H-1B visa fraud: India-born CEO among 17 facing US citizenship revocation in Trump's denaturalisation push
The US Justice Department announced on Monday, June 8, that it had filed denaturalisation actions against the 17 individuals, accusing them of obtaining citizenship through fraud, concealment, or misrepresentation.
- Jun 10, 2026,
- Updated Jun 10, 2026 8:29 AM IST
An Indian-born CEO who built a staffing company in New Jersey and took the oath of US citizenship in 2017 is now at risk of losing it. Neeraj Sharma, 50, is among 17 naturalised American citizens targeted by the US Department of Justice in what the Trump administration is describing as one of the largest denaturalisation efforts in American history.
The Justice Department announced on Monday, June 8, that it had filed denaturalisation actions against the 17 individuals, accusing them of obtaining citizenship through fraud, concealment, or misrepresentation. The group also includes people convicted of violent and sexual crimes, drug trafficking, and financial fraud.
DO CHECKOUT: US visa interview for B-1/B-2 in just 10 days for $750 extra: How new pilot programme works
The case against Neeraj Sharma
Sharma owned and served as CEO of Magnavision LLC, a New Jersey-based staffing company. According to the Justice Department, he signed and filed 11 fraudulent H-1B visa petitions that falsely claimed foreign workers would be placed at a major global financial institution. The petitions contained forged executive signatures and fabricated supporting documents.
When Sharma applied for US citizenship in 2017, he allegedly swore under oath that he had never committed an offence for which he had not been arrested, had never provided false information to US government officials, and had never lied to obtain immigration benefits. He became a US citizen in December 2017.
He was subsequently convicted of visa fraud relating to conduct alleged to have occurred between 2015 and 2017. The Justice Department is now seeking to revoke his citizenship, arguing that he concealed his unlawful acts and obtained naturalisation through material misrepresentations.
The other 16
The remaining individuals targeted in the latest round include, according to CBS News: a Haitian immigrant accused of sexually abusing his daughter; a man from the former Yugoslavia convicted of sexually abusing a child under 15; a Mexican immigrant convicted of receiving sexually explicit images of minors; a former Catholic priest born in Colombia accused of child sex abuse; a Filipino-born man who pleaded guilty to a child sex crime; the daughter of a Colombian drug trafficker accused of money laundering; a Jamaican-born man convicted of wire fraud; and a Cuban-born woman accused of defrauding a tribal casino.
A historic shift in enforcement
These cases sit within a dramatically escalating federal campaign. Historically, denaturalisation proceedings were rare, between 1990 and 2017, the Justice Department filed slightly more than 300 cases in total, averaging around 11 per year, according to CBS News. They were largely reserved for war criminals, human rights abusers, national security threats, or those who had concealed serious criminal conduct.
The Trump administration has pushed aggressively to broaden that scope. DHS officials were instructed late last year to refer as many as 200 denaturalisation cases per month. The Justice Department has now identified 384 foreign-born Americans whose citizenship it seeks to revoke.
DON'T MISS: US judge strikes down Trump's $100,000 H-1B visa fee as unlawful: What the ruling means for Indians
Matthew Tragesser, a Justice Department spokesperson, said officials were "pursuing the highest volume of denaturalisation referrals in history" from DHS, according to The New York Times.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche spelled out the administration's posture in an interview with CBS News in May. "If you're going to come and become a citizen in this country, but you're going to do it by fraud, you're going to do it in a way that's illegal, you should be worried," he said, adding that there were "a lot of individuals who are citizens who shouldn't be."
Announcing the latest cases, Blanche said the Justice Department would maintain a "zero-tolerance policy" toward those who obtained citizenship unlawfully. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin argued that American citizenship is a "privilege" that must be earned honestly and said the government would continue using "every lawful avenue" to denaturalise those who lied during immigration proceedings.
All 17 individuals will have the opportunity to contest the government's allegations in federal court. If the proceedings succeed, they would lose all protections associated with US citizenship and could face deportation.
An Indian-born CEO who built a staffing company in New Jersey and took the oath of US citizenship in 2017 is now at risk of losing it. Neeraj Sharma, 50, is among 17 naturalised American citizens targeted by the US Department of Justice in what the Trump administration is describing as one of the largest denaturalisation efforts in American history.
The Justice Department announced on Monday, June 8, that it had filed denaturalisation actions against the 17 individuals, accusing them of obtaining citizenship through fraud, concealment, or misrepresentation. The group also includes people convicted of violent and sexual crimes, drug trafficking, and financial fraud.
DO CHECKOUT: US visa interview for B-1/B-2 in just 10 days for $750 extra: How new pilot programme works
The case against Neeraj Sharma
Sharma owned and served as CEO of Magnavision LLC, a New Jersey-based staffing company. According to the Justice Department, he signed and filed 11 fraudulent H-1B visa petitions that falsely claimed foreign workers would be placed at a major global financial institution. The petitions contained forged executive signatures and fabricated supporting documents.
When Sharma applied for US citizenship in 2017, he allegedly swore under oath that he had never committed an offence for which he had not been arrested, had never provided false information to US government officials, and had never lied to obtain immigration benefits. He became a US citizen in December 2017.
He was subsequently convicted of visa fraud relating to conduct alleged to have occurred between 2015 and 2017. The Justice Department is now seeking to revoke his citizenship, arguing that he concealed his unlawful acts and obtained naturalisation through material misrepresentations.
The other 16
The remaining individuals targeted in the latest round include, according to CBS News: a Haitian immigrant accused of sexually abusing his daughter; a man from the former Yugoslavia convicted of sexually abusing a child under 15; a Mexican immigrant convicted of receiving sexually explicit images of minors; a former Catholic priest born in Colombia accused of child sex abuse; a Filipino-born man who pleaded guilty to a child sex crime; the daughter of a Colombian drug trafficker accused of money laundering; a Jamaican-born man convicted of wire fraud; and a Cuban-born woman accused of defrauding a tribal casino.
A historic shift in enforcement
These cases sit within a dramatically escalating federal campaign. Historically, denaturalisation proceedings were rare, between 1990 and 2017, the Justice Department filed slightly more than 300 cases in total, averaging around 11 per year, according to CBS News. They were largely reserved for war criminals, human rights abusers, national security threats, or those who had concealed serious criminal conduct.
The Trump administration has pushed aggressively to broaden that scope. DHS officials were instructed late last year to refer as many as 200 denaturalisation cases per month. The Justice Department has now identified 384 foreign-born Americans whose citizenship it seeks to revoke.
DON'T MISS: US judge strikes down Trump's $100,000 H-1B visa fee as unlawful: What the ruling means for Indians
Matthew Tragesser, a Justice Department spokesperson, said officials were "pursuing the highest volume of denaturalisation referrals in history" from DHS, according to The New York Times.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche spelled out the administration's posture in an interview with CBS News in May. "If you're going to come and become a citizen in this country, but you're going to do it by fraud, you're going to do it in a way that's illegal, you should be worried," he said, adding that there were "a lot of individuals who are citizens who shouldn't be."
Announcing the latest cases, Blanche said the Justice Department would maintain a "zero-tolerance policy" toward those who obtained citizenship unlawfully. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin argued that American citizenship is a "privilege" that must be earned honestly and said the government would continue using "every lawful avenue" to denaturalise those who lied during immigration proceedings.
All 17 individuals will have the opportunity to contest the government's allegations in federal court. If the proceedings succeed, they would lose all protections associated with US citizenship and could face deportation.