•Nigerian returnees from Sudan
The U.S. Department of Justice has published a new memo naming the types of naturalised immigrants who may lose their American citizenship under President Donald Trump’s administration new rule.
The new policy gives government lawyers the authority to file a civil lawsuit against naturalised citizens who are alleged to have obtained U.S. citizenship by deceit, fraud, or the omission of important information, reports The Guardian.
It lists ten priority groups for denaturalisation, such as those convicted of war crimes, gang-related offences, or financial or medical fraud, or those deemed to be a continuous national security threat.
The memo outlines 10 main groups of people who face the risk of denaturalisation, that is, having their citizenship revoked.
The memo stated, “The Civil Division shall prioritize and maximally pursue denaturalization proceedings in all cases permitted by law and supported by the evidence. To promote the pursuit of all viable denaturalization cases available under 8 U.S.C145151 and maintain the integrity of the naturalization system while simultaneously ensuring an appropriate allocation of resources, the Civil Division has established the following categories of priorities for denaturalization cases.”
The ten priority groups include:
1. Cases against individuals who pose a potential danger to national security, including those with a nexus to terrorism, espionage, or the unlawful export from the United States of sensitive goods, technology, or information raising national security concerns;
2. Cases against individuals who engaged in torture, war crimes, or other human rights violations;
3. Cases against individuals who further or furthered the unlawful enterprise of criminal gangs, transnational criminal organisations, and drug cartels;
4. Cases against individuals who committed felonies that were not disclosed during the naturalization process;
5. Cases against individuals who committed human trafficking, sex offenses, or violent crimes;
6. Cases against individuals who engaged in various forms of financial fraud against the United States (including Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) loan fraud and Medicaid/Medicare fraud);
7. Cases against individuals who engaged in fraud against private individuals, funds, or corporations;
8. Cases against individuals who acquired naturalization through government corruption, fraud, or material misrepresentations, not otherwise addressed by another priority category;
9. Cases referred by a United States Attorney’s Office or in connection with pending criminal charges, if those charges do not fit within one of the other priorities; and
10. Any other cases referred to the Civil Division that the Division determines to be sufficiently important to pursue.
