In late May one of The Kaplan Law Firm’s clients had her U.S. citizenship restored by the Department of State. The client had renounced her citizenship a number of years ago. She prevailed because Matt Kaplan, the Firm’s principal attorney, convinced the Department that the client’s renunciation had not been knowing, intelligent and voluntary.
American citizens who lose their U.S. nationality because they have renounced their citizenship, or for any other reason, may challenge their loss of citizenship in a federal court or, alternatively, by taking advantage of a relatively informal administrative procedure administered by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs, The administrative procedure is simpler and less expensive than going to court and is probably more likely to succeed. Moreover, there is a five-year statute of limitations (from the time of renunciation) for bringing a lawsuit to regain citizenship but administrative appeals to the State Department are not subject to any time limit. The Department’s processing of such cases, however, has been significantly slowed by the COVID epidemic.
The Kaplan Law Firm represents individuals who seek to regain U.S. citizenship after having lost it. Mr. Kaplan is a former State Department foreign service officer. The Kaplan Law Firm has had considerable success in such cases, but the chance of a successful result—having American citizenship restored—depends on the facts of each case. and on whether there is compelling evidence that citizenship should not have been lost.