§ 3.5 Revocation of Naturalization

• Library: Rights of Foreign Nationals (OSBar) (2020 Ed.)

§ 3.5 REVOCATION OF NATURALIZATION

Under certain circumstances, naturalized citizens are subject to revocation of their naturalization. This includes immigrants who committed a crime at any time before they applied for naturalization, even if at the time of conviction, they had long been U.S. citizens. The grounds for denaturalization are discussed in § 3.5-1 to § 3.5-3.

PRACTICE TIP: Both immigration and criminal counsel must investigate whether a person has committed a crime for which the person was never arrested. For example, a criminal defense attorney has a legal obligation to determine if his or her naturalized client's commission of a crime predates the client's naturalization and whether the client disclosed the crime to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The attorney must advise the client that the client will be denaturalized if the client pleads guilty to an undisclosed crime that predated the client's naturalization.

§ 3.5-1 Procurement of Naturalization Illegally

A person is subject to revocation of naturalization if the person procured naturalization illegally. Procuring naturalization illegally simply means that the person was not...