Citizenship Loophole Threatens Adoptee with Deportation to Iran
Washington D.C., Saturday, 21 February 2026.
Targeted for a visa overstay committed at age four, this veteran’s daughter faces deportation to Iran, exposing a critical legal gap affecting thousands of international adoptees.
Bureaucratic Entanglement and Legal Timelines
In early February 2026, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a notice to appear for removal proceedings to the woman, who was adopted from an Iranian orphanage in 1972 by an American Air Force veteran [1][6]. The government’s case for deportation rests on a visa violation allegedly committed in March 1974, when the adoptee was merely four years old [1][3]. Despite living a fully American life for over five decades—including a career in corporate healthcare, homeownership in California, and a clean record aside from a distracted driving stop 20 years ago—she now faces expulsion based on paperwork errors from her early childhood [1][6]. DHS has been aware of her status since at least 2008 but only recently escalated the matter [1][3].
A Legacy of Legislative Gaps
The legal precariousness of this adoptee, and thousands like her, stems from specific limitations within the Child Citizenship Act of 2000 [1][6]. While this legislation was designed to grant automatic citizenship to international adoptees, it was not made retroactive, explicitly excluding anyone born before February 27, 1983 [1][6]. This arbitrary cutoff has left a generation of adoptees, brought to the U.S. legally by American parents, without permanent status due to their parents’ failure to naturalize them [3][7]. The woman in this case only discovered her lack of citizenship at age 38 while applying for a passport, having relied on a 1975 lawyer’s letter that incorrectly assured her parents the process was concluded [3][6].
Bipartisan Efforts for Reform
In response to these vulnerabilities, lawmakers are pushing for legislative fixes to close the loop. As of February 19, 2026, the “Protect Adoptees and American Families Act” (H.R. 5492) has garnered support from 16 bipartisan members of the U.S. House of Representatives [5]. Recent co-sponsors include Democrats such as Rep. Suzan DelBene (WA-1), Rep. Lateefah Simon (CA-12), and Rep. Gwen Moore (WI-4), alongside Republicans like Rep. Maria Salazar (FL-27), Rep. Glenn Thompson (PA-15), and Rep. Pete Stauber (MN-8) [5]. This cross-party coalition, which also includes Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-CA), Rep. Adrian Smith (R-NE), and Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-IL), indicates a growing recognition of the need to protect the citizenship rights of intercountry adoptees [5].
Geopolitical Perils and Religious Persecution
The prospect of deportation is particularly dire given the current geopolitical climate and the adoptee’s background as a Christian convert and the daughter of a U.S. military veteran [1][6]. Religious advocacy groups warn that her faith and family history make her a likely target for the Iranian regime [1]. Ryan Brown, CEO of Open Doors, noted that the Iranian government assumes Christians are “aligned to the West” and enemies of the state, often subjecting them to arrest and death sentences without the benefit of the doubt [1][6]. Reports indicate that Iranian prisons are notorious for “deplorable conditions,” including a lack of sanitation and the risk of sexual assault against women [1][3].