I.    ADMISSION TO THE UNITED STATES

 A.      The Meaning of "Admission"

 B.      Admission vs. Entry

 C.      Re-Entry of Permanent Residents

II.   GROUNDS OF INADMISSIBILITY

 A.      Health-Related Grounds

 B.      Criminal and Related Grounds

(a)     Crimes of Moral Turpitude

   (i)      Exceptions And Waivers of the Criminal Grounds

 C.      Security and Related Grounds

 D.      Inadmissibility for Violations of Immigration Law or Procedure

(a)     Illegal Entrants and Immigration Violators

(b)     Previous Removal and Unlawful Presence

 E.      The Public Charge Ground

 F.      Other Grounds of Inadmissibility

(a)     Labor Certification

(b)     Documentation Requirements

(c)     Persons Ineligible for Citizenship

(d)     Miscellaneous

 G.      False claim to U.S. Citizenship

III.  REMOVAL FROM THE UNITED STATES

  A.      General Considerations

IV. GROUNDS FOR REMOVAL (DEPORTABILITY)

A.      Inadmissibility at Entry and Status Violations

B.      Criminal Grounds

(a)     Crimes of Moral Turpitude

(b)     Aggravated Felonies

(c)     Other Criminal Grounds

   (i)      Avoiding the Immigration Consequences of Crimes

C.      Registration Requirements

D.      National Security Grounds

E.      Other Removal Grounds

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B. Criminal and Related Grounds

INA § 212(a)(2) lists the criminal grounds of inadmissibility. Any person is inadmissible who (1) was convicted of or admits to committing a "crime of moral turpitude" or a controlled substance violation; (2) was convicted of two or more offenses of any type and received aggregate sentences of five or more years; (3) trafficked or assisted in the trafficking of controlled substances, or knowingly benefitted from a spouse or parent's trafficking activities; (4) is coming to the U.S. to engage in prostitution or commercialized vice; (5) previously departed the U.S. as a condition of receiving immunity from prosecution for a serious crime committed in the U.S.; (6) engaged in severe violations of religious freedoms as an official in a foreign government; (7) has engaged in trafficking in persons or knowingly benefitted from a spouse or parent's trafficking; or (8) has engaged in money laundering or is coming to the U.S. to launder money.

(a) Crimes of Moral Turpitude 

Although the term has been used in immigration law since 1891, possibly the most difficult criminal ground to define is the "crime of moral turpitude." "Moral turpitude" is not defined by statute. The courts generally agree that crimes of moral turpitude include crimes of violence and crimes "commonly thought of as involving baseness, vileness or depravity," and that they are defined, at least in part, by reference to current moral standards. Jordan v. De George (Sup.Ct.1951). This definition, however, is nearly as vague and open-ended as "moral turpitude." Nevertheless, the Supreme Court in Jordan held that the use of the term "moral turpitude" did not render the INA unconstitutionally vague because "the language conveys sufficiently definite warning as to the proscribed conduct when measured by common understanding and practices."

Some of the specific crimes that have been found to involve moral turpitude include murder, rape, robbery, kidnaping, voluntary manslaughter, theft, spousal abuse, any crime involving fraud (such as passing bad checks), and some aggravated DUI offenses. See In Re Torres-Varela (BIA 2001). Many of these crimes involve a specific "evil" intent, but this is not a requirement; for example, spousal abuse often does not involve any different intent than simple assault, but is considered a crime of moral turpitude because of the relationship between the abuser and the victim. See Matter of Tran (BIA 1996). Nor does the determination depend on the seriousness of the crime; possession of stolen property, for example, may involve moral turpitude even if the value of the property is trivial, if the state law includes an intent requirement. See Michel v. INS (2d Cir. 2000) (non-citizen deemed inadmissible after conviction for possessing stolen bus transfers).

In determining whether a crime involves moral turpitude, the court may look only at the statute under which an individual was charged, and not at the person's actual conduct. If the statute is divisible and contains some offenses that involve moral turpitude and some that do not, the court may look to the record of conviction to determine with which offense the person was charged. It is worth noting, however, that section 212(a)(2) does not require that an applicant for admission was convicted of a crime; simply admitting to acts that would constitute a crime of moral turpitude is enough to make a person inadmissible.

(i) Exceptions and Waivers of Criminal Grounds of Inadmissibility

The ground of inadmissibility for moral turpitude does not apply if the person seeking admission committed the crime before the age of eighteen and at least five years have passed since the end of any confinement, or if the maximum possible penalty for the crime was less than one year and the person was actually sentenced for no longer than six months. INA § 212(a)(2)(A).

In addition, inadmissibility may be waived for persons who have committed crimes of moral turpitude or a single controlled substance violation involving possession of 30 grams or less of marijuana, persons who have multiple convictions for certain crimes, individuals engaged in prostitution, and those who received immunity from prosecution. Such individuals may qualify for a waiver if (1) the crime was committed more than fifteen years before the application for admission or if it was a prostitution offense, the perpetrator has been rehabilitated, and a waiver would not be contrary to national security; (2) the individual is the spouse, parent, son, or daughter of a U.S. citizen or permanent resident and denying admission would cause extreme hardship to the citizen or permanent resident; or (3) the individual is seeking permanent residence after being battered by a U.S. citizen or permanent resident spouse or parent. INA § 212(h). No waiver is available, however, if the crime was murder or involved torture. These waivers are granted at the discretion of the Secretary for Homeland Security and his or her decision to grant or deny a waiver is unreviewable.

Waivers of the criminal grounds of inadmissibility are not available to lawful permanent residents who have committed an aggravated felony since being admitted to permanent residence, or permanent residents who have lived in the U.S. for fewer than seven years before the commencement of removal proceedings. INA § 212(h). As a result, a permanent resident who commits an "aggravated felony" (see § 8-2.2(b), infra.) and subsequently leaves the United States, whether removed or not, will be denied admission, but a nonimmigrant in similar circumstances might be able to obtain a waiver. In Lara-Ruiz v. INS (7th Cir. 2001), the court held that the unfavorable treatment of lawful permanent residents under this provision does not violate equal protection because Congress could have had a rational basis for considering permanent residents who commit crimes a greater threat to the country than nonimmigrant criminals.

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