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What Are Grounds For Inadmissibility?

The Immigration and Nationality Act sets forth grounds for inadmissibility. Essentially, inadmissible persons are not permitted to enter or remain in the United States without obtaining a waiver. The general categories of inadmissibility include health, criminal activity, national security, public charge, labor, and several miscellaneous categories.

Inadmissibility due to health:

The inadmissibility due to health concerns covers a range of situations. In general they are:

1. Those have a communicable disease of public health significance. The Government specifically defines diseases that fall into this category. Currently the following are the only communicable diseases of public health significance: chancroid; gonorrhea; granuloma inguinale; HIV infection; infectious leprosy; lymphogranuloma venereum; infectious syphilis; and active tuberculosis.
2. Those who have failed to receive necessary vaccinations against disease. The law makes a person inadmissible if he or she fails to present evidence of vaccination against vaccine-preventable diseases. Currently the law provides that a person seeking entry to the United States must have vaccinations against the following: mumps, measles, rubella, polio, tetanus and diphtheria toxoids, pertussis, influenza type B, and hepatitis B.
3. Those who have a physical or mental disorder that poses a threat to others. The law doesn't provide specific examples of any conditions. A person is inadmissible if they have a physical or mental disorder and the behavior associated with the disorder may pose a threat to the property, safety or welfare of the person or others.
4. Those who are drug abusers or addicts. Generally, drug abuse or addiction is the non-medical use of an illegal drug. The current version of the law makes an exception for those who only experimented with illegal drugs in the past. Additionally, any person who has used an illegal drug but has been clean for a period of three years is not deemed inadmissible.

Inadmissibility due to criminal reasons:

The following are grounds for inadmissibility due to criminal reasons:

1. Crimes involving "moral turpitude." The term moral turpitude is among the most difficult to define in the field of law. Courts in the United States have defined it generally as an act of evil or vileness. Crimes as heinous as murder or as minor as lying to an election official have been held crimes of moral turpitude. Due to the term's complicated meaning and the law surrounding admitting such a crime, consultation with an experienced immigration attorney is recommended for any person to whom this section may apply.
2. Violation of any controlled substance law. Any conviction for violating the law relating to illegal drugs is a ground of inadmissibility. Convictions of conspiracy or attempt to commit a violation will also render a person inadmissible. The laws of both the United States and other countries are included.
3. Drug trafficking. Perhaps the broadest ground for inadmissibility, there is no requirement of a conviction here. If any immigration officer "knows or has reason to believe" that a person has been involved in trafficking, that person is inadmissible to the United States.
4. Having been previously convicted of more than one offense. Any person convicted of two or more crimes is inadmissible. This applies regardless of the seriousness of the crime or whether the multiple convictions were the result of one event. However, a person must have been sentenced to five or more years in prison due to the convictions in order to be inadmissible.
5. Prostitution. Any person coming to the United States to participate in prostitution, or any person who has engaged in prostitution within ten years of their application for entry into the United States, is inadmissible. This section also applies to those who have made a profit from prostitution. This section does not apply to any person who was forced into prostitution.
6. Commission of a serious crime in the United States that the immigrant asserted immunity from prosecution over. Any person who was charged with a felony, crime involving violence, or crime involving reckless driving while intoxicated who asserted immunity and fled the United States is inadmissible.

Inadmissibility due to national security reasons:

The following are grounds for inadmissibility due to National Security reasons:

1. If an immigration official or the Attorney General of the United States knows or has reasonable ground to believe that a noncitizen seeks to enter the United States to engage in espionage or sabotage, to attempt to overthrow the U.S. government, or to engage in any unlawful activity that person is inadmissible.
2. If an immigration official or the Attorney General of the United States knows or has reasonable ground to believe that the immigrant has participated in any terrorist activities or has any association with terrorist organizations, governments or individuals, that person is inadmissible.
3. If an immigration official or the Attorney General of the United States knows or has reasonable ground to believe that the person presents a threat to foreign policy or has membership in any totalitarian party that person may be inadmissible.
4. Any person who has participated in Nazi persecutions or genocide is inadmissible.

Inadmissibility due to likelihood of becoming a public charge:

A person is inadmissible if he or she is likely to become a public charge. Generally, a public charge is an immigrant who is primarily dependent on the government for subsistence. Whether or not a person is a public charge is determined by examining several factors. The most common factors considered are typically health, family status, age, assets, employment history, and education. If those factors lead the Government to conclude that the person is likely to need cash benefits from the Government to survive, he or she will be deemed inadmissible.

This does not mean that a person may not utilize any Governmental assistance. Several Government programs that do not give cash as a benefit can be utilized without becoming a public charge. For a more detailed explanation of Government benefits and their effect, please read Will Utilizing Government Benefits Make me a Public Charge?

Inadmissibility due to Labor issues:

This ground makes aliens seeking to enter the United States to work inadmissible unless the Secretary of Labor certifies that:

1. Employment of the person will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of U.S. workers similarly employed; and
2. There are not enough U.S. workers willing, qualified, and able to do the same work.

Generally, this requirement is usually more important to an employer than a person seeking entrance to the United States. For more information, please see How Does the Labor Certification Process Work? (Coming soon)

Miscellaneous ground of inadmissibility:

The following are other grounds of inadmissibility:

1. Persons who entered the country illegally.
2. Persons who failed to attend immigration and / or removal hearings.
3. Persons who have intentionally provided false information in seeking to enter the country.
4. Former United States citizens who renounced citizenship to avoid taxation.
5. Any person or class of persons deemed inadmissible by the President of the United States.

For each ground of inadmissibility, it may be possible for a person to obtain a waiver of that inadmissibility. If you or a family member plan to seek entry to the United States and believe you may be inadmissible, you should contact an immigration attorney prior to application. The experienced and skilled immigration attorneys at Shihab & Associates Co., LPA are fully prepared to assist you in any way possible. We can help along every step of the way to ensure that the immigration process goes smoothly.