I currently work as a sub for the Virginia customer utilizing a FS poly, and I am considering a new position with the NRO which only holds up to a CI poly. I am being told that the NRO position won’t put my current FS clearance in jeopardy if I decide to jump back to the VA customer in the future.
I know that a clearance can go 2 years before it expires, but what would the logistics be if I work more than two years with the NRO? Would I actually be able to jump back seamlessly?
This comes up from time to time on these forums, the idea of “losing” a full-scope poly. I am pretty sure that you take the full scope once and then do a CI poly every 5-7-10-? years as the situation warrants. So let’s say NRO is not to your liking and you decide to pursue employment with the OTHER VA customer, then you may just need to take a new CI poly. You may even be able to get your access back right away and just get scheduled for the poly.
So if I got my FS poly completed October ‘24 with the VA customer, and stayed at the NRO job for 3 years, are you thinking that I could easily jump back to the same VA customer without needing to even do the CI? I know the FS is basically a date in a database, but will it expire in two years if not being actively “used”?
No, I don’t think it will expire. If you left a cleared job for more than two years, then your clearance could not be reinstated easily. But your October ‘24 poly should be good for at least five years, and probably longer depending on various factors too numerous to think about. Going directly from one cleared job to another should help keep things fresh.
As the philosopher said, your mileage may vary. And keep in mind, I’m just some squirrel on the internet.
Thank you for the reply. My big worry here is just that I won’t be able to transition back to the VA customer even though they are the ones who gave me the FS clearance. Would hate to lose what took me a long time to get.