Dual Citizenship And Security Clearances

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William Henderson for ClearanceJobs.com - September 29, 2010

Some people who are U.S. citizens at birth believe they are dual citizens simply because they were born in a foreign country. Some naturalized U.S. citizens believe that when they took the oath of allegiance to the U.S. it effectively renounced their former citizenship. Either situation may or may not be true, depending on the foreign country involved. Foreign citizenship laws are varied and complicated. Security clearance applicants who are uncertain about dual citizenship should research the matter before answering the citizenship question on the Questionnaire for National Security Positions (SF86). A good place to start is the Office of Personnel Management’s March 2001 “Citizenship Laws of the World.”

RELEVANCE TO SECURITY

The “Foreign Preference” criterion (Guideline C) of the December 2005 “Adjudicative Guidelines for Determining Eligibility for Access to Classified Information” makes the “exercise of any right, privilege or obligation of foreign citizenship after becoming a U.S. citizen” a potentially disqualifying condition for a security clearance. Guideline C also states:

When an individual acts in such a way as to indicate a preference for a foreign country over the United States, then he or she may be prone to provide information or make decisions that are harmful to the interests of the United States.

In 1998 only 11 Defense Office of Hearings and Appeals (DOHA) cases involved dual citizenship. In 2008 it increased to 272 cases. This change occurred primarily because of the issuance of the “Money Memorandum” in August 2000 that stated:

The security concerns underlying this guideline are that the possession and use of a foreign passport in preference to a U.S. passport raises doubt as to whether the person’s allegiance to the United States is paramount and it could also facilitate foreign travel unverifiable by the United States. Therefore consistent application of the guideline requires that any [DoD] clearance be denied or revoked unless the applicant surrenders the foreign passport or obtains official approval for its use from the appropriate agency of the United States Government.

Guideline C does not specifically indicate that the mere existence of dual citizenship is a potentially disqualifying condition. It uses the words “exercise” and “acts,” indicating there must be conduct that demonstrates a preference for a foreign country. However, Guideline C lists mitigating conditions for dual citizenship unrelated to conduct, thereby implying that dual citizenship by itself is a potential security concern. Merely having dual citizenship will not automatically result in a security clearance denial, nor will simply renouncing foreign citizenship necessarily result in a security clearance approval. Generally people who acquired dual citizenship at birth and have done nothing to obtain recognition of the foreign citizenship will encounter little or no problem in obtaining a clearance unless there are other security issues in their case.

EVALUATING DUAL CITIZENSHIP

The foreign country where citizenship is held is not relevant. DOHA decisions regarding applicants who were unwilling to renounce Iranian or Chinese citizenship were the same as for those who were unwilling to renounce Canadian or British citizenship. When an immigrant becomes a naturalized U.S. citizen and takes the oath of allegiance in which they “absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen,” they rarely take the additional step of insuring that their former citizenship has been effectively renounced. Some even apply to have their foreign passport renewed and use it to travel to their native country. This creates serious problems when applying for a security clearance. The following are examples of potentially disqualifying conditions, extracted from the Adjudicative Guidelines, related to dual citizenship:

1. Possession of a current foreign passport;
2. Accepting educational, medical, retirement, social welfare, or other such benefits from a foreign country;
3. Residence in a foreign country to meet citizenship requirements;
4. Using foreign citizenship to protect financial or business interests in another country;
5. Seeking or holding political office in a foreign country;
6. Voting in a foreign election;
7. Action to acquire or obtain recognition of a foreign citizenship by an American citizen.

MITIGATING SECURITY CONCERNS

The following are examples of mitigating conditions, extracted from Adjudicative Guidelines, related to dual citizenship:

1. Dual citizenship is based solely on parents' citizenship or birth in a foreign country;
2. The individual has expressed a willingness to renounce dual citizenship;
3. Exercise of the rights, privileges, or obligations of foreign citizenship occurred before the individual became a U.S. citizen or when the individual was a minor;
4. Use of a foreign passport is approved by the cognizant security authority;
5. The passport has been destroyed, surrendered to the cognizant security authority, or otherwise invalidated;
6. The vote in a foreign election was encouraged by the U.S. Government.

Guideline C does not contain any specific mitigating conditions similar to those in other Guidelines where potentially disqualifying conduct can be mitigated based on voluntariness, motivation, frequency, recency, and unusual circumstances. However, the “General Criteria” described in “The Adjudicative Process” paragraph of the Adjudicative Guidelines applies to the adjudication of all cases and requires that these factors be considered.

Some countries prohibit their citizens from entering or leaving their country using a foreign passport. Some make it practically impossible to renounce citizenship. Personal safety concerns while traveling in certain areas of the world sometimes makes it unwise to use a U.S. passport. The disqualifying condition involving the past “exercise of any right, privilege or obligation of foreign citizenship after becoming a U.S. citizen” may possibly be mitigated using the General Criteria, but only if the applicant expresses a willingness to renounce their foreign citizenship and surrenders their foreign passport.

Security clearance adjudications posted at the DOHA website are replete with cases where the granting or denying of a security clearance hinged on an applicant’s decision to renounce foreign citizenship and surrender their foreign passport. However, because of potential counterintelligence implications, it is not advisable to contact a foreign embassy or consulate for this purpose without first obtaining guidance from the U.S. Government. In an SF86 and during a security interview, it is only necessary to express a willingness to renounce foreign citizenship. Additionally the applicant should surrender their foreign passport to the security officer processing their clearance application and include information about this action in their SF86.

INTERIM CLEARANCES

Without proper mitigation dual citizenship, like other security issues, can create a presumption that a disqualifying conditions exists and result in having an interim clearance declined. Stating in the SF86 a willingness to renounce foreign citizenship and surrendering a foreign passport to the appropriate security officer can significantly mitigate security concerns. Explaining in the SF86 the reason dual citizenship exists and the reasons any potentially disqualifying conduct may have occurred will also improve an individual’s chance of obtaining an interim clearance.

INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY SECURITY CLEARANCES

In October 2008 the Office of the Director of National Intelligence issued Intelligence Community Policy Guidance (ICPG) Number 704.2. Appendix A to ICPG 704.2 is identified as the Adjudicative Guidelines as approved by the President and issued by the Assistant for National Security Affairs on 29 December 2005. However, Guideline C at Appendix A is significantly different than Guideline C in the December 2005 Adjudicative Guidelines. It states:

Being a U.S. citizen and a citizen of another country is not prohibited or disqualifying absent a showing of heightened risks related to national security. The same is true for the exercise of any right, privilege or obligation of foreign citizenship or action to acquire or obtain recognition of foreign citizenship by a U.S. citizen.

All but one of the potentially disqualifying conditions related to dual citizenship in this version of Guideline C are completely different than those listed above. There has been no indication of which version of Guideline C the Intelligence Community agencies are using. It is possible that Guideline C in ICPG 704.2 was the result of an administrative error.

William H. Henderson is a retired security investigator, author of Security Clearance Manual, and regular contributor to ClearanceJobsBlog.com and ClearanceJobs.com.

Copyright © 2009 Last Post Publishing. All rights reserved.

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Comments


	Hi William, Thanks for the article. I am in process with DoS for an FSO Consular office position. I have dual citizenship with the U.K. because my mother was born there (I was born in the US). I got my UK passport when I was 24 and lived and worked in the UK from ages 24-26 on this passport. I have since moved back to the U.S. and traveled extensively all over the world (including living in Egypt for 1 year - my father is from there but I do not have Egyptian citizenship). I've been back about 7 years. I'd appreciate your opinion on my chances for clearance. Thanks very much in advance!

JNA (Oakland, CA) on January 26, 2012 at 6:32pm


	I am filling out the new SF86. Question 10.2 asks if you have �EVER� had a foreign passport and to provide such info. I became a US citizen in 1994 and destroyed my foreign passport at that time. Before I became a US citizen in 1994, I did travel twice on my foreign passport which was my only eligible travel passport held prior to my US citizenship. My foreign passport was from the Caribbean, Jamaica. I never traveled on a foreign passport after I received my US citizenship, which I destroyed after receiving US citizenship. I now have a US passport which I have traveled on. My question and need for help is I have no idea where to go to obtain information on this old foreign passport that was destroyed back in 1994 prior to my US citizenship to provide info in filling out question 10.2 on the new SF86. Is there anyone out there that can give me advice if there is a place at the State Department one can call or can one state on Sf86 "Unknown-item destroyed immediately upon achieving US citizenship in 1994". I don�t want to contact any foreign consulates as I understand this could just complicate things in completing a application for a position that requires TS clearance. Please help, dont know how to resolve this. All advice appreciated.

johnQ (Washington) on January 21, 2012 at 10:26pm


	I am applying for a position as a crypto-linguist in the army as a dual national. (My mother is English and I have a British passport and I travel a lot on both passports.) Based on what I have read on this blog, I would have to surrender my passport and sign a paper expressing willingness to renounce my citizenship. My recruiter tells me this incorrect--the army no longer allows people to turn in their passport at MEPS and that I would have to formally renounce my citizenship through the British embassy. Is this correct? If I do formally renounce, what guarantee do I have of actually getting an interim clearance? My recruiter says 50-50 at best. Is this correct?

edward (washington) on January 17, 2012 at 2:34pm


	U.S. citizen here (natural born), married to Canadian wife since 1999, lived in Canada since 1997. Permanent resident of Canada since 2005. Have work history and good credit history in Canada, but a delinquent student loan in the U.S. Job with Secret clearance requirement comes up, (working on UAVs) can I get the clearance?

Turbine on my head (Canada) on January 12, 2012 at 2:17pm


	Mr. Henderson, I just retired from military last Feb 2011. In October 1999 I became U.S. citizen and renounce my Filipino citizenship for my work in military. After my retirement I regain my Filipino citizenship again and became dual. After many months job hunting I finally receive a tentative letter job offer for gov't. I completed all the papers ASAP as required. But after 3 weeks I got a call saying I was denied a clearance. I e-mailed the Agent working on my paper and she said I was denied due to dual citizenship. But I am aware that I have to renounce my foreign citizenship to get cleared. Do I have the right to repeal it or it is up to her only to make the decision? Or is there much difference between SF86 and SF86P... Please advice. Thank you Jesse

Jesse (San Diego, CA) on January 5, 2012 at 7:00pm


	I was thinking about applying for a TS SCI clearance however I was informed recently that I may have some issues with doing this as we my wife currently carries a dual citizen; US and Dutch. I myself have lived in the states for 35 years and am a born US citizen so I wasn't sure why I'd have an issue since I wasn't the one with the dual citizenship. She has already stated that she would not renounce her previous citizen should it need to happen so I seem to be in a bit of a catch 22 here.

Keith Mitchell (Claymont, Delaware) on December 30, 2011 at 6:36pm


	I am applying for a security clearance and I am considering sponsoring my mother (who is a foreng national of Brazil) to apply for a Permanent Reseident Card to come to the US because I am afraid my security clearance will be denied due the fact I have ties with a foreign national . Am I just being paraoid or can it happen? If my mother filed a petition for a Green Card would it change anything? Below are a few facts that might help you answer my questions: 1) I am 30 years old and have lived in the US for 12 years. 2) I have never voted or applied for any benefits in Brazil. 3) I have only left the US two times (1 time with my Brazilian passport-before I became a US citizen-and one time with my US passport. 4) I have always paid taxes in the US and never worked overseas 5) I renounced my citizenship three months after I became a US citizen 6) I have been married to a US born citizen for three years- I am getting divorced though. 7) I don't have ties with any foreign national except with my mother who is willing to apply for a Permanent Resident Card and migrate to the US.

Raphael Maceod (New Jersey) on November 26, 2011 at 8:02pm


	Hello, I am a dual citizen since birth and basically moved all around the world growing up. I've only lived in the states for 2 years and have lived in my other country of citizenship for 4 years. Last year I had a security interview and surrendered my passport to the investigator (the investigation never commenced because I never got the job) so I think that shows I'm willing to give my other citizenship up. They mailed my passport back to me (along with the letter of citizenship renunciation which I was very upset about!!!) My parents are both non-Americans and my father, who is retired now served at a high level in a foreign government. He also started a business that failed and is significant debt. Can his activities affect my TS application fatally? Other facts, I've never voted in foreign elections, I have always paid and filed taxes in the US, and I'm engaged to a US citizen that has once held a TSC. Everything else is squeaky clean. What am I lookin at here?

traveler (california) on November 26, 2011 at 11:12am


	Dani (San Antonio): Your recruiter is misinformed. Your foreign connections should not disqualify you from obtaining a TS/SCI needed for the CTI rating.

William Henderson on November 14, 2011 at 11:08pm


	Roxanne (Los Angeles) A couple of my previous posts have provided information about possible changes to the �Foreign Preference� criterion in the Adjudicative Guidelines that may occur within the next 6 to 12 months, so this will be a moot point by the time children apply for a clearance. Even if the government later changes its mind again, since they did not apply the citizenship themselves, they can hardly be held responsible for what you did. They would just have to express willingness to renounce foreign citizenship and surrender their foreign passports.

William Henderson on November 14, 2011 at 11:03pm


	Thanks for this excellent information. I am nearing the end of the application process for Australian citizenship for our three children. They are all US born citizens and have never been to Australia, but are eligible for Australian citizenship by descent. After reading your article and above responses, I am now beginning to rethink the applications based on the possibility that it could affect their future job prospects; specifically, would having such dual citizenship limit their ability to obtain foreign service or other top-level security clearances (e.g. FBI, CIA?) This may seem like worrying about an unlikely event, but our 9 year old is already convinced that she wants to be in the foreign service.

Roxanne (Los Angeles) on November 11, 2011 at 9:22am


	Hello and thank you for the great information. I realize you have already answered questions similar to the one I'm about to ask, but it's always good to hear a response to one's personal situation. I'm looking to acquire a TS for a CTI rating in the USMC. I have been told by my recruiter that my citizenship/foreign influence situation basically disqualifies me from receiving the clearance, and it is as follows: I was born in Mexico to a Mexican-American father (his mother is American and father is Mexican) and an American mother. We resided in Mexico until I was 9, and then we moved to the U.S. I am now almost 21, have never had a Mexican passport (I've always traveled as an American, and any trips to Mexico were made with my birth certificate only), all of my Mexican relatives are also American citizens, or dual citizens. The only relatives still in Mexico are my grandparents and an uncle. I have made a few trips down there to visit that family, and on 2 occasions I visited one family friend in particular. I am willing to renounce my citizenship, neither my parents nor I have any financial or political or property investments, and I have never expressed any willingness to live in Mexico or had any feelings to indicate a greater commitment to that country over the U.S. Other than that, I can only see some minor drug use as a potential block (very minor marijuana use- about four times over the course of two months more than two years ago with no intention of using ever again). I have no credit issues, no traffic violations, tickets, criminal background, etc. Can you see that these foreign circumstances might be sufficient to disqualify me?

Dani (San Antonio) on November 11, 2011 at 12:24am


	Well things must have certainly changed recently! I am one of the dozens, maybe hundreds by now - of contractors who have been terminated for "No determination made" (NDM) statuses on their background checks - for positions requiring NO ACCESS to secure systems (SF85p). My NDM was due to dual citizenship (by birth in a foreign country). I am a naturalized US citizen. I was been given a termination notice by the contractor I work for and the local command cannot intervene because they cannot change the findings in JPAS and the new CNIC contract requirements state that if DONCAF issues a NDM for dual citizenship - this requires termination because it means a new CAC card cannot be issued upon expiration. According to the State Department, US law does not mention dual citizenship and the US does not require you to choose one above another. My position does not require access to classified information. How much of a security risk is a receptionist or scheduler with NO ACCESS, NO CLEARANCE REQUIRED? This new policy is highly prejudicial and hopefully grossly illegal.

Janelle F. on October 27, 2011 at 4:23am


	MP (NC): Things change every decade or so. Right now it is not possible to obtain a collateral security clearance unless you surrender/destroy any foreign passport and express willingness to renounce foreign citizenship. Rules are different for Intelligence Community clearances. The rules for collateral clearances may change within the next year.

William Henderson on October 25, 2011 at 10:53pm


	Paul P (Colorado): I don�t know why your interim clearance was declined. DISCO has had a tremendous turnover in personnel during the past year (80%) because of their move to Fort Meade. It could be the new people are not fully trained and are afraid to grant an interim clearance when any potential issue is present no matter what the applicant has done to mitigate concerns. It�s possible your final clearance could be granted without a Subject Interview. If not, a Subject Interview will be conducted before the case is adjudicated. I don�t think you have anything to be concerned about, other than having to wait.

William Henderson on October 25, 2011 at 10:47pm


	Rob (San Diego, CA): No.

William Henderson on October 25, 2011 at 10:39pm


	William - I'd like to ask for your thoughts as to why I was denied for interim Secret clearance. Here's my story: Canadian born, moved to US almost 20 years ago for graduate school and made my life here. Became a permanent resident after I started working, and applied for citizenship as soon as I could. I was sworn in about 2 years ago and immediately took out a US passport that I use for travel. Recently started working for an aerospace defense contractor and applied for a Secret clearance. Haven't renounced Canadian citizenship, but stated on my SF86 I would if instructed to do so. Handed my Canadidan passport over to my FSO before submitting e-QIP, and stated so on my SF86. Under relatives, I had to declare 7 foreign nationals living in Canada (mother, sister, deceased father, as well as stepfather and three stepsisters from my mother's recent remarriage). All are Canadian born with no ties to unfriendly countries. Finally, under foreign travel, I've travelled to Canada to visit my family 1-2 times per year for the past 7 years. Interim clearance was denied only a couple of days after my e-QIP was submitted. Does anything from my background tip you off as being automatic grounds for an interim denial? The interim denial isn't a huge issue for me, since I work on a number of different things, but my long-term opportunities with this company will be limited if my full clearance is denied. Will I have an opportunity for an interview to explain myself before my full clearance is denied, or will that not happen before a DOHA appeal? Thanksfor a great post and your willingness to answer questions.

Paul P (Colorado) on October 25, 2011 at 9:54am


	I have a question concerning marriage to a dual citizen. I recently have a security clearance because of the job that I do within the military. My fiancee is a dual citizen of the US and Australia (Mother was a US citizen at the time of her birth and father is an Australia citizen). If we were to get married, would she have to renounce her Australian citizenship? She travels back and forth often to be with family and works in a non government job.

Rob (San Diego, CA) on October 25, 2011 at 5:29am


	My dad is from the US, and my mother is from Sweden, and I've lived in the US for my entire life, except for a semester I studied abroad in Sweden. However, I have a current Swedish passport, which I only received after I was already an adult (I never had a Swedish passport as a child). The sorts of positions I would potentially be interested in would be linguist positions (I have a graduate degree in linguistics). What I was wondering is if it's possible for me to acquire any level of security clearance without renouncing my Swedish citizenship. A professor mentioned that she used to do linguistics work for the gov't and that a Dutch citizen worked in the same department as her, so she said that it should be possible to get at least a low-level clearance.

MP (NC) on October 25, 2011 at 1:26am


	Ismail elamroussi (Bayonne ,NJ ): Dual citizenship is not an automatic bar to receiving a security clearance. It can be mitigated as I have described in the article and in my numerous responses to reader questions. I suspect that the DHS HR person you dealt with either is not knowledgeable, didn�t want to bother processing you for the position, or was told not to accept applications from dual citizens because the time required to process the clearance would make it impossible for the applicant to be cleared in time to fill an intern position. You may have better luck when applying for a permanent position.

William Henderson on September 20, 2011 at 2:21pm


	Keka (Kansas): You can not get a clearance without sponsorship from a government agency or a federal contractor for a job that requires a clearance. Until the �Foreign Preference� criterion in the Adjudicative Guidelines change (see comment below), you will need to surrender any foreign passport to the security officer who processes your clearance application and indicate in the appropriate comment section of the SF86 that you are willing to renounce foreign citizenship. There are other statements you can make in the comment section of the SF86 to help mitigate this issue, but these statements must be crafted to fit you particular situation. Most people who have dual citizenship also have close relatives and associates who are foreign citizens. This creates a potential �Foreign Influence� issue that must also be addressed.

William Henderson on September 20, 2011 at 2:10pm


	Sam (New Jersey): See my post addressed to Peter (below).

William Henderson on September 20, 2011 at 2:02pm


	Peter (MA): You�re probably also a citizen of Ireland. At the moment it is not possible obtain a security clearance without surrendering/invalidating all foreign passports and expressing a willingness to renounce foreign citizenship. I think you are confusing political allegiance with cultural affinity. Renouncing foreign citizenship isn�t the same as disavowing your cultural ties to another country. A couple of my previous posts have provided information about possible changes to the �Foreign Preference� criterion in the Adjudicative Guidelines that may occur within the next 6 to 12 months, so this may all become a moot point by the time you apply for a clearance.

William Henderson on September 20, 2011 at 2:00pm


	I am a dual citizen of the US and the Netherlands, and have held both since birth (born in Ireland, to US and Dutch parents). I have lived most of my life overseas, only coming to live in the US for college. For the past few years I have had the goal of becoming a Navy SEAL once I graduate, which requires Secret clearance. Is there (1) any chance of me being eligible for Secret clearance, and (2) any chance without renouncing my Dutch passport? I am proudly American and eager to serve my country, but it would be difficult for me to renounce my Dutch heritage and family. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Peter (MA) on September 19, 2011 at 7:59am


	WIlliam: Thanks for the great info on your site. I currently dual citizenship since I immigrated from Middle East 30 years ago. However, I have been renewing my foreign passport ever 5 years. I assume this makes me a dual citizen. I have held clearance in the early 1990s for some jobs but did not require it afterwards. Since I may need one in the future, would it be very helpful for me in not renewing my foreign passport (Jordan) which expires in a few months? Would that improve my chances in getting approval for an SF86 nor not? I heard from some people it is and they asked them to return their valid poassports to embassies even though this does not mean they are renouncing citizenship as this is very complicated process and requires top ministers approval sometimes in foreign countries.

Sam (New Jersey) on September 18, 2011 at 10:00am


	HI, I immigrated to the us since 2004 and i was born in Egypt, later on i earned my American citizenship when i was 16, later on i applied for us passport and i always use it .Now am an undergraduate college student Major political science ,in my senior year i applied for an internship at Home land security ( Public affairs division ) but i found that am not eligible to be accepted because I am dual citizen, and they told me that i will not be able to get security clearance. i just want to make sure that is true and if it true can i apply for lower or basic security clearance that allow me to work in not sensitive positions. i know things happened but i really work 4 years to get this degree. And i understand that coming from middle east background is kind of critical but i graduate from American High school and am about to graduate from American university . i live an i work in the USA and my all family live in USA and we will die in the USA. Am waiting for your answer. You more then welcome to Emil me if you would like to . Thank you for your consideration .

Ismail elamroussi (Bayonne ,NJ ) on September 14, 2011 at 1:59am


	Thank you for this article! Apparently there was a lot I didn't know about dual citizenship and how it could affect the security clearance process. So then it is advised that the dual citizen does not contact the foreign embassy to renounce the citizenship because of 'counterintelligence implications.' How else can we ensure we will get clearance? For instance, what happens if I apply for a job that requires security clearance, but having the dual citizenship then complicates my getting the job? Is there a way to get clearance in advance before one starts looking into jobs that require security clearances? Thank you!

Keka (Kansas) on August 28, 2011 at 4:43pm


	Ben (PA): Please identify the DoE document you are referring to and tell me where I can find it. Dual citizenship per se is not a potentially disqualifying condition under the Adjudicative Guidelines. Therefore it is possible that DoE does not require applicants to express willingness to renounce foreign citizenship if it is based based solely on parents' citizenship. However your situation is complicated by the fact that you obtained a foreign passport and therefore exercised a right of foreign citizenship, which is a potentially disqualifying condition and would have to be mitigated.

William Henderson on August 24, 2011 at 9:03pm


	Mike (Tuscon): Intentionally providing false information on an SF86 is a federal crime.

William Henderson on August 24, 2011 at 8:46pm


	Roberto Costa (Norfolk Virginia): If you retired from the Navy more than 2 years and do not currently hold a position that requires a security clearance, your Navy clearance is no longer eligible for reinstatement. Yes the dual citizenship and foreign passport can cause a problem for a new security clearance unless you expressed your willingness to renounce foreign citizenship and clearly explained that you had a foreign passport with an expiration date of October 2007 but lost the passport. Even then it might be grounds for declining an interim clearance. Be aware that as an applicant for federal employment you will be evaluated for both federal employment suitability and a security clearance.

William Henderson on August 24, 2011 at 8:43pm


	Great site! Can you speak to DoE dual citizenship requirements as far as security clearances? The DoE document I saw indicated that renunciation is only necessary for foreign born dual citizens. I am a US born citizen with German citizenship acquired at birth through my mother. I've had both passports for the past 10-12 years. I've had a US passport all my life (~30 years).

Ben (PA) on August 24, 2011 at 4:56pm


	Just a couple of questions on Security clearances. 1) I am a ual citizen. If i answered "No" on he SF86 for this question would it help me in processing or might create serious issues. Is there a way for the agency to verify if I am a dual citizen or not? 2) My foreign passport is current now and will expire next month. Would it be beneficial to NOT renew it and leave it expired if I apply to a security clearance in the future?

Mike (Tuscon) on August 18, 2011 at 8:17am


	I have retired from the Navy after 21 years and currently hold a secret clearance good until May 2014. I am have been offered a GS position with the government and I put on my SF-86 that I do have dual citizenship (Brazil) by birth and US naturalized. I would like to know if that is going to be a problem and how long will it take for my interim to come back so I can begin employment? I had a Brazilian passport that expired in October 2007 and I have not renewed it or do I still have the passport (lost).

Roberto Costa (Norfolk Virginia) on August 17, 2011 at 12:10pm


	Ann (PA): The SF85P is used for Public Trust (PT) positions. The �Foreign Preference� which includes Dual Citizenship and possession of foreign passport) and �Foreign Influence� criteria in the Adjudicative Guidelines for security clearances, does not apply to PT positions unless they are added as job-specific requirements. However, under DOD 5200.2-R, ADP-2 positions are national security positions, specifically non-critical sensitive positions, that require an SF86 rather than an SF85P.

William Henderson on August 1, 2011 at 5:13pm


	Melissa (Virginia): The way the question is written on the SF85P, you must answer �yes� if you are now or if you were ever, a dual citizen. So I don�t think you answered the question incorrectly. Cases are marked �No determination made� by agencies that adjudicate security clearance when they receive a case for an employment suitability determination which contains significant unfavorable information. These cases are transferred from the security clearance adjudication office to the appropriate Human Resources office where the employment suitability determination is made. OPM verifies US citizenship through DHS/CIS records for any applicant who is not a native born US citizen. A copy of a letter from the applicant to a foreign embassy renouncing former foreign citizenship is usually acceptable evidence.

William Henderson on August 1, 2011 at 5:05pm


	If someone as a contractor for the government states that they are a dual citizen on there SF 85P and marked it wrong because they are no longer a dual citizen how do you go about fixing the No Determination Made ruling. Do you know if OPM runs the naturalization/citizenship number to check if they are dual citizens? Also if they were previously dual citizens what paperwork can they provide to show that they no longer hold a dual citizenship. Thank you.

Melissa (Virginia) on August 1, 2011 at 9:51am


	Hello! I am applying for an ADP 2, for a job with Tricare, so I am not sure if any of this even applies to me. I was born in a foreign country and naturalized in 1991. I hold a foreign passport since I am required to enter and exit that country with it, but otherwise travel exclusively with my US passport. I am not sure if this is even a concern for me, but I would be happy to relinquish my citizenship/passport if asked, however my form (SF85p), did not have that option. Should I add a comment, or just not worry about it? Thank you.

Ann (PA) on July 23, 2011 at 7:31am


	Edward: Foreign travel is not that big of a deal, unless something bad happens during a trip or the travel is really unusual, frequent, and for extended periods of time. Your friends, relatives, and other connections to South America will be the greater concern. Recommend you read the article on �Foreign Influence and Security Clearances� posted on this website and submit any question you may have there. You said nothing about foreign citizenship or use/possession of a foreign passport, so �Foreign Preference� should not be a concern.

William Henderson on July 19, 2011 at 12:38pm


	Tom (Los Angeles): If even only one of your parents was a US citizen when you were born, you were automatically a US citizen and would not have been required to go through the naturalization process. As I have previously stated there are 2 different standards currently being used for the adjudication of �Foreign Preference� issues (i.e. foreign citizenship and foreign passports). The standard that applies to collateral clearances is at Guideline C of the Adjudicative Guidelines. Use the link to Guideline C in the second paragraph of the article (above). The other standard applies to SCI eligibility and is spelled out in Guideline C in Intelligence Community Policy Guidance 704.2. The link to ICPG 704.2 in the article is broken, but you can Google �ICPG 704.2� and find it. Then go to page A-5. It is completely different and generally permits foreign citizenship and foreign passports.

William Henderson on July 19, 2011 at 12:28pm


	DR (Maine): Intelligence Community Policy Guidance #704.2. Just Google "ICPG 704.2" and you'll find it. Guideline C starts on page A-5. The existing rules for collateral security clearances are in the December 2005 Adjudicative Guidelines. Click on the link to Guideline C in the article (above). There is no timeline. It will get done when it get done.

William Henderson on July 19, 2011 at 12:06pm


	Hi, I'm applying for the FSO this year and was curious about my security clearance should I get that far. I have Colombian citizenship as well as American. I was born there, but moved to the states when I was 17 months old. I have, however, traveled through Colombia and Venezuela extensively because of family ties. My main worry is because of the relationship between all three countries has never been exactly "golden." I've also been to 6 other countries which I'm sure will just make getting clearance a long and arduous process. Any insight would be very much appreciated. Thank you.

Edward on July 16, 2011 at 8:43pm


	William, Great article; I am glad I stumbled upon it. Here is my situation; based on what I read I think I am OK. I was born abroad in the UK during the mid-sixties to US-Citizens parents, one of whom was assigned there for DoD. I obtained my US citizenship through the naturalization process. I held a TS/SCI for 15 years while active duty military, retired, and joined the corporate world without a clearance. I applied for and received my British passport, but have never used it. I just thought it would be neat to have it since I was eligible. Now I am considering a move back to DoD for a job requiring a TS/SCI. I am willing to renounce and surrender my passport; whatever is required to mitigate; I am just a little conserned based on the clearance level of this potential job - a CI-scope poly might even be required. What do you think?

Tom (Los Angeles) on June 22, 2011 at 8:38pm


	Suspended (Panama City), Let me correct one item � your local command can only suspend your access and only the DoNCAF can reinstate or revoke it. The rule regarding possession of a foreign passport and its negative impact on possessing eligibility to DoD classified information has been in effect since Aug 2000. If your prior adjudication was subsequent to that date, then the DoNCAF made a wrong decision at that time. You can not accelerate the process. The only possibility is that your command can request an expeditious adjudication by DoNCAF and hope for the best. To mitigate this situation, you should have told the investigator that you were willing to renounce your dual citizenship (or you can do that now by submitting a signed statement to your security officer) and by invalidating your foreign passport by punching a hole through it in the presence of your security officer. You should not return the passport to the issuing country or contact that country to renounce your dual citizenship. This will bring you to the attention of their security/intelligence officials. Good luck

Bill L. (Bowie, MD) on June 14, 2011 at 9:16am


	For the last 27 years I hold secret clearance and dual passport. In the latest reinvestigation on July 2010 I was asked if I hold a passport in additional to the US; when I replied yes my security clearance was revoked immediately and I was put on administrative leave since then. Immediately I initiated removal of my dual citizenship and return the passport as required to reinstate my security clearance. To my surprise while the local command could revoke my clearance, only The Department of the Navy Central Adjudication Facility (DON CAF) can reinstate it. During my previous security reinvestigation ten years ago the issue of having dual citizenship and double passport was arise; my security clearness was approved. At no time I was notified about the existing new rule that forbid dual passport. My other citizenship is by birth and I can relinquish only by special circumstance which become relevant only after my suspension. Considering that I hold secret clearance for 27 years while having two passports when the regulation has been change during that time without my knowledge. At the beginning of the investigation I was in a process of selling real estate in the foreign country but the process was finalized and the money was transferred. How can I accelerate the process so I can return to work.

Suspended (Panama City FL) on June 13, 2011 at 4:29pm


	Janet R. (Fort Worth, TX): This policy about possession and use of foreign passports (and dual citizenship) may change before the end of this year. Stay tuned.

William Henderson on May 19, 2011 at 8:01pm


	Thank you for this article. (I just run into it ) I am a naturalized citizen since 1986, retired military and government servant eligible for secret clearance. Dual citizenship was not my concern until recently. In 2009 I traveled to Venezuela for the first time in more than 30 years, and I used my American passport. No problems I loved it, and I want to visit again; but I just found out that the Venezuelan governement passed a new law in 2005 requiring all citizens to enter the country with the Venezuelan passport, regardless of any other citizenship they may have aquired. Since 2005 I am a dual citizen and I did not know it. I was lucky the first time I wnt to Venezuela, but now I can't make any plans to visit because I will not take the chance to go with the American passport and run into problems, since now I KNOW; nor will I get a Venezuelan passport. I run into this article because I was looking for information. My next clearance review is in 2013, and I hope this new (unsolicited and involuntary) status I now have will not affect my clearance. -it will be more complicated, that is for sure- For the reasons you mentioned before, somewhere in your comments and responses, I will not take action to expressly renounce to the Venezuelan citizenship; but this new situation will unfortunately keep me from visiting my family and friends again - until I retire, I guess. Doors closed. Thanks again for this article and the many comments and responses - I don't feel "special" anymore, but I feel a little bit assured that I won't loose my job after all ...?

Janet R. (Fort Worth, TX) on May 18, 2011 at 5:27pm


	Thanks William for the reply. I am not familiar with Guideline C ICPG 704.2, can you please elaborate? If these revisions are in the works what will that mean and do you have a timeline on when they would take affect? I also wanted to know with the rules that are in affect now with TS clearances;can one be a permanent resident of a foreign country with and have TS clearance. Thanks!

DR (Maine) on May 17, 2011 at 2:36am


	ejp (DR): Merely being a US citizen by birth does not necessary make you eligible for a US security clearance. You may be able to mitigate the foreign citizenship issue by renouncing it, but you will still have to deal with the �Foreign Influence� issue. To be granted a US security clearance you must be of unquestioned allegiance to the US, show no preference for another country, and not be subject to foreign influence. Plus a background investigation of sufficient breadth and depth must be completed. This may not be possible for a person who has lived almost their entire life in a foreign country.

William Henderson on May 14, 2011 at 6:59pm


	DR (Maine): Generally job requirements only state the minimum requirements. Ultimately a person�s eligibility for a security clearance is based on the Adjudicative Guidelines, not the stated job requirements. All federal agencies use the same Adjudicative Guidelines for granting security clearances (except for IC agencies as noted in the article). My advice is to hold off doing anything for several months. The Adjudicative Guidelines are in the process of being revised. There is a good chance that Guideline C will change dramatically and look much more like the Guideline C in ICPG 704.2.

William Henderson on May 14, 2011 at 6:48pm


	I'm currently living in the DR but I'm a born US citizen. Because of family reasons I had to live here my whole life. I'm 22 y.o. and only 2 years ago I applied for a dual citizenship. I never applied for a foreign passport and I'm willing to renounce my dual citizenship. Would this disqualify me from having a TSC for an Intelligence job in the US military? THANKS!

ejp (DR) on May 13, 2011 at 10:42pm


	Question for anyone: I currently hold a TS clearance for a US federal gov't agency. I was born in Canada and I was told before I was hired that I would need to renounce my Canadian Citizenship. I have never seen anything in writing from the agency that stated you can not hold a dual citizenship. I was only verbally told this.It only states you need to be a US citizen in the job requirements which I am from one of my parents birth. I applied to renounce my Canadian citizenship regardless but am wondering if I really had to to gain employment since I fullfilled the requirement of being a US citizen? I was also wondering if applying for my permanent residence status in Canada would jeopordize my security clearance/job? There is not much information regarding this that I have been able to find and the job requirements again don't say anything about dual citizenship/permanent residence status. All of my immediate family (parent's, sister) still live in Canada and I frequently visit. Thanks for help.

DR (Maine) on May 13, 2011 at 4:30am


	Steve (Philly, PA), In my opinion, this should not be a problem for the renewal of your TS/SCI. There are some countries that will not permit renunciation of their citizenship. I suggest that you and your spouse not pursue this further. This could alert the Portuguese government that you are a cleared U.S. citizen and put you on the radar of their intel service. Your employing security office should be able to advise you in this matter. Good luck.

Bill L. (Bopwie, MD) on May 10, 2011 at 8:55am


	To anyone, I currently hold a TS/SCI but will be up for my re-investigation in 2013. My fiance holds dual citizenship with Portugal. Although she DID fill out the paperwork to denounce her Portuguese citizenship, according to Portugal (who recognizes dual citizenship) she is still a Portuguese citizen. Is this going to be a problem for a successful adjudication? I currently work in a federal position that requires me to have a TS, although it is not used. Please advise!! What should I do? Since she has formally "renounced" her Portuguese citizenship in the eyes of the state department, should I just say that and let it be a non-issue? Or will it come up? Thanks, Steve

Steve (Philadelphia, PA) on April 29, 2011 at 8:48pm


	AM (PGH), The �legal� answers are � yes, this can/will affect your current clearance eligibility; yes, you should report this to your current Security Manager; and yes, your renunciation of Irish citizenship can be a mitigating factor. However, possession or use of a current/active foreign passport is grounds to revoke your clearance eligibility. The primary mitigating factor for military/DoD civilian personnel is to make the foreign passport invalid or destroy it in the presence of your Security Manager. The mitigating action for contractor personnel is slightly different. If the Irish government asks that the passport be returned, do it via certified/registered mail/UPS or some documented way. Good luck.

Bill L. (Bowie, MD) on April 28, 2011 at 9:09am


	A bit of clarification ... The full post is below, but basically ... I applied for Irish citizenship a year BEFORE I applied for a security clearance, and it took the Irish government three years to approve it. I received it the week I came home from a year's deployment, and promptly forgot about it. Would this still matter in the course of a security investigation? The rank I am now at (E6 at application time, E8 now) requires a clearance, and I am hesitant to report it to my security manager (a good friend), as it seems that it surely will result in my clearance revocation. I have already sent a letter to the Irish Citizenship authorities renouncing my Irish Citizenship - would this fact help? I could also talk to my security manager personally, in a hypothetical sense. Maybe she could give guidance? Previous post: I am currently serving on Active Duty in the military with a Secret clearance. My clearance comes up for renewal in 2016. My wife is from Ireland (born/raised), and the Irish government allows spouses of citizens to apply for citizenship through a special process. However, the law was being closed off due to abuse by Nigerian immigrants, so I had to act fast. I applied for, and received, Irish citizenship. The purpose of this was so that when we retire, we can move to Ireland (as we have long planned), and I won't have to apply then, as it looked like it might become MUCH harder in the future. I do not have an Irish passport, and I am a US-born citizen with a US passport. I was told a while back that my having Irish citizenship would not interfere with my clearance status. Is this still true? (I always worry). I would give up my Irish citizenship immediately if it would impede my having a clearance, but I'd rather not, as we do still plan to move there after retirement.

AM (PGH) on April 24, 2011 at 8:35pm


	Steve (NM): Read my response to Deb immediately below your question. Why are you concerned about an expired passport? It shouldn�t be necessary to surrender an expired passport and even if it is required, it should be returned to you when you terminate employment. Make a photocopy of the passport just in case they lose it.

William Henderson on March 21, 2011 at 4:19pm


	After college (20+years ago) I found out that I could obtain a UK passport through my father, who was born in Scotland. At that time, I would travel a lot to Europe so it made sense. When the passport expired 10 years later, I renewed it. It expired this year, but I have not renewed it. I may be considered for a contract position with a national laboratory, not the military. I expect a low-level clearence may be needed. While I have not used the passport to travel, I'd hate to give it up for a short-term position. I would be willing to hand it over, temporarily, until the job was done, and then get it back. Possible?

Steve (NM) on March 15, 2011 at 5:51pm


	Deb (Albuquerque): As indicated in the article there has been a prohibition since 2000 against anyone with a security clearance in DOD having a foreign passport. I�m not aware of any such rule that applies to people who do not have a security clearance. If you don�t have a security clearance, you should ask the office that sent you the letter what regulation requires you to surrender your Canadian passport in order to hold your job. The Adjudicative Guidelines for security clearances are currently being revised and foreign passports/dual citizenship are among the issues that are being addressed in the revision. There is a possibility that the blanket prohibition against foreign passports may scrapped and replaced by the �heightened risk� standard used for �foreign influence� issues. In which case, possession of a Canadian passport would be the least likely cause for security clearance revocation under the �foreign preference� guideline. Approval and implementation of new Adjudicative Guidelines could take several months. I don�t believe that surrendering your Canadian passport will affect your Canadian citizenship, but you can check with the Canadian government regarding this. A Canadian passport is the property of the Canadian government and as such the U.S. Government does not have the authority to destroy it without the permission of the Canadian government. If you surrender it, it should be securely stored by your security office. Ask the security office what they intend to do with the passport and get a receipt for it. If and when the rules change, you can reclaim the passport and allow your security clearance to be readjudicated under the new rules. Please let us know what happens.

William Henderson on March 12, 2011 at 10:56am


	Help! I am a medical civilian employee of the Department of Defense. i have worked at my current position for 10 months, I was just asked to surrender my Canadian passport . I have been a dual citizen since 1995, all of my children were born in Canada, and one has just recently moved back (they are all dual citizens). I was interviewed by a federal investigator when i first started employment, and now it's an issue? I really do not want to give up my passport, and am not sure if surrendering my passport will effect my Canadian citizenship. I really don't know what to do. In the letter i received it says if i do not surrender my Canadian passport I might be terminated. Anyone have any insight?

Deb (Albuquerque) on March 10, 2011 at 9:54pm


	B. (VA): Almost all security clearance applicants are considered for an interim clearance, but the declination rate for interim clearances is much higher than the denial rate for final clearances. An interim clearance is only temporary until the final clearance is granted. When granted, it allows people to start doing classified before their investigation is completed and a final clearance determination is made. Travel to a person�s native country is only one factor in evaluating security concerns related to Foreign Preference (Guideline C) and Foreign Influence (Guideline B). There is no magic number of trips. Perhaps more important is than the number and duration is the purpose of the trips and who he see while he is there.

William Henderson on March 1, 2011 at 7:44pm


	Thank you Bill.

Roger R Wellsandt (El Centro California) on March 1, 2011 at 1:50pm


	My husband's interim has been denied without explanation but I guess it is because of his dual citizenship. The interim clearance was one of the other security clearance so his file has been sent to the next step for more investigation! which for us is a surprise! how come he wasn't qualified for the interim but still is eligible for processing for security clearance?! Also, he simply has forgotten to mention one of his temporary address that he has rented to stay since the commute is very long & hard from job to home. Is there any way that he can inform the company about the missing info? Do U.S. citizens who have Iranian citizenship have the chance of getting clearance with surrendering their foreign passport? How much their travel to their county (3 times from 2002, each time lasting about a month) affect getting the clearance? Thanks for your reply in advance.

B. (VA) on February 24, 2011 at 3:29pm


	Rog, As I read your original question, you state that you are "preparing to apply for my Canadian Citizenship/Passport". Regardless of your parent's citizenship, your preparation is an "an action to acquire or obtain recognition of a foreign citizenship by an American citizen" and therefore a potentially disqualifying condition. Your statement that your parent is a Canadian is not a mitigating factor in your case. If you are serious about holding a US Government security clearance, I recommend you discontinue any action to obtain a Canadian passport. Good luck.

Bill L. (Bowie, MD) on February 13, 2011 at 7:56pm


	Lisa &William, Thank you for you responses. Lisa, OF COURSE I read #7 under EVALUATING DUAL CITIZENSHIP! I also read #1 under MITIGATING SECURITY CONCERNS... Dual citizenship is based solely on parents' citizenship or birth in a foreign country As stated in my original question in case you missed it, "BY DESCENT" means my Parent is a Canadian Citizen! Hense the original question. Respectfully, Rog

Rog (Afghanistan) on February 10, 2011 at 7:24am


	Worried (NJ): I do not answer questions that ask, �Is there any way they could find out?� Do not destroy your foreign passport by yourself. You will be told by a government security official when it is appropriate to surrender or destroy the passport. Read the article again. It says exactly what you need to do. If you surrender your passport to a government security official, get a receipt.

William Henderson on February 8, 2011 at 7:42pm


	Rog (Afghanistan): Lisa is correct. It doesn't matter that the country is Canada. See ISCR Case No. 09-07127 for an example of a person who was denied a security clearance for refusing to renounce Canadian citizenship.

William Henderson on February 8, 2011 at 7:13pm


	Rog (Afghanistan): I am not William or Bill, but I think I can answer your question. OF COURSE this will affect your clearance! Didn't you read the Adjudicative Guidelines above? Look at # 7: "Action to acquire or obtain recognition of a foreign citizenship by an American citizen" is a potentially disqualifying condition to obtaining/keeping a security clearance. Your clerance will most likely be revoked if you apply for Canadian citizenship.

Lisa (FL) on February 8, 2011 at 3:33pm


	I am a US Citizen. I posses a Secret Clearance which was granted in the early 90's and has been active since that time. I have been contracting overseas steadily since that time as well. I am preparing to apply for my Canadian Citizenship/Passport by descent through a laywer in Canada with the first consultation scheduled for next month. Will this affect my Clearance?

Rog (Afghanistan) on February 5, 2011 at 8:54am


	To William and/or Bill: Thank you in advance for answering my question. I enlisted in the US Army recently, and my Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) requires me to obtain a SECRET (not TS) clearance. My problem is this: I was born in a European country (for privacy reasons, I don't want to say which, but it is a very tight ally of the US) and I was naturalized as a US citizen in 2003. My country of birth allows dual citizenship, and since then, I have renewed my foreign passport (yes, it was a stupid thing to do, but I have never traveled on it). I want to renounce my foreign citizenship and destroy my foreign passport. However, from what you guys have written here, I understand that contacting the embassy/consulate on my own, and asking to have my citizenship renounced & surrendering my passport, is a BAD idea. My question is this: Can I destroy my passport myself by burning it or shredding it? And after I do that, can I answer "NO" on the SF86 to the question: "Do you have dual citizenship or allegiance to a any foreign country?" Is there any way that the military could find out that I was issued a foreign passport in 2008? From what I understand, if I admit to having a valid foreign passport, the Army will flat-out deny my secret clearance. I don't want to break the law or lie, but I also don't want to complicate something that doesn't need to be complicated. Can I do what I said above?? Thank you so much in advance.

Worried (NJ) on February 1, 2011 at 3:09pm


	AER (Australia): I just reviewed a case where the applicant was a police intelligence official in Egypt prior to immigrating to the U.S. He sucessfully mitigated the Guideline L (Outside Activities) issue, but he was denied a clearance because of the Guideline B (Foreign Influence) issue and another unrelated matter. The case is posted at http://www.dod.mil/dodgc/doha/industrial/09-02708.h1.pdf. Even having former coworkers who are foreign intelligence officers may be fatal to a clearance application.

William Henderson on January 24, 2011 at 7:48pm


	AER (Australia): I am not aware of anyone who previously worked for any foreign intelligence service ever applying for a U.S. security clearance, so I don't know.

William Henderson on January 19, 2011 at 11:20pm


	AER (Australia): See my reply to John (Germany) just 2 questions below yours on January 7, 2011 at 4:25pm. As you can see anything is possible. The person I described was in the military, training to become a crytographic linguist. The military tends to be more lenient about dual citizenship and foreign spouses. Another agency could have easily denied the clearance because the background investigation failed to meet the coverage requirements.

William Henderson on January 19, 2011 at 11:16pm


	Hi William, I am very interested in working for the US government, particularly in the Intelligence fields. I have a long way to go before I even begin to think about a career, but I just want to know if I have ANY chance. I also am interested in Summer Internship Programs that are available to US Citizens. I am a US born US citizen, living in Australia. I've been living here since age 2. My mother is an Australian citizen & has once held a US Green Card. My dad is a US citizen, and has been living in Australia for 18 years. He is not an Australian citizen, only resident. My dad served in the US Military for 4 years. I currently hold both US & Australian passports, and have travelled on both since birth (it's illegal for an Australian citizen to exit and enter Australia on a foreign passport). I have no criminal record, do not do drugs & barely drink. I have a small personal loan (for my car) which will be paid off by the end of this year. I do not own property in Australia or the US, nor stocks or investments. My education is covered under the government's FEE-HELP Scheme, which is paid back through taxes. Due to my fulltime job & salary, I am already paying this back. In 2012, I am participating in a student exchange program to study in a US university. Questions: 1. Would my background stop me from getting a security clearance? Even Top Secret? (I would be willing to give up my passport). 2. If I were to work in an Intelligence Agency in Australia, would it hinder my chances? What about Australian military? Many Thanks

AER (Australia) on January 19, 2011 at 5:37am


	AM (Pittsburgh, PA): You were misinformed. As stated in the article, �7. Action to acquire or obtain recognition of a foreign citizenship by an American citizen� is a potentially disqualifying condition for a security clearance and you should have immediately reported it to your security manager. Failure to report your acquisition of Irish citizenship is a security violation and as such, is also a potentially disqualifying condition.

William Henderson on January 7, 2011 at 4:33pm


	John (Germany): I know of one situation where a person was born in the U.S. to foreign parents, moved to the foreign country with his parents at a very young age, relocated to the U.S. by himself when he turned 18, joined the US military, and was granted a TS/SCI clearance about a year later. So, anything is possible. Yours is obviously a very complicated case, and your chance of getting a security clearance depends on the details of the myriad foreign preference and foreign influences factors involved.

William Henderson on January 7, 2011 at 4:25pm


	AM (Pittsburgh), In my opinion, you made a bad decision and are at risk to have your clearance revoked. Whoever told you that obtaining a foreign citizenship would not be a problem for your clearance, doesn�t know jack. Although you have not (yet) obtained an Irish passport, the foreign preference guidelines cite as a potentially disqualifying act �action to acquire or obtain recognition of a foreign citizenship by an American citizen�. Additionally, although Ireland is one of our allies, you have possibly identified yourself as a U.S. service member to a foreign government and the potential interest of a foreign intelligence service. In my opinion, you should give up the Irish citizenship until you permanently move to Ireland. Good luck.

Bill L. (Bowie, MD) on January 6, 2011 at 8:45am


	Dear Bill, Thank you for a very informative article. I would like to ask for your advice regarding my situation, as I have concerns with obtaining a Secret clearance. I was born in Greece to an American father and a Greek mother, and thus obtained dual citizenship. I served in the USAF as an officer for five years where I had a Secret clearance and was honorably discharged in 2003. After leaving the military, I wanted to get a graduate engineering degree in Germany. At the same time, I found out that I was wanted in Greece for not serving in the Greek military (Greece has mandatory conscription), which I sorted out after using my service in the USAF. In the course of that process, I obtained a Greek passport. Since then, I have completed my studies in Germany and are currently employed in a German company. I was also married to an Italian national. With this endeavor, the Greek citizenship was of assistance, as I didn't need a visa. I recently decided I want to return to the US and certain interesting jobs I'm looking at require Secret clearance. After reading your article, I obviously have concerns with that regard. Have I basically disqualified myself from obtaining a Secret clearance? Is it even worth going through the process? I have to add that I would be willing to renounce the Greek citizenship. Thanks in advance.

John (Germany) on January 4, 2011 at 6:18am


	I am currently serving on Active Duty in the military with a Secret clearance. My clearance comes up for renewal in 2016. My wife is from Ireland (born/raised), and the Irish government allows spouses of citizens to apply for citizenship through a special process. However, the law was being closed off due to abuse by Nigerian immigrants, so I had to act fast. I applied for, and received, Irish citizenship. The purpose of this was so that when we retire, we can move to Ireland (as we have long planned), and I won't have to apply then, as it looked like it might become MUCH harder in the future. I do not have an Irish passport, and I am a US-born citizen with a US passport. I was told a while back that my having Irish citizenship would not interfere with my clearance status. Is this still true? (I always worry). I would give up my Irish citizenship immediately if it would impede my having a clearance, but I'd rather not, as we do still plan to move there after retirement.

AM (Pittsburgh, PA) on December 30, 2010 at 1:16pm


	SNS (Los Angles), Invalidating your foreign passport and singing a statement that you are willing to renounce any dual citizenship is all that is required to mitigate this issue. If you take any formal action, such as returning the passport to the French embassy or make a formal application with the French government, you will probably be identified as being associated with the US government and subject to possible intelligence interest. Good Luck.

Bill L. (Bowie, MD) on December 9, 2010 at 2:39pm


	I've recently graduated a University with my masters and I've thought deeply about becoming a Navy SEAL. However, I was born in France and moved to the US when I was about one year of age, gaining my citizenship around the age of ten. I've used the passport to travel with my family, but I have demonstrated no other ties, financially or politically. If I invalidate my passport and submit a written statement saying I'm willing to renounce my citizenship, will this enable me to gain a BUDs contract and get my TS? I'm confused because that doesn't seem to formally renounce my citizenship.

SNS (Los angeles) on December 3, 2010 at 10:53pm


	SC (Spring Texas): As indicated in the article, "Action to acquire or obtain recognition of a foreign citizenship by an American citizen" is a potentially disqualifying condition for a security clearance and must be reported to your security officer.

William Henderson on October 30, 2010 at 2:04pm


	I have a secret clearance; If I apply for a Ireland citizenship through grandparents descent, how will this affect my clearance.

SC (Spring Texas) on October 29, 2010 at 9:44am


	hg (washington dc): It's possible to be granted a collateral TS clearance with parents living in Iran, but it will be tough to fully mitigate the "foreign influence" concerns. Simpy renouncing Iranian citizenship and surrendering your Iranian passport may or may not mitigate the "foreign preference" issue. See the related article on "Foreign Influence and Security Clearance" on this website.

William Henderson on October 26, 2010 at 6:42pm


	I am US citizen since 2006 and traveled to Iran once for 2 weeks, both my parents are living Iran. Can I get TS clearance while my parents are not US citizen. I am willing to renounce my Iranian citizenship and passport??

hg (washington dc) on October 19, 2010 at 6:26pm


	PS (Philadelphia): If Annex A to ODNI ICPG 704.2 is not an adminstrative error, do you have an explanation for why it is identified as the version of the Adjudicative Guidelines issued by the Assistant for National Security Affairs on 29 December 2005, when it is clearly not that version? Did you also notice that paragraph F.6 of ODNI ICPG 704.1 eliminated the requirement for a credit check for Secret clearances?

William Henderson on September 10, 2010 at 3:11pm


	The intelligence community guideline is NOT an administrative error. During the Bush Administration, ONDI came to recognize how hopeless it was to get people with the right languages with a presumption against dual citizenship. The guideline represents a conscious step back from the old policy. The oddity in the current situation (unsustainable over the long run) is that dual citizenship is not a bar to getting top SCI clearances in the intelligence agencies but is a bar for lower level clearances elsewhere.

PS (Philadelphia) on September 8, 2010 at 9:47pm


	KK (Cedar Rapids, IA), You need not formally renounce your dual citizenship. The mitigating action for this is that when you are interviewed, you need to state that you are willing to renounce your dual citizenship if required. You should destroy or invalidate your foreign passport and have someone witness your action. By formally renouncing your dual citizenship and/or returning your passport to Malaysia, you can bring attention to yourself as a US citizen being processed for a clearance. Not a good idea. Good luck.

Bill L. (Annapolis, MD) on August 31, 2010 at 12:26pm


	Dear Bill, I an in the process of filling in form SF86 and have question on the the dual citizenship. I was a Malaysian citizen before I became naturalized in 2001. I have not renounced my Malaysian citizenship and have not renewed my Malaysian passport and have exclusively use my US passport in travelling. I wanted to officially renounced my Malaysian citizenship but have not gotten around doing that. With my application for clearance in the works and would not able to renounce on time, would that results in the denial of my clearance application? Thank so much for your help in advance. KK

KK (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) on August 30, 2010 at 1:46pm


	Kim (AZ): They will know about your dual citizenship and French passport because you answer the questions on the SF86 honestly. Don't start a military career based on a lie. An SSBI for a TS clearance is very comprehensive. No doubt you have told someone about your French passport. If that person is interviewed and you lied on the SF86, your military career will end in disgrace and it will have a long lasting negative effect on your life.

William Henderson on August 25, 2010 at 10:47pm


	Bill L: Thank you for your response. First, with my job, it would probably be impossible for me to be assigned to a unit in Korea. Second, US service members are given special status. When service members are charged, they are turned over to US Court Martial instead of the local jurisdiction. Status of Forces Agreement(SOFA) protects service members from getting punishments that are cruel or unusual in an American point of view but may be common in the host country, and from injustices in the investigation.

Artanis (CA) on August 25, 2010 at 3:18pm


	D (USA), Although Canada and the US are strong allies, your situation raises several adjudicative issues. First, have you reported your association/marriage to your security office? If not, do it now. Next, applying for a Canadian Residency Card implies that you intent to reside/work in Canada. Also, in marrying a Canadian citizen, what are chances he decides to return to Canada on a permanent basis or is reassigned to a military unit in Canada? If so, and you move with him, there is the potential for you co-owning land, bank accounts, and obtaining educational, medical or social welfare benefits from Canada. This would give the appearance of foreign preference and place into question your clearance eligibility. You and your spouse need to decide where your collective futures lay � in the US or Canada � and be prepared for the questions that follow and the possibility of having your clearance revoked. Good luck.

Bill L. (Annapolis, MD) on August 24, 2010 at 8:18am


	Artanis (CA), It is true, that you can become a US citizen, join the US military, be granted a clearance and become an officer. If this happens, make sure your S. Korean passport is destroyed/invalidated. But what happens if you are assigned to a unit in S. Korea? If you are a wanted man/fugitive, could the S. Korean authorities arrest/detain you? I am sure that based on the long history between S. Korea and the US, your situation is not uncommon. I suggest you consult with an attorney specializing in international relations or citizenship law. I suspect there are rules in effect to preclude this from happening, just requiring the proper documentation be submitted. Good luck.

Bill L. (Annapolis, MD) on August 24, 2010 at 8:08am


	I also hold a dual citizenship which I recently applied for couple years (my father is French which allowed me to gain a French passport). I am wanting to commission as an officer for the US air force but I was wondering if holding a valid French passport will disqualify me since all officers need to obtain a top secret clearance. I never used the French passport to go anywhere nor have I went to Europe. How would they even know you hold a dual citizenship if you never used the passport before?

kim (AZ) on August 24, 2010 at 12:19am


	I have a question. I am looking at getting my Canadian Residency and wanted to make sure I don't lose my USA clearance. Will i have to give it up if i complete the residency process? I married a Canadian Military man who is currently station at NORAD.

D (USA) on August 23, 2010 at 9:43am


	I am a South Korean, born in South Korea to Korean parents. I came to this country in 2006 (I was a high school student then) and obtained a green card. Soon, I will be eligible for a US citizenship. But here's the complication. Korea has mandatory conscription. Without serving in the Korean military, Korean government will not let me renounce my citizenship. (and that would make me a citizen of America and a wanted man/fugitive in Korea) If I apply to the US military to become an officer, I would need clearance. Would my situation prevent me from getting security clearance? I can clearly state that I wish to be a US citizen only. I wish to sever whatever ties I may have with my country of birth. I'm led to understand that if my dual citizenship is only a result of my country of birth refusing to let me go, I could get clearance. Is that right?

Artanis (CA) on August 22, 2010 at 12:16am


	Gary (NYC), Your parents being citizens of Holland should not adversely affect your clearance decision. However, the foreign passport is a potential problem. In my opinion, if your foreign passport is current/active, you should render it invalid by punching a hole through it or removing the photo. That way, if you want to keep it for sentimental reasons, you have it. If you decide to destroy it (burn or shredding), you should have someone witness the destruction and sign a statement that they say you burn or shred passport (describe the issuing country and passport number) on x date. If the passport is expired, you should so note that on your SF 86/eQIP. Further info on possessing a foreign passport is stated above in the article by Mr. Henderson. Good luck.

Bill L. (Annapolis, MD) on August 17, 2010 at 12:25pm


	Hi Bill or whomever else, Will one's parents not being US citizens effect my chances of getting a clearance? They have lived in USA for 30 years but remain resident aliens and only go back to the homeland (Holland) for funerals etc. They have been meaning to become citizens but never got around to it. I still possess my dutch passport but will be happy to relinquish it...do you see this being a major issue for me? Thanks and great post, sir.

Gary (NYC) on August 11, 2010 at 8:20am


	Nll (US) I do not think your situation should prevent you from being granted a clearance eligibility. The long period of no travel and little contact with Iranian citizens by your father would not affect the decision. Good luck.

Bill L. (Annapolis, MD) on June 24, 2010 at 8:30am


	Hwan jun (Iraq), Your situation should not prevent you from being granted a Secret clearance eligibility. As long as your children are in the US or their location does not render you susceptible to blackmail or coercion, you should be okay. I would consider registering your newest child with the US Embassy so he/she can be identified as a dual citizen. Good luck and keep your head down.

William R. Loveridge (Annapolis Maryland) on June 24, 2010 at 8:26am


	Am a born US citizen with one parent born in Iran who became a US citizen in the 1980's, married (still) to my mother a US citizen by birth, raised a family, worked and now retired . He has been in US for 30 plus years and has never been back to country of birth. He did apply for an Iranian passport and received a decade ago, but it has long been expired and he never used it. Will this have any bearing on my application for a job related security clearance. I also had a DUI 6 months ago and an underage drinking 5 years ago when a freshman in college that I am concerned about. Otherwise I recently graduated from college and no other problems. From what I read I think I should be okay. Also I put duel citizenship for my father on the application only because Iran will not recognize father as a US citizenship. Thanks for your time.

nll (US) on June 19, 2010 at 9:18am


	I just apply for secret clearance.. Is there any problem if my son is dual citizen (Korea/USA) also my new born baby has only Korean citizenship? I annotated on SF86 that I will apply for USA citizenship once I come back from deployment.. Please help me on this.. thank you..

hwan jin (iraq) on June 18, 2010 at 12:49pm


	Earl W (Jacksonville FL): I didn�t response to Bryan C�s question, because I don�t know the current rules about becoming a commissioned officer in the military. For a security clearance it is not necessary to renounce dual citizenship, if a person was born a dual citizen and never did anything to have the foreign citizenship recognized or received any benefit or privilege of foreign citizenship. In fact I don�t recommend that anyone contact a foreign embassy or consulate to renounce foreign citizenship or to surrender a passport, unless they are given specific instructions by a cognizant official of the US Government. Although DoD5200.2-R is still a valid regulation; it is terribly outdated. It contains the 1997 version, rather than the 2005 version, of the Adjudicative Guidelines. Neither version of the Adjudicative Guidelines uses the term �inimical.� Inimical is mentioned a few times elsewhere in DoD5200.2-R, but it is used in the context of allegiance to the U.S. or foreign influence. It is not used in the context of foreign preference, and Dual Citizenship is a Foreign Preference issue. DoD5200.2-R does not actually address any mitigating conditions (except in Appendix 8�the Adjudicative Guidelines). The 2005 version of the Adjudicative Guidelines uses the term �heightened risk of foreign exploitation,� which addresses the same concept as �nation whose interests are inimical to the those of the U.S.,� but can be applied more broadly to include individuals, groups of people, and regions�not just countries. But it uses �heightened risk� in the context of Foreign Influence�not Foreign Preference�and as I said, dual citizenship is a Foreign Preference issue.

William Henderson on May 15, 2010 at 5:06pm


	Earl W. (and Bryan C.), For an individual who claims to be a dual citizen of the US and another country, the mitigating conditions are (a) dual citizenship is based on the individual�s birth in a foreign country or (b) the individual expresses a willingness to renounce dual citizenship. Typically, when an individual admits dual citizenship on their SF 86/eQIP, they are interviewed to get the story of why they made the claim and are usually asked specifically if they are willing to renounce dual citizenship as a condition of being granted a security clearance. In MY opinion, claiming dual citizenship is more of a state of mind vs. the exercise of dual citizenship (voting in foreign elections, possession of a current foreign passport, etc). And a state of mind can be mitigated by the conditions I cited above. I suspect that in Bryan�s case that is what happened. I can not speak for the recruiter�s actions, but there may be something in the regulations regarding commissioning as an officer that require a formal renunciation of dual citizenship for the process to move forward. If that is an issue, you should ask to see the regulation and read the requirement yourself. If the recruiter is up to speed, it will be provided with no problem. Good luck.

Bill L. (Annapolis, MD) on May 13, 2010 at 7:36am


	Mr. Henderson I am curious as I have a very similar situation, if there was any advice for Bryan C's situation. Also at one time there must of been a reason why the DoD 5200.2-R guidance was written with specific wording such as "not inimical" as a possibility for mitigation. If the guidance is still referenced then is not judicially applied to the context of the "whole person" then the guidance seems to be inimical. Earl Bryan C (New Orleans,LA) on 20 Jan 2010 at 8:30 pm --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Great article, as dual citizenship has always baffled me. I have dual citizenship with the UK from being born abroad (father was stationed overseas with the Navy). I enlisted with the Navy, was active for 5 years, got out for a few, then joined the Air National Guard. Both military positions required a clearance. I went back to school, and recently got accepted to medical school. I was looking at some military programs to help with financing this schooling, and the recruiter said I would have to renounce my citizenship to get a commission. I never had a UK passport, and only traveled there once as a minor with my parents. I'm not opposed to renouncing citizenship, just curious why I would have to do it to receive a commission if I had already obtained a clearance. Thanks for any insight.

Earl W (Jacksonville FL) on May 11, 2010 at 12:46pm


	John (Michigan), First, you must be a US citizen to be granted a security clearance. Second, you normally can not be granted a security clearance while holding a valid passport issued by a foreign government. Assuming you are a US citizen, travel to Iran is not a good thing and I suggest you check the State Department website to see if such travel is prohibited. Learning a foreign language can be done without travel to foreign country; however, I understand that certain dialects and culture can not be thoroughly mastered without living with the natives. I personally recommend against your suggested travel.

Bill L. (Annapolis, MD) on May 4, 2010 at 9:47am


	Hello! I am interested in working for the government. I recently started learning Persian and have contemplated going to Iran to study Persian at a local university using a European passport. My ties to the European country are minimal except for my possession of a valid foreign passport, which I am willing to surrender/give up if ever asked. Do you think traveling to Iran on a foreign passport with the goal of learning Persian so I could later work for USG would kill my clearance chances?

John (Michigan) on May 2, 2010 at 11:29am


	AS (Los Angeles, California): If your clearance investigation had not been stopped because of the job termination, you would have been told about the dual citizenship/foreign passport issue, and asked about your willingness to surrender the passport and renounce foreign citizenship. You would have also been questioned about foreign friends/relatives. The questions on the SF86 give applicants an idea of potential clearance issues. Depending on the country involved and the degree of contact there can be a presumption of potential foreign influence when you list friends or relatives at question #19 on the SF86. The potential for foreign influence only becomes a disqualifying issue when there is a heightened risk of foreign exploitation (this depends on the the country) or when there is a potential conflict of interest. Originally obtaining a foreign passport as a child is a moot point, if you subsequently renewed it and used it as an adult. If you have dual citizenship with a country like Canada and your relatives live there, there is reasonable chance you could receive an interim clearance if you surrender your passport at the time you apply for the clearance and express your willingness to renounce Canadian citizenship, but there is no guarantee. At the other extreme, with a passport from China and relatives living there, your chance of an interim clearance would be extremely poor. Unwillingness to give up a foreign passport from Canada or from China will almost always result in both a declination of an interim clearance and the denial of a final clearance. There has been a lot of improvement in clearance turnaround times in the past 2 years. Most secret clearances are now taking from 1 to 3 months and most TS clearances are taking 3 to 4 months.

William Henderson on March 15, 2010 at 2:57pm


	Dear Mr. Henderson, Thank you for your response. I have been working on writing my Comments section in advance, so that it will be ready for when they ask me to apply for my clearance again. I have not given my passport to anyone. No one told me to do this and I did not know I could do this. When I applied, last year, I knew nothing of the process, nor did I know that dual-citizenship would even be an issue. Is it always ASSUMED that there is Foreign Preference or Influence if one has family living in another country? And if I visit family outside of the US, will they assume these? What would make them believe that, although I visit and have a passport, that I do not have preference for another country nor do I have any influence from that country? Does it matter that I was a minor when I got the passport? Does it matter how often I talk to my extended family? Even though we never even talk about politics or stuff like that. It's usually just "how's school? how's your health? how's everyone else doing? tell everyone i say hi..etc etc etc". I have a written offer of employment and I have accepted it. What I'm afraid of is that as soon as I apply for my clearance, I will probably be denied Interim, and they will find out that they have to wait a LONG time before I can work on anything. And if they don't want to wait, they might terminate my employment. Thank you for providing that link. I have just finished reading it. Thanks, AS

AS (Los Angeles, California) on March 13, 2010 at 3:56am


	AS (Los Angeles): Possession of a current foreign passport is a potentially disqualifying condition for a security clearance and probably the reason (or at least one of the reasons) your interim Secret clearance was �declined.� �Action to acquire or obtain recognition of a foreign citizenship by an American citizen� is also a potentially disqualifying condition and applies to you because you obtained recognition of your foreign citizenship when you applied for and received your foreign passport. These are both �Foreign Preference� concerns under Guideline C. Your frequent trips to the foreign country to visit extended family members also raises �Foreign Influence� concerns under Guideline B. There is no way to find out for certain why your interim Secret clearance was declined and there is nothing you can do to �fit it.� There is nothing you can do to guarantee that you will receive an interim Secret clearance, but following the advice in my article will help�state in the SF86 your willingness to renounce foreign citizenship and the fact that you surrendered your foreign passport to the sponsoring company�s Facility Security Officer (FSO) and have the FSO submit a statement acknowledging receipt of your foreign passport. Because interim Secret clearance decisions are usually made in a matter of a few days, you should obtain a written conditional offer of employment from the company. This will allow the company to submit your clearance request but not actually hire you until you receive an interim or final Secret clearance. I�m not a lawyer so I do not offer any opinion on a person�s legal options. In your case whether a new investigation uses completed components of a previous investigation will make little difference in the actual time it takes to complete the new investigation. If you haven�t already, I recommend you read my article on �Foreign Influence and Security Clearances� at http://www.clearancejobs.com/cleared-news/54/foreign-influence-and-security-clearances

William Henderson on March 11, 2010 at 7:53pm


	Dear Mr. Henderson, I applied for a Secret clearance a little less than a year ago. I was denied Interim Clearance, and after a few months I was laid-off. I believe I was laid-off because the company did not want to wait for me to get my clearance. After almost a year of unemployment (and still fresh out of college), I finally received a new job offer, within a leadership program. I REALLY don want to lose this job, just because the company doesn want to wait for me to get my clearance. Im a dual-citizen because my mom was a citizen of that country when I was born. I was born in the US. I never lived there, i don have property there, i don send money there, I did not vote in their elections, and I did not serve in their army. I have visited many times, as my extended family members live their. My immediate family lives in the US and they are all US citizens, however they all hold dual citizenship, as well. My father has dual citizenship with a different country, though he has never gone back ever since he left to come to the US. I have a foreign passport, which I have used to enter that country. The last time I renewed the passport AND the last time I used it, were BEFORE I applied for a clearance and BEFORE I even knew that it was a bad thing to do. Since finding this information, when my interim was denied, I have not renewed it or used it. What can I do in order to not get denied an interim? Can I take any legal action if the company terminates my employment JUST because I couldn get interim? Keep in mind, Im young, I haven had much time to screw up in life, Ive never done drugs, I have a GREAT Credit Report, there is literally NOTHING else bad about me. Is there a way to find out why they denied interim and what I can do to fix it? If it is denied again, will they start investigating where they left off, or will they start ALL OVER AGAIN? Thank you, AS

AS (Los Angeles, California) on March 11, 2010 at 12:29am


	KDA: In DOHA case #08-11575 the applicant had a hearing on 25 September 2009 after receiving and answering an SOR. On 16 September 2009 he used his Jordanian passport to travel to Lebanon. On 23 September 2009 he surrendered his Jordanian passport to his FSO and it was destroyed. Applicant did not renounce Jordanian citizenship. The DOHA judge ruled for the applicant under Guideline C, but ruled against the applicant under Guideline B for reasons not specifically related to applicant�s passport or dual citizenship.

William Henderson on February 21, 2010 at 2:32pm


	NRC: Good luck trying to find a job at an intelligence agency that does not require a security clearance, unless you are only interested in lawn maintenance.

William Henderson on February 19, 2010 at 4:12pm


	I was denied clearance under Guideline C because I am a dual citizen with Turkey and I have exercised my dual citizenship by entering Turkey without a visa (i.e. with a Turkish ID card). I also have an unused, expired Turkish passport and would be required to perform military service should I retain my Turkish citizenship. What would be my chances of a successful appeal if I were to renounce my Turkish citizenship considering that I had not done so (or surrendered my Turkish passport) until this point in the process? I have been looking for similar cases but could not find any... I was wondering what your input/experience would indicate. Also, for commenters you may be able to find some similar cases to yours by searching DOHA for hearing decisions at this site: http://www.dod.mil/dodgc/doha/search/

KDA (Arlington, VA) on February 16, 2010 at 8:49am


	Dear Mr. Henderson, Thank you. I do have some more questions. I'm probably coming off as a little paranoid, but the matter is simply too serious. Indeed, I am very aware that I am one of "they," quoting what you have said above (which you're absolutely right about): "they rarely take the additional step of insuring that their former citizenship has been effectively renounced. Some even apply to have their foreign passport renewed and use it to travel to their native country. " 1. Do you think that by applying to a non-classified position at, say, the DIA, will attract unnecessary scrutiny about why I have kept my motherland passport active? In plain words, if I apply for the job, will I get this reaction: "No, we didn't consider you; you were not supposed to keep your motherland passport in the first place. Renounce it or get out of here. NOW." 2. Whether or not the answer to #1 is yes, a more general question is- just what will it take for people like me to lose the privilege of being a dual citizen? Jobs with a security clearance is one for sure, as you pointed out. What of the others? 3. There have been examples of people with dual citizenship who serve in the US army. My understanding is that serving for the US army is a faster way to gain a dual citizenship. So.. just what makes the cut and what does not? Thank you again for being prompt and straightforward. Please forgive me for being candid. NRC

NRC (Chicago, IL) on February 15, 2010 at 5:55pm


	NRC: 1. No. 2. No. If you want to hold on to your dual citizenship and foreign passport, I recommend that you don�t apply for any job that requires a federal security clearance.

William Henderson (Pacific Grove, CA) on February 15, 2010 at 1:53pm


	Dear Mr. Henderson, I have a dual citizenship, obtained by being naturalized in the States. I kept my Taiwan passport; I couldn't dispose of my beloved parents back home. Problem: I have sufficient education and training to do well at an entry level intelligence job from, well, the DIA, the FBI, or CIA. Recently I've come across a lot of federal job postings on USAJOBS.gov, and almost all are non-classified positions, requiring extensive background checks but no security clearance. Question: In the job application, I was immediately asked whether or not I have a dual citizenship and two passports. I am prompted to say yes, but: 1. Does declaring a dual citizenship in the job application make me inferior in to compete for federal jobs? 2. If I get the job offer and am very interested, will I be asked to renounce my Taiwan citizenship (for a federal non-classified job, security clearance not needed)? It is my dream to be a part of an Intelligence Community at any American federal agency. However, losing my Taiwan citizenship is sure to be very saddening. If you could, I would appreciate any of your advice on my case, even if you might end up telling me to stay away from a career in Intelligence. Thank you, NRC

NRC (Chicago, IL) on February 15, 2010 at 12:40am


	Great article, as dual citizenship has always baffled me. I have dual citizenship with the UK from being born abroad (father was stationed overseas with the Navy). I enlisted with the Navy, was active for 5 years, got out for a few, then joined the Air National Guard. Both military positions required a clearance. I went back to school, and recently got accepted to medical school. I was looking at some military programs to help with finacing this schooling, and the recruiter said I would have to renounce my citizenship to get a commission. I never had a UK passport, and only traveled there once as a minor with my parents. I'm not opposed to renouncing citizenship, just curious why I would have to do it to receive a commission if I had already obtained a clearance. Thanks for any insight.

Bryan C (New Orleans,LA) on January 20, 2010 at 8:30pm


	Kat, Absolutely. You described a perfect storm scenario. What is generally the concern is a foreign body leveraging you to get you to compromise the information you know. You stated clearly that you are worried about your grandmothers safety. From the governments perspective, all that government would have to do is threaten her to get to you, and thus your clearance is compromised.

Matthew Jane (Long Beach California) on December 3, 2009 at 8:09pm


	I am an Iranian and a government contractor. I have been a U.S. citizen since 2005. I applied and received my Iranian passport on 2008 and visited Iran for 3 weeks on 2009. I was asked to complete the SF-86. Per their request I submited my statement regarding renouncing my Iranian citizenship. I stated that I am willing to surrender my passport to U.S. government with no difficulty or reservation. However, I am concern of taking step for renounce it because of retaliation as I have my very old grandmother there. I was afraid if the Iran government would not take it kindly when I do take such a direction. Besides my desire to see my grandmother, I have no desire to live in Iran or be an Iranian Citizen under current circumstances. The fear of retaliation concerns me very much to take such an approach. Well, I just lost my clearance becuase of holding an Iranian passport. Eventhough I stated that I will turn in my passport to them, can they do this?

Kat (Alexandria) on November 26, 2009 at 9:10pm


	Shawn: Since it has been more than 2 years since you left the Navy, you can not have your military clearance reinstated. You will have to start from scratch if you want a federal security clearance. As long as you are willing to renounce Italian citizenship and surrender your Italian passport you shouldn�t have much trouble getting a clearance. Your one-time use of your Italian passport probably won�t become a serious issue. Be completely honest about how you acquired the Italian passport. In your post you make it sound as if your father got you an Italian passport without your knowledge or consent.

William Henderson (Pacific Grove, CA) on November 23, 2009 at 11:39pm


	Could you give some advice to my situation? I was born in Italy to my Italian father and American mother, so I was born with dual citizenship. However we moved to America when I was really young and I never got a Italian passport, and only had my US passport (along with my certificate saying I was a American citizen who was born aboard). After high school I joined the navy and severed for 5 years, getting a TS clearance while I was in. I got out of the navy and have been out for 2 1/2 years now (finished college) and am looking at jobs that require security clearances. In the two years I was out of the navy my father (family still lives in America, never moved back to Italy) applied for and got both me and my sister a Italian passport. I traveled to France for spring break once and used it since it helped me skip the long line for customs. Would the fact that I now have a Italian passport and used it disqualify me from getting my clearance back if I apply for a job that requires it? I would gladly surrender the passport and do whatever is needed. If I had know everything that was in this article I would have never used it or received it i the first place. At the time I didn't think it was a big deal since I had received a TS clearance while thinking I was a dual citizen (I'm thinking I received the TS because I was only born overseas and never actually took any action to obtain my citizenship with Italy) Thanks for any help

Shawn (Florida) on November 22, 2009 at 11:22am


	DB: The State Department does not have a strict policy on dual citizenship. Their policy statement, for what it's worth, is posted at http://careers.state.gov/docs/DualCitizenship.pdf. What you choose to do is strictly a personal decision. If you don't want to risk have a security clearance denied, then withdraw your citizenship application. Otherwise use the comment section of question #10 of the SF86 to explain your situation and take your chances.

William Henderson (Pacific Grove, CA) on November 6, 2009 at 9:21pm


	Thanks for contributing this article. After reading it, I would like to know the best way to handle a first-time request for security clearance, for a contracted DoS job in Saudi, when I had previously applied for Swiss citizenship. Normally I do consulting work on AID projects and even UN, but this one seems it would require a security clearance. Strange as it may sound, as a US-born US citizen I ended up in Switzerland after college and stayed for Grad school. I worked there and had/have residency status. I applied for citizenship because I fulfilled the requirements and thought it would help me land a better job in Switzerland. No real ulterior motive. Last 10 years I have either been in US, Switzerland, or overseas countries for work. This contractor job has come up last-minute. My application for Swiss citizenship is not yet approved and finalized How would someone best handle this when applying for security clearance? thanks

DB (Monterey, CA) on November 6, 2009 at 3:49pm


	Cyndy: Read my 3-part article on "Personal Finances And Security Clearances." The article has a link to the Adjudicative Guidelines. You should read Guideline F on Financial Considerations. If you haven't do so in the past 12 months, go to "AnnualCreditReport.com" and obtain a copy of your credit report from all 3 major credit reporting agencies. The reports are free--you don't need a credit score (for which they charge a fee). Then, if you have specific questions, I'll try to answer them. Good luck.

William Henderson (Pacific Grove, CA) on October 21, 2009 at 1:58am


	Mr. Henderson, I need your help, I have worked for contractors now for 12 years. I was resently laid off, 9/29/09, about 10 years ago my son and his wife got into some drug issues and I had to take care of my grandson. They (my son and his wife) or someone with them came into my home and took my took and used my credit cards. I was torn by not knowing who did it and not wanting to turn in my son. I reported to the credit card holders that I did not make these purchases, it made no difference. This went on for years, interest was added and they turned them over to legal services. No matter what I said, I ask them to produce the purchases I was supposed to have made, I told them I was a product of theft, they did even consider this. I paid what I could and paid some off because I was afraid it would affect my job if I didn't. Out of the last 2, one obtained a court order, and I took all the money I had and paid it, the other one finally believed me and I have not heard from them in over 2 years. Now I need to obtain a Security Clearance and I am afraid I cannot because they will see me as a risk. Please advise me.

Cyndy (Georgia) on October 19, 2009 at 6:41am


	Thank you for an enlightening article. I had DOD Secret clearance status via a previous contract job from the current year. A couple months after the position ended, I found out that Canada claims people that are first generation to people-born-in-Canada - as Canadian citizens, even if they are born elsewhere. I was born in the US. It came as a huge surprise after 50yrs, to find out that I am, and have had dual citizenship all this time. Life is funny like that, but God is always good.

Dan P. (Virginia, USA) on October 12, 2009 at 10:18pm


	Brett: Your situation will be viewed deferently than RC's situation. If there is a strong possibility that you will return to the US and seek a job that requires a security clearance, I advise against acquiring Canadian citizenship. Just the fact that you have chosen to live and work in Canada will be a security concern under Foreign Influence, Foreign Preference, and Outside Activities. Unless there is some compelling reason for you to be in Canada (other than personal preference), it shows that you either prefer Canada over the United States, or you lack a strong sense of national identity. One of the basic requirements to be granted a clearance is "unquestioned allegiance to the United States." Any indication of divided national loyalties is a major security concern.

William Henderson (Pacific Grove, CA) on October 9, 2009 at 11:04pm


	RC: One of the examples of a potentially disqualifying condition for a security clearance is �action to acquire or obtain recognition of a foreign citizenship by an American citizen.� If you currently hold a security and acquire for foreign citizenship, you are required to report it immediately to your security officer, and I would be surprised if your clearance wasn�t immediately suspended. This type of action demonstrates poor judgment from a counterintelligence perspective. To apply for foreign citizenship one normally must provide a lot of personal information about oneself to a foreign government�information a foreign intelligence service would be very happy to receive on a person with access to classified national security information. Acquiring foreign citizenship, then immediately surrendering your foreign passport to your security officer is a rather hollow gesture that will probably not be given any significance as a mitigating factor.

William Henderson (Pacific Grove, CA) on October 9, 2009 at 10:50pm


	Being a U.S.A citizen and living in Canada would it affect my chances of getting a security job in the future if I became a Dual Citizen with Canada? I have lived here 3 years so I qualify to apply for my citizenship. I may move back to the states in the next 8-10 years. Thanks in advance.

Brett (Canada) on October 9, 2009 at 9:08am


	I almost need a lawyer to sort through my case! I'm a naturalized US Citizen with a clearance, but I have the option of gaining French citizenship through my wife. Would that be grounds for loosing my Clearance, even if I surrender a potential French passport to my company's security officer?

RC (Arlington, VA) on October 8, 2009 at 8:59pm


	This is a very good article and successfully collects together material that is otherwise distributed and painfully pieced together by defendants who have run afoul of the rules and have one chance to "get it right" at their DOHA hearing for clearance denial. The one correction I have is that passports are owned by governments not citizens, so a quirk of the DOHA position is that you have to destroy the passport and get that acknowledged by the associated government however the US does not officially condone "destruction of government property".

Richard H. on October 8, 2009 at 12:41pm


	Bill L: Thanks for the kudos. I would really like to do an article on how reciprocity actually works (or doesn�t work), but the CAFs either don�t keep any statistics on it or they keep the data hidden. To have 100% reciprocity there would have to be one agency conducting all clearance investigations based on one set of standards, one agency adjudicating all investigations using one set of standards, and one database in which all the investigations and adjudications are recorded. Things have improved. If you were around in the 1970�s you probably remember that there were about 10,000 clearance adjudication sites just within DoD. Now there are only 10 DoD CAFs. Within DoD, investigative agencies went from 3 to 1, but it�s now up to about a half dozen or so. There is one set of investigative standards now if you don�t count polygraph and there is one set of adjudicative standards if you don�t count the slight variation for SCI. There are three major databases, if you allow for the fact that some agencies don�t bother to report 100% of their clearance determinations to CVS as they are suppose to. I have written about reciprocity, but I can only write about the rules that exist in executive orders, 10 USC 2244, and policy issued by OMB and ODNI. As you know many IC agencies blatantly disregard the rules. Even OPM has disregarded the rule against duplicate investigations because they get paid for doing investigations.

William Henderson (Pacific Grove, CA) on October 5, 2009 at 2:14am


	Bill H., A very good article as are all your articles as well as your Security Clearance Manual. All are fine works and provide good information written in plain language for readers of this website. This issue has been a source of discussion, contention and disagreement since my association in the adjudication field many years ago. Back in the day, individuals stationed in certain foreign countries/posts were encouraged to maintain a foreign passport for safety reasons. Eventually, the Money memo of 2000 ended all that. As a former DoD adjudicator and currently a contractor Facility Security Officer (FSO), I have seen this issue through 2 sides and there remains no consensus within DoD of how to address dual citizenship and possession of a foreign passport. Speaking of non-SCI eligibility only, the mitigating factor for claiming dual citizenship is �the individual expressed a willingness to renounce dual citizenship�. This was essentially done with a verbal or written statement to the investigator or to the unit security manager and the issue was mitigated as dual citizenship in and of itself is a state of mind, not actions. For possession of a foreign passport, the mitigating factor is �the passport has been destroyed, surrendered to the cognizant security authority or otherwise rendered invalidated�. I have not found a definition for cognizant security authority. The NISPOM (DoD 5220.22-M) defines Cognizant Security Agency (CSA) as DoD, DOE, NRC and CIA. DoD delegates responsibilities to the military services for military personnel and Defense Security Service (DSS) for contractors. DSS implements through DISCO/DOHA for eligibility adjudications. The military CAFs generally mitigate this issue by destruction (shredding or burning) the foreign passport or invalidation (punching a hole through the passport). The military CAFs then grant the eligibility with a condition telling the individual they can not renew the passport or obtain a new one and document this condition in JPAS. DISCO/DOHA accept these actions, but have on occasion instructed the individual to turn the passport into their security manager or FSO for safekeeping. If the individual later retrieves the passport, the FSO notifies DISCO via JPAS. I have found no delegation of CSA duties to the FSO level. I believe that a passport, US or foreign, is the personal property of the individual named in it and I would resist any requirement from DISCO/DOHA to hold the passport for any reason. I addressed this issue with DOHA officials at the last Joint ISAC Seminar and did not get a reasonable answer other than �its working�. This issue remains muddled, but individuals and security officials need to be aware that it is an issue that investigators and adjudicators look at. Sorry if this seems long, but this issue, as well as most others, is not a cut and dried area to discuss. Suggest for an article is "Reciprocity - Is It Working or Not?" Keep up the good work.

Bill L. (Annapolis, MD) on October 1, 2009 at 12:06pm