Trump Justice Department Issues Order for Stripping US Citizenship

The US federal government has codified its efforts to strip some Americans of their citizenship in a recently published Justice Department memo that directs attorneys to prioritize denaturalization for naturalized citizens who commit certain crimes.

- Edward Helmore

The memo, published on June 11, calls on attorneys in the department to institute civil proceedings to revoke a person's United States citizenship if an individual either "illegally procured" naturalization or procured naturalization by "concealment of a material fact or by willful misrepresentation".

At the center of the move are the estimated 25 million US citizens who immigrated to the country after being born abroad, according to data from 2023, and it lists 10 different priority categories for denaturalization.

According to the memo, those subjected to civil proceedings are not entitled to an attorney like they are in criminal cases. And the government has a lighter burden of proof in civil cases than they do in criminal ones.