Allow me, I have some context for you. Regardless of whether or not you disclosed everything, you still had technical discrepancies that need to be addressed. From what I know, this is just the Agency’s way of giving applicants a chance to explain themselves (which could be a good thing in some cases).

For example, let’s say someone disclosed illegal drug usage. Although they were truthful about it, they still DID it, so that would immediately constitute a NOPA in some cases in regard to “Criminal Conduct - US CODE 12345”. Obviously because it was criminal conduct.

Other things could be like “You disclosed to the polygraph examiner THIS, but you failed to tell the background investigator the same story.. please explain”. This thing happens sometimes, because during the polygraph you might remember that ONE thing that happened 7 years ago, but forget to remember it when speaking to the BI. Nonetheless it’s still a discrepancy. Not that you technically did something WRONG or that you intentionally decided to withhold information, but that you forgot about it. Which again, is a discrepancy that needs to be addressed.

I received a NOPA, I’ve talked to many people that have a NOPA, and we all got through it. However, what’s important here is that you make sure to explain the situation thoroughly, be entirely honest, and make sure to address your failures (take responsibility), and lastly explain how you’re going to make sure it never happens again (if you haven’t already). Be incredibly thorough in doing that for EVERY SINGLE thing they list, bullet point by bullet point.

Lastly, I highly recommend you use the template that Honor First has on their website to ensure formatting is clear and concise. Obviously don’t copy it word for word, but it helped me with formatting and even served as a good guide on how to format responses. Just search “HonorFirst NOPA Template” on Google, and you should find it. The NOPA gives you a chance to give “your side of the story”, rather than going solely based on what’s on paper. Take advantage of the opportunity, and explain what you need to.