There is a notable dearth of quantitative studies that examine the relationship between citizenship status and one’s ability to live as openly lesbian, gay, bisexual and/or transgender (LGBT) (i.e. be ‘out’). While outness should not be prescribed as a normative or healthy sexual expression and identity, it is an option for sexual expression that can be influenced by the state. Utilising data from the Social Justice Sexuality Project, which surveyed a diverse sample of LGBT individuals within the USA, we tested whether ‘outness’, in public and private spheres, was correlated with citizenship status. Applying critical realism theory and intersectionality, we hypothesised that increased political and social vulnerability, as marked by citizenship status, may deter outness. Hierarchical linear modelling was used to estimate fixed effects. Both naturalised citizens and non-citizens were less likely than born US citizens to be out to private and public spheres controlling for demographic and state-level variables. These findings suggest that a precarious citizenship status may serve to constrict the options for social expression for LGBT individuals and identify an intersection of experiences that can be targeted by anti-oppressive macro practice. Additionally, our results alert micro practitioners to the social and structural factors that may limit sexuality disclosure.