Clearance Crossover-FSP Contracting

SECURITY CLEARANCE Q&A
1

Afternoon everyone,

I’ve been on active duty for the last 6 years with a DoD TS/SCI with CI Poly. I also had SAP/STO read-ins, no foreign contacts, drugs, or security violations. Did two CI polys, one when I first got the clearance and one 6 years later, after which I was enrolled in Continuous Evaluation. I separated from active duty in December 2023 to work in the IC, but will still be a Naval reservist.

Last year I applied for a few civilian jobs with NSA that required a Full Scope Poly. I apply for a few roles, but there’s one I want far and away more than the others. I do some interviews, NSA gives me a CJO for a job I don’t want, but the recruiter tells me I’m still in the process for the job I do want so I should go ahead and accept this CJO to keep the ball rolling on the security process. They tell me that if a CJO for the role I do want does come through, I can switch to that role later, and be further along in the hiring process, so I accept it. I take and pass the FSP, while I’m still on active duty. Fast forward a few more months and they send me a FJO for the role I don’t want. My recruiter switches in the middle of all this and they tell me this is the only FJO I’m getting, they closed my application for the role I do want. Not great but it is what it is. Getting the run around aside, it’s still a job so I accept the FJO for the role I don’t want as a backup, and I also start looking for a contractor position.

I then start applying for contractor positions, some of which require a FSP with a different agency. Pays way better, timeline is much faster, and it’s closer to where I want to live. Interview goes really well and the company offers me a CJO, contingent on being able to pull my clearance over. The company security officer looks me up and says my clearance is eligible for a transfer over and I meet the requirements for the job, so things are looking good. I sign an offer letter with them and move to the area, and now I’m just waiting on an EOD date. I email NSA and formally decline their FJO. Fast forward to this week, the company calls me and says the clearance pull over was denied, but they don’t know why and want me to contact my SSO to figure out why. The company is being super fantastic trying to get me in the door, but obviously can’t with whatever the block is.

At this point, I’m not sure what my options are. I’m no longer on active duty so I don’t have an SSO office I can walk into. I’m not yet affiliated with a Naval Reserve unit that I can talk to either (but I should be in a few weeks.) I have a clearance and have passed a FSP. My old Navy SSO could see the FSP in DISS and SC. Is this just a quirk of dropping out of the NSA hiring process and will resolve itself soon? Is the FSP not real unless I had started work with NSA? Did NSA take over my clearance from the Navy because I was in the hiring process with them, and now they’re being vindictive and won’t let a company have it? Would a clearance cross over work for a role that just needs my CI Poly?

I’ve emailed my NSA recruiter asking for clarification but haven’t heard anything back.

Any help or advice would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

-New to Contracting

2

I’m not an expert but based on my personal experience, clearance reciprocity depends completely on the agency you’re going from and the agency that you’re going to. Not all agencies participate with each other. If you go somewhere that doesn’t participate, you might have to go through a bunch of suitability stuff all over again which will take time. If you can be patient, then go for it. I know someone who went through that and ended up just going for a different contract where her clearance was accepted so there was very little waiting time. Good luck!

3

Thanks clearedrob, I appreciate it.

4

im kinda late to this as well, but you didnt make it seem like you actually were indoced with nsa. For a lot of these fsp agencies you dont actually have the fsp portion until you have indoced with them with the fsp. You should have accepted the fjo and indoced and you most likely would have been good from that point onwards. This is the last step basically once you indoc that one time you should be good to use your fsp anywhere else that accepts it from that point onwards.

5

That is correct and EXACTLY what a happened to me. The FS is “unadjudicated information”. Mine was in red lettering saying i took it but it was never adjudicated because i took another role that didn’t require it.

6

No you don’t. NSA will not adjudicate this until you EOD.