Questions people ask about DOHA cases, answered from the record

What percentage of security clearance cases are granted at DOHA?

34% of decided hearing-level ISCR cases from 1996 to October 2026 ended with access granted (9,100 granted, 17,455 denied, 26,555 decided). The rate is higher after a live hearing and lower on the written record; the year-by-year and guideline-by-guideline figures are on the statistics page. Statistics, by year, guideline and more.

Is a DOHA hearing or a decision on the written record better?

The record cannot say what is better for anyone, only how decided cases ended: 43% granted after a live hearing (7,525 granted, 10,042 denied, 17,567 decided) and 17% on the written record (1,462 granted, 7,026 denied, 8,488 decided). The people who choose each path differ, so the gap is an association, not a cause. Hearing or written record, in full.

Do you need a lawyer for a DOHA hearing?

DOHA does not require one. In the decided record, represented applicants were granted access in 51% of hearing-level cases (2,592 granted, 2,509 denied, 5,101 decided) and self-represented applicants in 30% (6,437 granted, 14,890 denied, 21,327 decided). An association, not a cause: the two groups differ in ways the record cannot see. The lawyer question, in full.

How often does the DOHA Appeal Board reverse a decision?

Of 3,594 Appeal Board decisions with a profiled outcome, 88% affirmed the judge. When the government appealed (327 appeals), the decision was reversed or remanded in 83%; when the applicant appealed (3,254), in 5%. The Appeal Board's record, in full.

How long does a DOHA security clearance case take?

Measured on 24,350 decided cases stating their own dates, the median from the Statement of Reasons to the judge's decision was 262 days (half of cases between 189 and 378): 176 days from the SOR to the hearing, then 70 days to the decision. No official schedule is published. Measured timelines, by year and guideline.

How long does the DOHA appeal process take?

The deadlines are fixed: notice of appeal within 15 days of receiving the decision, the appeal brief within 45 days, the reply brief within 20 days. In the decided record the Board's decision came a median of 84 days after the judge's (3,154 matched cases). What the Appeal Board does and how its cases ended.

What is a Statement of Reasons (SOR)?

The government's written explanation of why it is considering denying or revoking a clearance: each security concern, listed by guideline and numbered allegation. It is an allegation, not a decision. A written answer, signed under oath, is due within 20 days of receipt. The SOR, and every other letter in a case.

How do you respond to a DOHA Statement of Reasons?

With a written answer within 20 days of receipt: it admits or denies each numbered allegation with an explanation, is signed under oath, and states whether the applicant wants a hearing before an Administrative Judge or a decision on the written record. If no answer is filed, the rules allow the case to be decided without a hearing. The stages of a DOHA case.

What are the 13 adjudicative guidelines for a security clearance?

The thirteen categories of security concern in Security Executive Agent Directive 4, lettered A to M: A Allegiance to the United States; B Foreign Influence; C Foreign Preference; D Sexual Behavior; E Personal Conduct; F Financial Considerations; G Alcohol Consumption; H Drug Involvement and Substance Misuse; I Psychological Conditions; J Criminal Conduct; K Handling Protected Information; L Outside Activities; M Use of Information Technology. Every contested case is decided under one or more of them. Each guideline, with its case volume and grant rate.

What is the security clearance adjudication timeline in ${f.maxYear}?

The record's timelines are measured, not scheduled. The medians above cover all decided cases; the 2026 report gives this year's decision volume and outcomes, and the timelines page breaks the clock down by year. The 2026 report.

Can you get a security clearance with debt in collections?

Delinquent debt is the most common concern in the record, under Guideline F. 32% of the 15,402 decided hearing-level cases raising Guideline F (Financial Considerations) ended with access granted (4,854 granted, 10,548 denied, 15,402 decided). Each kind of debt has its own page in the Issue Encyclopedia. Guideline F, Financial Considerations.

Does bankruptcy affect a security clearance?

A bankruptcy filing appears in 1,407 decided hearing-level cases in the record, and 33% of those decided ended with access granted (468 granted, 939 denied). The decisions treat the filing as a step toward resolving the debt, not as a concern in itself; what mattered was the debt and the conduct around it. Bankruptcy filing, in the Issue Encyclopedia.

Can you get a security clearance with foreign family or foreign contacts?

Foreign ties are decided under Guideline B. 54% of the 3,959 decided hearing-level cases raising Guideline B (Foreign Influence) ended with access granted (2,138 granted, 1,821 denied, 3,959 decided). The countries that appear most, and how those cases ended, are measured on the countries page. Guideline B, Foreign Influence.

Does dual citizenship or a foreign passport affect a security clearance?

Those are Guideline C, Foreign Preference. 51% of the 1,510 decided hearing-level cases raising Guideline C (Foreign Preference) ended with access granted (766 granted, 744 denied, 1,510 decided). Guideline C, Foreign Preference.

How long after marijuana or other drug use can you get a security clearance?

Drug involvement is Guideline H. 25% of the 3,639 decided hearing-level cases raising Guideline H (Drug Involvement and Substance Misuse) ended with access granted (911 granted, 2,728 denied, 3,639 decided). How outcomes changed with the years since the last use is measured on the recency page. Time since the conduct, measured.

What happens if you left drug use or anything else off the SF-86?

An omission or false answer on the form becomes its own allegation under Guideline E. Of 5,865 hearing-level cases with a candor allegation, 18% ended favorably, against 39% of 20,708 cases with no candor allegation. Where the applicant corrected the record before being confronted, 67% ended favorably; where it was not corrected, 16%. Candor allegations, measured.

What is Guideline E, Personal Conduct, and how do those cases end?

Personal Conduct: questionable judgment, dishonesty or failure to follow rules, including falsifying or omitting information on the security forms. 23% of the 8,590 decided hearing-level cases raising Guideline E (Personal Conduct) ended with access granted (1,986 granted, 6,604 denied, 8,590 decided). Guideline E, with the mitigations judges credited.

Does a DUI or an alcohol history affect a security clearance?

Alcohol concerns are Guideline G. 28% of the 2,143 decided hearing-level cases raising Guideline G (Alcohol Consumption) ended with access granted (609 granted, 1,534 denied, 2,143 decided). An alcohol-related arrest, which includes DUI, appears in 286 decided hearing-level cases, 28% of them granted. Guideline G, Alcohol Consumption.

Where can you search DOHA decisions?

Here: 30,782 published DOHA decisions from 1996 to October 2026, 26,935 hearing-level and 3,847 Appeal Board, each in full text with the original PDF, searchable by guideline, judge, outcome and year. Free, with no account needed to search or read. Search the decisions.

Where can you read DOHA decisions by judge?

The judge directory lists every Administrative Judge who appears in at least five published hearing decisions, 83 judges, with each one's decision count and active years and a page listing their published decisions. DOHA Administrative Judges.

A 30-second silent tour, recorded on this site: search, a case page, the statistics and the guides.