US Justice Department Plans to Expand Denaturalization Cases

The Trump administration plans to expand denaturalization cases to revoke the U.S. citizenship of more than 250 foreign-born citizens ^[1].

This move signals a significant escalation in the government's approach to citizenship enforcement. By targeting a larger volume of individuals, the Justice Department is shifting from isolated cases to a broader systemic effort to strip legal status from those who obtained it through alleged irregularities.

The Justice Department is targeting a completion date of October 2026 ^[2] for these revocations. The initiative focuses on foreign-born citizens who may have provided false information or committed fraud during their naturalization process. While some reports suggest a smaller scale of 17 people, other sources indicate the administration is aiming for more than 250 cases ^[1].

Camilo Montoya‑Galvez, an immigration correspondent for CBS News, said the administration is pursuing an expansion of these cases ^[1]. The process of denaturalization is legally complex, requiring the government to prove in court that the citizenship was illegally procured.

This push comes as part of a wider effort by the Trump administration to tighten immigration controls and enforce stricter adherence to naturalization laws. The Justice Department will lead the legal filings necessary to strip these individuals of their status, which could leave them vulnerable to deportation if they do not have another legal basis to remain in the U.S. ^[3].

The administration has not detailed the specific criteria used to select the individuals for these cases, but the goal remains focused on the fall of 2026 ^[2].