Your Immigration Link to the World

In addition to the grounds of inadmissibility mentioned above, an alien can also be removed from the United States based on the grounds contained in §237 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which is entitled "General Classes of Deportable Aliens". There are six (6) general grounds listed, which include the following:

(1) Aliens who were inadmissible at the time of entry or adjustment of status, or who have otherwise violated their status, such as those who have worked without authorization or have overstayed their time in the United States.  Also included are aliens whose conditional residence status has been terminated, those who had engaged in alien smuggling, and aliens who have engaged in marriage fraud.

(2) Aliens who have been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude committed within five years after the date of admission, where the maximum sentence, which could be imposed for the crime, is one year or longer, are deportable.  Likewise, an alien who at any time after admission is convicted of two or more crimes involving moral turpitude is deportable. These deportation grounds also include aliens who are convicted of controlled substance violations (other than a single offense involving possession for one's own use of 30 grams or less of marijuana), as well as drug abusers and drug addicts, and those who have been convicted of any firearms violations.  The new act also renders deportable those aliens who have been convicted of a crime involving domestic violence, stalking, or child abuse.  Also, any alien who is convicted of an aggravated felony at any time after admission is deportable.  An aggravated felony is described in §101(a)(43) of the Immigration Act.  These are crimes which the immigration service considers particularly serious, and which will preclude nearly all forms of relief.

(3) An alien is deportable for failure to register a change of address (unless the alien establishes that such failure was reasonably excusable or was not willful); for any conviction related to the use of false documents; or for falsely claiming US citizenship.

(4) An alien may also be deported for a violation of security and related grounds such as terrorist activities, engaging in actions that could have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States, and if he or she has engaged in Nazi persecution or genocide.

(5) Any alien who becomes a public charge within five (5) years of entry, from a cause that did not arise after entry, is also deportable.

(6) Finally, any alien who has voted in violation of any Federal, State, or local law is deportable.