How Long Does a Security Clearance Last? 2026 Rules

How long does a security clearance last? In the US in 2026, there is no single calendar expiration date. Under DoD rules, a continuous break in service of 24 months invalidates eligibility and requires a new investigation, and DCSA now has NISP contractors file an updated SF-86 every five years instead of a periodic reinvestigation.

This post is general, factual information about how US security clearance status works. It is not legal, security, career or financial advice. Eligibility, reinstatement and policy are decided by the government, its adjudicators and the hiring organization's security office, so confirm your own situation with your FSO or security officer.

This post covers US rules, mainly DoD eligibility and DCSA's requirements for NISP contractors. Other agencies run their own security offices, and the UK's SC clearance is a separate system with its own review rules, so none of the contractor guidance below applies to it. If you've seen a 10-year figure for Secret, that's the legacy reinvestigation interval, which DCSA has replaced with a five-year questionnaire update for contractors. While you hold a cleared position, eligibility continues subject to continuous vetting and government adjudication; enrollment alone doesn't guarantee it.

Does a security clearance expire?

Not on a calendar. A clearance is an eligibility determination at a level such as Secret or Top Secret. For DoD and DCSA-managed records, that determination sits in DISS, the Defense Information System for Security, which DCSA describes as the system that maintains DoD personnel security clearance eligibilities. Under the old model, eligibility rested on a background investigation that went stale after a set number of years, and a periodic reinvestigation (PR) reset the clock. People shorthand that as "my clearance expires in 2027," but what was expiring was the investigation's scope.

Two things changed that. DoD moved its cleared population into continuous vetting (CV), the Trusted Workforce 2.0 model where automated record checks run throughout the period of eligibility instead of every five or ten years. Then, in April 2026, DCSA told industry that periodic reinvestigations for NISP contractor national security personnel will no longer be conducted. In their place, contractor personnel enrolled in CV submit an updated Personnel Vetting Questionnaire (the PVQ, meaning the SF-86 eApp and releases) every five years, regardless of eligibility level.

So the clocks that still matter in practice are two:

• The 24-month break in service. Under DoD Manual 5200.02, a continuous break in service of 24 months invalidates security clearance eligibility and requires a new personnel security investigation.
• The five-year PVQ update for contractors, keyed to the "PVQ Date" in DISS.

Neither one is an expiration date stamped on the clearance itself. The first one is the clock that matters most to anyone between jobs. For what separates a Tier 3 from a Tier 5 investigation and which levels each supports, see investigation tiers vs. clearance levels; for the levels themselves, see the US clearance ladder.

What do active, current and expired clearance mean?

These three words get used loosely, including by recruiters. The working definitions below follow how DoD and DCSA treat eligibility, access and breaks in service.

Access and eligibility are separate. Eligibility says the government has found you trustworthy at a level. Access is granted by the organization you work for, on top of eligibility and need-to-know, and you're debriefed when you leave. SCI works the same way at a finer grain, which is why TS/SCI breaks into a clearance plus access.

CDSE's reciprocity guide ties acceptance of an existing eligibility to two conditions: the 24-month break-in-service limit, and no actionable information since the last investigation. Those two conditions are what separate "current" from "expired."

What happens to my security clearance when I leave my job?

When you leave a cleared job or separate from the military, you're debriefed and that organization's access ends. Whether a break in service has begun, and when, is something your security office establishes from your record; don't assume it matches your debrief paperwork.

DoD Manual 5200.02, the department's personnel security procedures, states that a 24-month continuous break in service invalidates an individual's security clearance eligibility and requires completion of a new personnel security investigation. Before that point, DCSA's interim clearance guidance says the previous eligibility will be reinstated once the official request is satisfied, subject to the same 24-month break-in-service limit.

What that means in practice:

• Leaving the military with a Secret or TS and landing at a contractor before a break in service reaches 24 months generally lets the contractor's FSO reinstate your eligibility rather than start a new investigation.
• Once a continuous break reaches 24 months, a new personnel security investigation is required, which also means a contractor has to be willing to sponsor you. The sponsorship path explains how that works.
• A new employer can still ask for an updated SF-86 before then if your PVQ is due or your CV enrollment can't be confirmed (more on that below).
• SCI access sits on top of eligibility, so a TS/SCI holder can have eligibility reinstated and still wait on a separate SCI indoctrination.

For scale: in ClearMatch's scan of 119,737 ATS postings from 1,172 employers, Sep 30 to Oct 14, 2026, 57,491 required Secret or higher. Among those, Secret was 53.2% (30,563), TS 15.5% (8,937), TS/SCI 15.8% (9,097), TS/SCI + CI Poly 7.4% (4,252) and TS/SCI + Full Scope Poly 8.1% (4,642). Those figures describe ClearMatch's scan, not the whole market.

How did the old 5-, 10- and 15-year clocks work?

Under periodic reinvestigation, each clearance level carried its own interval. Army G-2's "Myth Buster" sheet lists Confidential as valid for 15 years, Secret for 10 and Top Secret for 5, and the Army's security clearance FAQ says Top Secret PRs were due every 5 years and Secret PRs every 10. When the interval ran out, the security office submitted a new SF-86 and an investigator re-ran the checks.

DoD's replacement was to enroll its cleared population in continuous vetting, announced in DoD's own news as "All DOD Personnel Now Receive Continuous Security Vetting," and to treat CV as the replacement for time-based PRs.

The legacy interval depended on level, while the contractor update cadence is five years for everyone. That shift is bigger for Secret holders than it looks. Under the old model, a Secret holder filled out an SF-86 roughly once a decade. Under the 2026 guidance, a contractor at Secret files an updated questionnaire on the same five-year rhythm as a Top Secret holder.

What changed in DCSA's April 2026 contractor guidance?

DCSA's April 2026 memo, Changes to the Five-Year Update Criteria, supersedes DCSA's August 2022 guidance and incorporates the changes from DISS Release 14.5. DCSA announced it to industry in a May 2026 news release. Its key points:

• Periodic reinvestigations for NISP contractor national security personnel will no longer be conducted.
• Contractor personnel enrolled in CV submit an updated PVQ (SF-86 eApp and releases) every five years, regardless of eligibility level.
• The five-year timing now runs from the "PVQ Date" recorded in DISS, which DCSA says is equivalent to the SF-86 date. Earlier guidance used the CV enrollment date, and that method is now superseded.
• FSOs use the DISS Subject Report to find personnel approaching the five-year update and submit the update to PSMO-I.
• If an IC or SAP customer wants a PVQ before the five-year point, contractors follow that customer's specific requirements.

DCSA's stated reason for the five-year cadence is that it keeps the government's information current for automated record checks, and that fresh data cuts the investigative effort and delays involved in locating a subject or verifying outdated information.

One caveat matters for anyone changing employers, especially between DoD and Intelligence Community work. CV reciprocity with IC agencies remains limited. IC agencies record clearances in Scattered Castles, which doesn't carry the last PVQ date into DISS, and if CV enrollment can't be verified in DISS, an updated PVQ may be required; FSOs who notice a missing enrollment are told to submit one proactively. So a transfer that looks clean on paper can still come with a new SF-86, even before a 24-month break. Brushing up on the 13 adjudicative guidelines before you fill it out is time well spent.

How far back does a security clearance check go?

On the SF-86, it varies by question. Section 11 asks where you have lived, working back 10 years, and Section 13A asks for all employment activities, including unemployment and self-employment, working back 10 years. Many other sections ask about "the last seven (7) years," including illegal drug use, prescription drug misuse and IT system misuse. Some have no limit: Section 25.1 asks whether the US or a foreign government has EVER investigated your background or granted you eligibility, and DCSA's guide to common SF-86 errors warns that some offense questions are not limited to seven years.

Those are the questionnaire's reporting periods. How far the investigation itself reaches is a separate matter, tied to the investigation tier the position requires. The same questionnaire comes back at every five-year PVQ update, so a contractor filing in 2026 covers the same ground as an initial applicant.

How do I check if my security clearance is still active?

For DoD and DCSA-managed records, security offices check status in DISS, so in practice the check runs through an FSO or security manager. If your eligibility came through an IC agency or another non-DoD agency, ask that agency's security office, since DISS may not hold your complete record. Three routes work:

1. If you're still employed in a cleared role, ask your FSO. For DoD and DCSA-managed records, they can see your eligibility level, your CV enrollment and your PVQ date in DISS.
2. If you've left, contact the FSO or security office of your last cleared employer or command. Keep a note of your debrief date and last day in a cleared position; the security office uses your record to establish any break in service.
3. If you're interviewing, tell the new employer's recruiter your level, your last date in access and your investigation type. During hiring, their FSO verifies it in the government system that holds your record.

Don't describe a clearance as "active" on a resume if you're out of access. "Secret eligibility, last in access March 2026" is accurate and gives the FSO what they need. For a resume review, use ClearMatch's resume check.

Frequently asked questions

How long is a Secret clearance good for after you leave the military or a cleared job?

DoD Manual 5200.02 says a 24-month continuous break in service invalidates eligibility and requires a new personnel security investigation. If you return to a cleared position before a break reaches 24 months, a new sponsor can usually reinstate your Secret eligibility without a new investigation, provided nothing actionable has come up. Your security office establishes whether and when a break began.

How long does a Top Secret clearance last?

For NISP contractors, Top Secret no longer runs on a fixed five-year reinvestigation clock. Under DCSA's April 2026 guidance, contractor personnel enrolled in CV submit an updated SF-86 every five years at every level and stay under continuous vetting in between. The same 24-month break-in-service rule applies once you leave cleared work, and SCI access is a separate step on top of eligibility.

How far back does a security clearance background check go?

It depends on the SF-86 question. Sections 11 and 13A ask for residence and employment going back 10 years, many conduct questions cover the last seven years, and some ask whether something has ever happened. Those are the form's reporting periods; the investigation built on them follows the tier the position requires.

How do I see if my security clearance is still active?

Ask a security officer. For DoD and DCSA-managed records, an FSO can see your eligibility, CV enrollment and PVQ date in DISS. If your clearance came through an IC or other non-DoD agency, ask that agency's security office, since DISS may not hold the full record.

Do I still need a periodic reinvestigation if I'm enrolled in continuous vetting?

For NISP contractors, no. DCSA's April 2026 guidance says periodic reinvestigations will no longer be conducted for contractor national security personnel. You still submit an updated PVQ (SF-86 eApp and releases) every five years, timed from the PVQ Date in DISS.

Can a new employer reinstate my clearance without a new investigation?

Usually, if you return before a continuous break in service reaches 24 months and there's no actionable information since your last investigation. An updated PVQ may still be required if your CV enrollment can't be verified in DISS, which can happen when you move from an Intelligence Community agency. The final call belongs to the hiring organization's security office and the government.

What this looks like inside ClearMatch

The agent reads clearance as a tier, from Confidential through TS/SCI + Full Scope Poly, and matches you against cleared postings scanned from employer career sites. As of 2026-10-13, ClearMatch tracked 50,867 cleared postings by state, led by Virginia (11,702) and Maryland (8,133), with 879 remote.

If your 24-month window is open, browse cleared jobs at your level or run a posting through the job fit check to see how your clearance and experience line up before you apply.

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Sources: DCSA updates NISP contractor Continuous Vetting process, DCSA: Changes to the Five-Year Update Criteria, DCSA: Interim Clearances, CDSE: Reciprocity in the Personnel Security Program, DoD Manual 5200.02, All DOD Personnel Now Receive Continuous Security Vetting, OPM: Standard Form 86, DCSA: Common SF-86 Errors and Mistakes. Clearance policy is set by the US government, so confirm your own status and obligations with your FSO, security office or the official sources above.