A common question for security clearance holders is how long their clearance eligibility will stay ‘current’ after a break in service. Whether it’s a service member transitioning from the military or a parent contemplating a break, those who have gone through the process of filling out an SF-86 are often eager to ensure they don’t have to do it again if they don’t need to.
In an update by the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) at the ClearanceJobs Connect event, Ryan Dennis, deputy assistant director of Continuous Vetting (CV) noted that a policy shift could move the needle on the time a clearance stays current from two years to three years. It’s a topic Heather Green noted in her Connect remarks last year – that the government was actively considering the ‘why’ behind the two-year separation in service rule, and how it applied under CV.
Today, all security clearance holders are enrolled in CV, eliminating the need for an episodic periodic reinvestigation. That has pushed policymakers to reconsider the 24-month separation in service rule, and what risk mitigation approach would make the most sense to ensure new investigations aren’t done before they need to be, and the appropriate information is still available.
