Becoming a U.S. citizen is a goal for many immigrants. It allows them to put down roots and make this country their own. Even a naturalized citizen, however, can have their citizenship revoked for sufficient cause.
Revocation automatically leads to a loss of rights as a U.S. citizen. Deportation to their home country will follow fairly quickly.
What can cause a citizen to be denaturalized?
Naturalization can only be revoked for serious issues. These include:
- Obtaining your naturalization illegally: If there was any reason that you shouldn’t have been granted naturalization in the first place and that reason comes to light, you can have your citizenship revoked. This includes violations of the “good moral character” clause. It doesn’t matter if you accidentally misled the government or not.
- Lying or purposefully omitting material information: If you concealed some important fact that could have affected your application for naturalization (whether you lied to do so or simply omitted information), that’s enough to lead to denaturalization.
- A military discharge that’s “other than honorable” within five years: If your naturalization was based on your military service and you later separate from the military within five years under less-than-honorable conditions, you can lose your citizenship.
- Affiliation or membership with the wrong organization: While most people in this country are free to associate with any group they like, you can lose your citizenship if you become associated with the Communist Party, a terrorist organization or a totalitarian party within five years of naturalization. Given the number of groups that have earned the “terrorist organization” label lately, you must be careful.
Natural-born citizens need not fear denaturalization, but naturalized citizens need to be aware of their limitations. Otherwise, they can end up in a precarious legal position. Whatever your immigration issues, it’s wisest to make sure that you have experienced legal guidance throughout the case.