Do security clearances expire? Renewal, continuous vetting, and breaks in service

What changed for DoD contractors in May 2026

DCSA announced that periodic reinvestigations are no longer required for National Industrial Security Program contractor national-security personnel. Instead, all covered personnel submit an updated Personnel Vetting Questionnaire—currently the SF-86 eApp and releases—every five years regardless of eligibility level. DISS uses the recorded PVQ date to identify when the update is due.

This is a questionnaire-update cadence inside continuous vetting, not a promise that every clearance is “renewed” automatically on the fifth anniversary. It also does not authorize access by itself. The security office and government systems remain authoritative for eligibility, affiliation, and access.

What happens when you leave a cleared job

1. 1

   The old access ends

   The former organization removes access when the work and need-to-know end. A prior briefing or badge is not permission to retain access elsewhere.

2. 2

   The affiliation changes in the system

   For DoD industry, the security office manages the owning or servicing relationship in DISS. The 2026 CV grace period gives another organization time to establish a relationship before enrollment changes.

3. 3

   A new security office verifies the record

   If another cleared employer selects you, its authorized security staff checks the government record and the new position's level, program, SCI, SAP, or polygraph requirements.

4. 4

   Additional action may still be required

   A long break, an out-of-scope record, a higher level, unresolved information, or an agency-specific requirement may lead to new investigation or adjudicative work.

The 24-month rule needs a narrow reading

DCSA's industrial applicant-processing page says that if a previous clearance was terminated more than 24 months ago, the case is referred to as an initial clearance. It does not say that every person's eligibility vanishes at midnight exactly two years after every job change, or that a recruiter can decide whether a record remains usable.

The receiving security manager or Facility Security Officer should review the current eligibility, investigation history, affiliation, and position need in the authoritative system. Other agencies and special-access programs can have additional processes, so a general web answer cannot verify an individual record.

Status verification is a separate question

A fixed-date expiration rule cannot tell you what an individual record currently shows. There is no public self-service clearance lookup; an authorized security office must separate eligibility, access, affiliation, investigation, adjudication, continuous-vetting enrollment, and the PVQ date. Do not request a DISS screenshot or send sensitive identifiers to a recruiter or job board.

Current Colorado jobs requiring an active clearance

Cleared Colorado currently has 532 direct-employer listings that explicitly require an active Secret-or-higher clearance, across 13 employers. The posting language is a requirement—not verification that a specific applicant's eligibility is current or acceptable.

Recently found active-clearance openings