New York [US], December 18: The administration of US President Donald Trump continues to tighten immigration policies, with plans to review naturalized foreigners and revoke citizenship in cases of fraud.
The New York Times reported on December 18th, citing an internal directive, that the Trump administration plans to intensify efforts to revoke the citizenship of some naturalized U.S. citizens , marking a new and aggressive phase in tightening immigration controls.
The directive, issued on December 16th to branch offices of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), requires them to "provide immigration litigation offices with between 100 and 200 revocation cases per month" during fiscal year 2026.
If successful, these lawsuits would mark a dramatic increase in the number of naturalization cases filed in the U.S. Since 2017, only just over 120 cases have been filed, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Under federal law, citizens can only be stripped of their citizenship if they committed fraud during the naturalization process, or in a few other exceptional circumstances. The Trump administration demonstrated a strong stance in using every tool available to target both legal and illegal immigrants.
Some experts warn that such campaigns could affect even those who simply made dishonest mistakes on their naturalization application papers and sow fear among law-abiding Americans.
"It's no secret that USCIS's fight against fraud focuses on those who obtained U.S. citizenship illegally, particularly under previous administrations," said Matthew J. Tragesser, a USCIS spokesperson.
"We will proceed with the revocation of citizenship for individuals who provide false or misleading information during the naturalization process. We look forward to continuing our cooperation with the Department of Justice to restore integrity to the U.S. immigration system," he stated.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are currently approximately 26 million naturalized Americans. USCIS statistics show that over 800,000 new citizens took the oath of citizenship last year, the majority of whom are from Mexico, India, the Philippines, the Dominican Republic, or Vietnam.
Source: Thanh Nien
