I am due for a secret security clearance reinvestigation. Within that time, I was married and divorced (8 years ago). The divorce wasn’t a pleasant one, but thankfully, no children as the marriage lasted less than a year. There’s very little court documentation because my ex defaulted on the divorce papers which streamlined the process. I haven’t talked to my ex since, but I doubt they’d say great things about me (I know, I know, I’m not the first or the last to deal with this issue). My question is, for a secret clearance, will my ex be contacted?
Yes, divorces that occurred within the past 10 years that were not covered in a previous investigation usually result in the ex-spouse being contacted. In current times that would probably be done over the phone.
Even if it’s not a TS and just a general Secret? From what I’ve been reading on other posts, the ex spouse is usually only interviewed if something is revealed during an interview. Perhaps something has changed?
Level of clearance is irrelevant.
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Level of clearance is completely relevant, at least for DCSA. For an initial TS, ex-spouse will only be interviewed if divorce occurred within previous five years. For secret level/public trust, divorce will only be covered if there are indications of a flag level issue.
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When your investigator asks you questions, make sure not to respond with ‘well the internet said.’
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Anything is possible. If you think they will/might say negative things about you, bring it up during the interview when you are asked if anyone would not recommend you for a position involving . . . .
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