Critics, including former USCIS officials and immigration advocates, warn that numerical targets could politicize a process historically used sparingly.
They argue that aggressive enforcement could create fear among law-abiding naturalized citizens and impose heavy legal costs even in cases that do not ultimately succeed.
Still, legal experts note that denaturalization remains difficult.
The government must present clear and convincing evidence in federal court, and the Supreme Court has ruled that any alleged misrepresentation must have been material to the citizenship decision.
President Donald Trump has long emphasized the importance of restoring integrity to the immigration system.
Administration officials say that rooting out fraud, even years after citizenship was granted, is a necessary step to ensure that American citizenship remains meaningful and reserved for those who obtained it lawfully.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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