Legal Terms
Adjustment of Status – is the name of the legal process used to apply for lawful permanent resident status without leaving the United States, if you are already inside the country and meet other eligibility requirements.
Admission – being permitted to enter the United States by an immigration officer.
Aggravated Felony – immigration law defines certain types of crimes to be “aggravated felonies,” whether the crimes violated state or federal law and no matter how the criminal law defines the crimes. For example, a misdemeanor theft conviction under California law would be an “aggravated felony” for immigration purposes if the accused receives a sentence of 1 year in jail as punishment. These crimes have some of the most serious immigration consequences for the person who commits them.
Alien – anyone, other than a U.S. citizen or national, who is present in the United States
Arriving Alien – this is a legal term used in ‘removal’ proceedings. It applies to people who were caught while they were trying to enter into the United States or after recently coming to the country. Someone who falls within the “arriving alien” category has fewer rights in removal proceedings—for example, they cannot ask an immigration judge to release them if they are in immigration detention.
Asylee – someone who has been granted permission to stay in the United States because he might be harmed in his home country because of his race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or social status.
Board of Immigration Appeals – is a group of administrative judges that review decisions made by immigration judges in immigration courts. Like the immigration courts, the Board is a part of the U.S. Department of Justice—an executive agency, not a federal court. They have the authority to reverse immigration judge’s decisions if the decisions were wrong.
Citizen – in the United States, a citizen is someone who has the right to full civic and political participation in the country; so, for example, U.S. citizens may vote in U.S. elections, while others may not. U.S. citizens are also entitled to certain forms of government assistance that others cannot get. U.S. citizens also have a right to live here and to return here after visiting other countries. Our immigration laws do not apply to them directly.
Consulate – U.S. consulates are offices of the U.S. Department of State in other countries. Consulates are in charge of issuing visas to qualified visa applicants and consular officers make many of the important decisions about who is a qualified visa applicant.
Crime Involving Moral Turpitude – this term is used in immigration law to describe a lot of different crimes. The crimes are supposed to be ones that show that the person who committed them has bad character—violent crimes, theft crimes, crimes involving fraud or deceit, for example. Crimes in this category can have serious immigration consequences.
Deportation – this is the word for when the government puts someone outside of the United States, returning him to his home country.
Entry – legally speaking, you “enter” the United States only by crossing into the territory of the United States free of restraint—whether you came in legally or illegally. That means that, if you get caught and taken into detention by Border Patrol when trying to cross into the United States, you have not “entered” the country even though you are physically present here. This distinction used to be very important in deportation cases. Now it is less often a concern because the law was changed in 1996 so that most legal rights depend on “admission” and “inspection.”
Immigrant – someone who comes to the United States and plans to stay here permanently.
Immigration Court – there are immigration courts in many U.S. cities. The immigration courts are part of the U.S. Department of Justice. That means that the courts and their judge’s ultimately report to the President; they are not part of the federal court system.
Immigration Judge – an employee of the U.S. Department of Justice who has the duty to decide whether someone has broken our immigration laws and whether the person must leave the country or can be allowed to stay here in some legal status.
Inadmissible – this word describes someone who is legally ineligible to get a visa or to enter the United States. There are many different reasons (“grounds”) of inadmissibility—some health problems, some criminal convictions, prior immigration violations, to name a few. Some ‘grounds of inadmissibility’ mean a person will never be able to come to the United States legally. Others only last for a number of years. Still others can be excused (or “waived”) under certain circumstances.
Inspection – happens when you present yourself to an immigration officer at the border or at an airport or seaport when you are first entering the country. When the officer asks you for your identification or asks you questions about your citizenship or immigration status, that is an “inspection.”
Lawful Permanent Resident – someone who has been granted permission by the U.S. government to live and work in the United States permanently, as long as they do not break our immigration laws or take up residence in another country.
Naturalization – a legal procedure to become a U.S. citizen, if you were not already a U.S. citizen by birth. A person’s eligibility for naturalization depends on many different factors. (See our web page on Citizenship and Naturalization for more information.)
Non-immigrant – anyone who comes to the United States temporarily.
Passport – a document issued by a nation to identify someone as a citizen of that country. Passports are usually required when traveling from one country to another.
Port of Entry – a place that has been designated by the U.S. government for people to present themselves to an immigration officer who will determine whether the person has a legal right to enter the country. This could be a seaport, an airport, or a land border crossing point.
Public Charge – U.S. immigration law applies this term to people who rely on certain kinds of economic assistance from the government in order to support themselves. You cannot get a visa to come to the United States if the government thinks that you are likely to become a “public charge”—meaning you will need government assistance—once you get here.
Refugee – someone who cannot or will not return to their home country out of fear that that they will be harmed by their government or by someone their government cannot control because of their race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion.
Removal – this is the legal process to put someone out of the country when he has no legal right to be here. The U.S. government started using the word ‘removal’ in place of the word ‘deportation’ in 1996. People who have no legal right to be in the United States can be “removed” whether they are already inside the country or just trying to cross the border to get in, but people who are trying to get into the country for the first time have fewer legal rights in the ‘removal’ process than people who have already been here for a while.
Visa – a document or a stamp in a passport given to show that a person has applied for and received advanced approval to enter a country. There are many types of visas available to enter into the United States. Each has its own legal requirements and restrictions.
Waiver – a ‘waiver’ is a legal pardon. It excuses a problem in someone’s past to allow him to get a visa and enter the country even though he is ‘inadmissible.’ Waivers are only available to excuse some ‘grounds of inadmissibility.’
