By Emmanuel Bobby
The Trump administration is significantly expanding an initiative to revoke U.S. citizenship from foreign-born Americans as part of its broader crackdown on immigration, according to people familiar with the plans.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has been reassigning staff and deploying specialists to field offices nationwide to review whether some naturalized citizens could be stripped of their citizenship. The aim is to generate 100 to 200 potential denaturalization cases per month, a sharp increase compared with past efforts, when such cases were rare and typically focused on people who concealed criminal histories or human rights abuses.
The push is part of a broader immigration agenda that includes mass deportation operations, expanded detention facilities, revoking visas, and efforts to deport green card holders. USCIS said it targets only cases involving fraud or misrepresentation during the naturalization process, emphasizing a “zero-tolerance” policy for citizenship fraud.
Officials are also looking for ways to speed up denaturalization investigations by dedicating trained staff across more than 80 field offices. The Justice Department has instructed attorneys to prioritize such cases, including those involving national security risks, war crimes, government fraud, or other cases deemed important.
Denaturalization cases often span multiple administrations due to their complexity and high legal standards. During Trump’s first term, the government filed 102 cases; his current administration has already filed 16, winning seven so far.
Trump has long focused on redefining citizenship and has criticized immigration from certain countries. He is also seeking to end birthright citizenship for children born in the U.S. to foreign parents, a constitutional issue currently being considered by the Supreme Court.
About 800,000 people become naturalized citizens each year, and the process requires applicants to meet age, residency, language, history, and “good moral character” standards. Historically, denaturalization has been rare, with past cases often targeting individuals who concealed serious crimes, including former Nazis who entered the U.S. under false pretenses.
Immigration experts warn the expanded effort could create fear among naturalized citizens, even if few ultimately lose citizenship. Investigations can be lengthy, costly, and emotionally stressful, requiring legal representation and extensive documentation.
Critics argue the campaign could be used to intimidate immigrants rather than address fraud, while others caution that retroactive scrutiny of naturalized citizens could undermine trust in the immigration system.
“The mere threat of denaturalization creates real terror,” said Margy O’Herron, a legal expert at the Brennan Center for Justice. “Citizens are afraid that lawful speech or actions could make them targets.”
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