The Trump administration is stepping up efforts to revoke US citizenship from naturalized Americans, with data showing a major increase in denaturalization lawsuits filed this year.
At least 105 civil denaturalization lawsuits were filed in federal district courts during the first seven months of 2026, including 50 filed in July alone, according to data published by Syracuse University’s Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse. TRAC previously reported that roughly 125 such lawsuits were filed nationwide between 2008 and 2025
The figures show a significant increase in the government’s use of denaturalization proceedings, a civil legal process through which federal authorities seek to revoke citizenship that has already been granted.
How Denaturalization Works
The Justice Department has made denaturalization a priority under the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. While US Citizenship and Immigration Services can identify and investigate potential cases, the Justice Department generally must initiate civil litigation to revoke a person’s citizenship
Such cases typically allege that a person obtained citizenship through fraud, misrepresentation, or concealment of material facts during the naturalization process. If the government prevails, the person can lose their US citizenship and potentially face removal proceedings.
“The current pace of denaturalization litigation is extraordinarily high,” Ricky Murray, a former senior USCIS official, told Newsweek. “This increase reflects a perfect storm of additional personnel, enhanced technology, new agency policies, and a governmentwide emphasis on reviewing prior adjudications.
USCIS Defends the Push
USCIS spokesperson Zach Kahler said the agency “has a zero-tolerance policy for anyone who lies or misrepresents themselves during the naturalization process.”
“Under the leadership of President Trump, USCIS is protecting public safety by more thoroughly screening and vetting all aliens,” he continued. “We will not take any shortcuts and continue to protect the American people from those who attempt to defraud them.”
In June 2025, the Justice Department’s Civil Division issued guidance directing attorneys to “prioritize and maximally pursue denaturalization proceedings in all cases permitted by law and supported by the evidence.”
Where Cases Are Being File
TRAC reported that lawsuits were filed in at least 37 states and the District of Columbia between January and July. Florida recorded the highest number of cases with 19 filings, followed by Texas and Maryland with 10 each.
The July surge was particularly notable. The 50 lawsuits filed that month followed the 55 cases TRAC had identified during the first six months of 2026. TRAC’s analysis is based on federal court records and tracks civil lawsuits filed by the government seeking to revoke US citizenship
The Migration Policy Institute estimates that about 25.8 million naturalized US citizens lived in the United States in 2024. USCIS naturalized 818,500 people in fiscal year 2024.
Historical Context
According to the Brennan Center for Justice, the federal government initiated an average of about 11 denaturalization cases annually between 1990 and 2017. During Trump’s first term, that figure rose to roughly 25 cases per year
Cassandra Burke Robertson, a professor at Case Western Reserve University School of Law, said the pace seen under the second Trump administration was “historically extraordinary,” with comparable numbers not seen since the Supreme Court limited denaturalization in 1967
“For most of the last half-century, civil denaturalization was a tool of last resort, reserved largely for Nazi-era war ciminals and a handful of egregious fraud cases,” she told Newsweek.
Robertson warned that higher filing volumes could encourage marginal cases. “The people most likely to be caught in a marginal or weak case are the ones least able to defend one,” she said. “The biggest issue is that it makes citizenship feel less secure for naturalized citizens.”
The Bottom Line
Denaturalization lawsuits have surged under the Trump administration, with 105 cases filed in the first seven months of 2026 — including 50 in July alone. That compares to roughly 125 cases filed nationwide between 2008 and 2025. Florida, Texas, and Maryland have seen the most filings. The Justice Department has prioritized denaturalization, and USCIS says it has a zero-tolerance policy for fraud. Legal experts warn the pace is historically extraordinary and could make citizenship feel less secure for naturalized Americans.
