You may feel frustrated or uncertain if you are asking whethher your citizenship can be denied due to “lack of good moral character.” Receiving a denial of your naturalization application does not always mean your immigration journey has ended. Understanding why U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reached its decision is an important first step toward determining your available options.
An experienced citizenship attorney can help you review your denial notice, explain the legal standards that apply to your case, and identify whether you may qualify to reapply or request further review. At our firm, we help you understand your options under current immigration law and guide you through the naturalization process with careful attention to detail.
When you apply for U.S. citizenship, you generally must demonstrate good moral character for naturalization during the statutory period before filing your application. For most applicants, this period is five years, although some applicants qualify under a three-year period. USCIS can deny your citizenship application if it determines that you lack good moral character.
USCIS reviews each application individually. Certain criminal convictions automatically prevent a finding of good moral character, while other issues may require USCIS to consider the overall circumstances of your case.
USCIS does not necessarily deny a citizenship application for lack of good moral character because of a single mistake. It considers many different factors when reviewing a naturalization application, and each case depends on its specific facts. Some issues that may affect a good moral character determination include:
Not every issue automatically prevents naturalization, and in some situations, additional evidence or the passage of time may affect your eligibility. Understanding the reason for the denial may help you determine how to move forward.
If USCIS denies your naturalization application because it finds that you lack good moral character, you may have more than one option. USCIS generally provides the reason for its decision in the denial notice, allowing you to better understand the concerns the agency identified.
Waiting until you satisfy the good moral character requirement before submitting a new application may be appropriate. We can help you evaluate which option fits your circumstances and explain the requirements that apply to your case.
Remember that a citizenship denial due to lack of good moral character does not necessarily prevent you from becoming a U.S. citizen later. Reviewing the reasons for the decision and understanding your legal options may help you determine what to do next.
We can review your naturalization history, explain how the good moral character requirement applies to your situation, and help you prepare for the next step in the process, whether that involves requesting further review or preparing a future application. Call us today to discuss your naturalization options.
Hillary Walsh is one of America’s foremost immigration attorneys — a nationally recognized advocate whose career has been built case by case, client by client, in the most challenging corners of immigration law.
For over a decade, Hillary has represented immigrants, asylum seekers, trafficking survivors, and families facing deportation in proceedings before the Ninth, Sixth, and Fifth Circuit Courts of Appeals, the Board of Immigration Appeals, and immigration courts across the country. Her legal expertise spans removal defense, asylum, VAWA, T Visa, U Visa, green cards, and naturalization — the full breadth of immigration law, with particular depth in protection-based relief for vulnerable populations.
Her work has reached the highest levels of American jurisprudence. Hillary was invited to author an amicus curiae brief for a U.S. Supreme Court case — a distinction extended to attorneys whose command of immigration law is recognized at the national level.
Hillary founded New Frontier Immigration Law in 2019 with a simple but radical belief: that every person deserves a fighting chance, and that there is a solution for every problem. That legal philosophy has guided thousands of client outcomes across Phoenix, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and communities nationwide.
She doesn’t just represent clients in immigration court; she shapes how immigration law is argued, understood, and applied.
