Immigration and citizenship

Executive Order 12913: Revocation of Executive Order No. 12582

President: Bill Clinton

Revoked the Grenada-campaign naturalization order as void from its 1987 date after a court found its geographic limitation exceeded statutory authority.

Status: Completed/expired.

Is Executive Order 12913 still in effect? No. Completed retroactive revocation of EO 12582, while preserving completed naturalizations.

What does Executive Order 12913 do?

EO 12913 revoked EO 12582 and directed that it be treated as void from February 2, 1987. EO 12582 had attempted to limit expedited military naturalization during the Grenada period to service in specified locations. In Reyes, the Ninth Circuit held that 8 U.S.C. § 1440 authorized the President to designate time periods, not geographic areas, and found the invalid limitation inseverable. EO 12913 preserved the status of anyone already naturalized under the earlier order before publication of the revocation.

Administration position: The revocation aligned executive action with the court’s reading of Congress’s naturalization statute. It did not cancel citizenship already granted under EO 12582.
SignedMay 2, 1994
Order revokedEO 12582
Effective treatmentVoid from February 2, 1987
Savings clausePrior completed naturalizations preserved

Before and after

Before the order

EO 12582 remained on the books despite the Ninth Circuit’s conclusion that its geographic restriction was invalid and inseverable.

After the order

The earlier order was formally voided retroactively, with an express protection for completed naturalizations.

Who had to do what

Agency / officeActionTiming / position
Executive branchTreat EO 12582 as void from its signing dateAfter publication of EO 12913
Naturalization authoritiesPreserve status already granted under EO 12582For completed cases before publication

What happened next

EO 12582 designated the Grenada period and limited qualifying locations.

EO 12913 formally revoked EO 12582 retroactively.

Reviewed court position

Court status

See the court documents in Sources by type.