Trump Expands to Revoke Citizenship, Green Cards for Violent Crimes

The Donald Trump administration is expanding its anti-immigration policies to cover a broader range of immigrants.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS, Immigration agency) and the Department of Justice (DOJ, federal legal department) have warned that even green card holders and naturalized U.S. citizens could now face deportation.

On June 25, USCIS posted on X that “receiving a visa or green card in the U.S. is a privilege,” adding, “Those who endorse violence, support or assist terrorist activities, or encourage others to do so will no longer be eligible to remain in the United States.”

Newsweek recently reported that the 12.8 million green card holders could be subject to this new policy. It said President Donald Trump has begun arresting visa holders and green card holders who support pro-Palestinian protests, with related crackdowns already underway.

On June 4, President Trump issued Proclamation 10949, which bans entry from specific countries and strengthens visa and immigration requirements. The Department of Homeland Security and the State Department stated that joining antisemitic or extremist political groups could result in visa application denials, revocation of valid visas, and cancellation of green cards. Authorities are now reviewing social media content of visa applicants for this purpose.

Moves to revoke the citizenship of naturalized citizens based on past activities are also taking shape.

On June 11, the DOJ sent an internal memo to its Civil Division staff outlining specific cases and priorities for denaturalization (citizenship revocation).

The memo, issued under Deputy Attorney General Buelette Shumate, listed categories for applying citizenship revocation, including:

• National security threats
• Human rights crimes
• Ties to international crime organizations
• Undisclosed crimes before citizenship
• Human trafficking, sex crimes, violent crimes
• Medicare or Medicaid fraud
• Financial fraud
• Corruption-related offenses
• Criminal trials
• Other cases deemed significant by the Civil Division

Previously, the DOJ had pursued denaturalization in cases involving fraudulent green card acquisition before naturalization, providing false information or concealing facts in citizenship applications, procedural violations discovered during naturalization, and connections to war crimes or terrorism.

Meanwhile, on May 27, DHS announced new regulations imposing fines of up to $998 per day on undocumented immigrants who defy deportation orders. Under the new rule, DHS has eliminated the previous 30-day advance notice period and will issue fines immediately. The penalties apply as follows:

• $100–$500 for illegal entry
• $1992–$9970 for failing to comply with voluntary departure orders
• Up to $998 daily for failing to comply with deportation orders

DHS stated on the Customs and Border Protection (CBP, border enforcement agency) website that undocumented immigrants who voluntarily depart may have their fines waived and receive free airfare plus a $1,000 departure bonus.

BY HYOUNGJAE KIM [kim.ian@koreadaily.com]