Neeraj Sharma appeared to have achieved the American dream—an India-born entrepreneur who built a career in the United States and became a naturalised US citizen in December 2017 after years of living and working in New Jersey.
However, federal authorities now allege that his journey to citizenship was built on a foundation of deliberate misrepresentation. On June 8, the US Department of Justice announced denaturalisation proceedings against 17 foreign-born individuals, with Sharma, 50, among those named.
Sharma served as the Chief Executive Officer of Magnavision LLC, a New Jersey-based staffing company. Before obtaining citizenship, he had established himself in the staffing and placement sector—work that later became central to the allegations against him.
According to the Justice Department, between 2015 and 2017, Sharma allegedly submitted 11 fraudulent H-1B visa applications. Prosecutors claim he falsely stated that the workers he sponsored would be employed at a major global financial institution. Investigators further allege that Sharma, who worked as a contracted business analyst at the same bank, misused his position to fabricate job opportunities.
The applications are also said to have included forged executive signatures and falsified supporting documents, indicating what authorities describe as a systematic pattern of fraud rather than isolated incidents.
When Sharma applied for US citizenship in 2017, prosecutors allege he provided false answers to key eligibility questions. These included denying any prior involvement in providing misleading information to government authorities or committing offences not resulting in arrest. Based on these declarations, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) approved his naturalisation, granting him citizenship in December 2017.
Federal authorities now argue that his citizenship was obtained through material misrepresentations and should be revoked. The case is part of a broader US government crackdown on denaturalisation involving individuals accused of visa fraud, wire fraud, and other serious offences.
US officials have stressed that citizenship is a privilege that must be earned honestly. They argue that individuals who obtain it through deception risk losing it under immigration law.
Denaturalisation, under the Immigration and Nationality Act, allows the US government to revoke citizenship if it was obtained through fraud or if material facts were deliberately concealed. If the case against Sharma succeeds, he would lose the citizenship he has held since 2017.
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