Dual Citizenship and Security clearance

[CrossHairs]

What is the impact?

here is one website:
http://www.richw.org/dualcit/faq.html

Are there any disadvantages to dual US/other citizenship?
Aside from the possibility that one or the other country might decide to impose distasteful restrictions on you because they consider you to be one of their citizens, there are at least two issues that you might (or might not) see as causes for concern.


If your line of work requires you to have a security clearance for accessing classified US government information, you may very possibly find that actively acquiring or retaining a foreign citizenship may cause you to be refused clearance (or may cause a clearance you already have to be revoked). If this might affect you, you would be well advised to consult with a knowledgeable lawyer.

By the way even if (for those of Indian origin) OCI is *not* dual citizenship (it is only a glorified visa), the naming is so confusing that it causes confusion.

http://www.r2iclubforums.com/forums/showthread.php?p=106713

Having an OCI did stir some commotion in my security clearance.
When i first got the job and filled out the security clearance paper, i only had US passports(no indian visa or PIO). So, i immediately got a temporary secret clearance. Few months back, i applied for OCI and got it. A month after i got OCI, i was scheduled to be interviewed by a NCIS(Naval Criminal Investigative Service) official. In the interview, i provided them my US tourist and official passports, proof of my previous indian citizenship etc.

They were baffled by the OCI booklet and the name of the long term visa -"Overseas CITIZEN of India". I tried my best to convince them that its just a long term visa. I even showed them the letter attested by the Indian embassy stating that i have surrendered my Indian Passport. They didn't like the term "CITIZEN" in the OCI booklet.

Somehow they got convinced that iam not a dual citizen. But now they are creating a new problem saying iam not supposed to have any kind of permanent visa. Iam asked to either return the visa to the embassy or destroy it in front of a security official.

Iam still waiting to hear the final decision. Worst come, i will have to give up my OCI and switch to PIO.

 

[ohyeah]

What is the impact?

here is one website:
http://www.richw.org/dualcit/faq.html



By the way even if (for those of Indian origin) OCI is *not* dual citizenship (it is only a glorified visa), the naming is so confusing that it causes confusion.

http://www.r2iclubforums.com/forums/showthread.php?p=106713

Moderator: Can you please move this thread to one of the post-citizenship issues forums? Thank you!

Continuing.... True, OCI is certainly not citizenship. But it does provide a person with privileges and freedoms that one does not get with just a tourist visa.

From a security standpoint, the above is very risky, and rightly so.

Depending on the level of clearance, OCI can (and should) raise a red flag. OCI is still new and so people may run into roadblocks for even low level clearances. Over time, as US Govt agencies and private contractors get used to it, they will come up with some regulations. Ultimately, getting high (I mean high) level security clearances will be a problem for people who choose to retain OCI. Low/mid level clearances - which would be 99.9% of the time - should be fine. Overall, this is not expected to be a widely felt issue.

OY

 

[CrossHairs]

The "post" citizenship forums are rather a relatively dead place, and wont elicit that much discussion. I understand they were created to "segregate" discussions per interest. I posted here since there is more people looking at it, and it is somewhat relevant still.

 

[Huracan]

Yes, I can attest that the post citizenship forum is a pretty dead place. This is a better forum to hang on.

 

[saf]

well, it depends on the level of security clearance. but I don't think it affects the impact of security clearance.

My friend's security clearance application is in process while he is waiting to start on an on-site position that requires full security clearance (I think it is SCI). He has a temporary security clearance as he is working from home. He had no problem with the issue when he presented US passport, US certificate, and OCI booklet. I had my job interviews with security clearance companies. I asked human resources if OCI affects security clearance. They said no because they have seen many applicants who have dual citizenships (many canadians and europeans) and OCI, but they said only top-secret or high-level clearance doesn't allow dual citizens or OCI. As you can see, it depends on the level of security clearance.

I believe the State of Department knows about OCI. Every security clearance company or agency should know and contact department of state as well as Indian embassy to clarify.

 

[CrossHairs]

OCI is ill-named. Its not dual citizenship, but they tried to introduced the "C" letter in OCI, and now it is just a poorly named one.

As quoted in:
"They were baffled by the OCI booklet and the name of the long term visa -"Overseas CITIZEN of India". I tried my best to convince them that its just a long term visa. I even showed them the letter attested by the Indian embassy stating that i have surrendered my Indian Passport. They didn't like the term "CITIZEN" in the OCI booklet. "

 

[saf]

OCI is ill-named. Its not dual citizenship, but they tried to introduced the "C" letter in OCI, and now it is just a poorly named one.

As quoted in:
"They were baffled by the OCI booklet and the name of the long term visa -"Overseas CITIZEN of India". I tried my best to convince them that its just a long term visa. I even showed them the letter attested by the Indian embassy stating that i have surrendered my Indian Passport. They didn't like the term "CITIZEN" in the OCI booklet. "

Is it possible to show your US passport stamped with U-visa Indian visa (OCI) without showing OCI booklet to avoid confusion?

 

[CrossHairs]

Is it possible to show your US passport stamped with U-visa Indian visa (OCI) without showing OCI booklet to avoid confusion?

Um, I have no idea. I quoted a post above, so it is not my own experience.

It may be possible, but I am sure that OCI - the naming of it will ring some alarm bells. But someone above has said *even if you have* dual citizenship (which oci is not) - it is not an issue for "basic level" security clearance, so it may be ok.