Part of our Immigration Law FAQ, built by converting the Immigration and Nationality Act into plain-language answers. Every answer cites its source in the statute, the regulations, or the USCIS Policy Manual.
People and definitions
Who is an “alien” under U.S. immigration law?
Any person who is not a citizen or national of the United States. INA § 101(a)(3). The statute uses this term for everyone from tourists to green card holders — a lawful permanent resident is still an “alien” in the statute’s vocabulary.
What is a “national of the United States”?
A U.S. citizen, or a person who, though not a citizen, owes permanent allegiance to the United States. INA § 101(a)(22). In practice, non-citizen nationals are mainly people born in American Samoa and Swains Island. INA § 308.
What is a lawful permanent resident (green card holder)?
A person “lawfully accorded the privilege of residing permanently in the United States as an immigrant,” with that status not having changed. INA § 101(a)(20). Permanent residence continues until it is abandoned, rescinded, or terminated by a final removal order.
What is the difference between an immigrant and a nonimmigrant?
The statute presumes every alien is an immigrant — someone coming to stay — unless they fit one of the temporary categories listed in INA § 101(a)(15), such as visitors (B), students (F), or temporary workers (H, L, O). INA § 214(b). That presumption is why a visa applicant must persuade the consular officer of their temporary intent, not the other way around.
Who is a “child” under immigration law?
An unmarried person under 21 — including, with conditions, stepchildren (if the marriage occurred before age 18), legitimated children, adopted children (adoption before age 16, plus custody and residence requirements), and orphans. INA § 101(b)(1). Marriage or turning 21 can end “child” status, though the Child Status Protection Act can freeze the age calculation in some cases. INA § 203(h).
Who counts as a “parent”?
A parent qualifies through the child relationship: if the person qualifies as a “child” under INA § 101(b)(1), the mother or father qualifies as a parent. INA § 101(b)(2). This is why a U.S. citizen’s own birth certificate is often the key document in a parent case.
Admission, status, and presence
What does “admission” mean?
Lawful entry into the United States after inspection and authorization by an immigration officer. INA § 101(a)(13)(A). The concept matters enormously: eligibility for adjustment of status generally requires having been “inspected and admitted or paroled,” INA § 245(a), and many removal grounds depend on whether a person was admitted.
What is parole, and how is it different from admission?
Parole permits a person into the country temporarily for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit without formally admitting them. INA § 212(d)(5). A paroled person is physically here lawfully but has not been “admitted” — a distinction with large consequences for what benefits they can later seek.
What is an I-94, and why does it control my stay?
The I-94 is the record of admission showing the class of admission and the date the authorized stay expires. Remaining beyond that date generally means failing to maintain status and can begin the accrual of unlawful presence. INA § 212(a)(9)(B)(ii); 8 C.F.R. § 214.1.
What is “unlawful presence,” and why do the 3- and 10-year bars matter?
Unlawful presence accrues when a person is here after the expiration of their authorized stay or without admission or parole. Leaving the U.S. after accruing more than 180 days (but less than a year) triggers a 3-year bar on returning; a year or more triggers a 10-year bar. INA § 212(a)(9)(B)(i). The bars are triggered by departure — which is why leaving to “fix” a status problem can create a far worse one, and why waivers (Form I-601A) are often filed before departure.
What is the difference between being out of status and being unlawfully present?
They overlap but are not the same. A person can violate status (for example, by working without authorization) while not yet accruing unlawful presence — and vice versa. Status violations affect eligibility to extend, change, or adjust status, INA § 245(c); unlawful presence drives the 3- and 10-year bars. The two analyses must be run separately.
What is a visa, and how is it different from status?
A visa is a travel document issued by a consulate that permits you to seek admission at a port of entry; status is the legal condition you hold once admitted. A visa can be valid while your status has expired, and your status can be valid while your visa has expired — the expiration dates are independent. 22 C.F.R. § 41.112; 8 C.F.R. § 214.1.
The agencies and the system
Which agencies run the immigration system?
Three departments split it. The Department of Homeland Security houses USCIS (benefits: petitions, green cards, naturalization), CBP (ports of entry and the border), and ICE (interior enforcement and detention). The Department of Justice houses the immigration courts (EOIR) and the Board of Immigration Appeals. The Department of State runs the consulates, visa issuance, and the monthly Visa Bulletin. INA §§ 103, 104.
What is the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA)?
The highest administrative tribunal for immigration cases — it hears appeals from immigration-judge decisions and certain USCIS decisions. 8 C.F.R. § 1003.1. Its published decisions bind DHS and the immigration courts nationwide unless a federal circuit court or the Attorney General says otherwise.
What is the USCIS Policy Manual, and does it have the force of law?
It is USCIS’s centralized statement of how it interprets and applies the law, and it binds USCIS officers. It is not a statute or regulation, but because officers must follow it, it is often the most practically important text in a benefits case.
What is the Visa Bulletin?
The State Department’s monthly chart controlling when applicants in numerically limited green-card categories may file or be approved, based on priority dates. INA §§ 201–203. Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens — spouses, parents, unmarried children under 21 — are exempt from the numerical limits and never wait on the Bulletin. INA § 201(b)(2)(A)(i). See our tools & resources page for how to read it.
Status, work, and documents
Does every noncitizen need employment authorization to work?
Employment must be authorized either by the status itself (an H-1B works for the sponsoring employer; an L-1 for the petitioning company) or by an employment authorization document (EAD) issued under 8 C.F.R. § 274a.12. Working without authorization is a status violation with long consequences, including for adjustment of status. INA § 245(c).
Can I extend or change my nonimmigrant status from inside the U.S.?
Often yes — by filing before the current stay expires, while having maintained status. INA § 248; 8 C.F.R. § 248.1. A timely, non-frivolous filing generally keeps you in a period of authorized stay while it is pending. Late filings can sometimes be excused for extraordinary circumstances, but that is discretionary and never to be counted on. 8 C.F.R. § 214.1(c)(4).
What is adjustment of status?
The process of becoming a permanent resident from inside the United States, without consular processing abroad. INA § 245. It generally requires an approved (or concurrently filed) petition, an immediately available visa number, and having been inspected and admitted or paroled — and it is discretionary: USCIS policy now emphasizes that eligibility alone does not compel approval. See our analysis of PM-602-0199.
What is consular processing?
Completing the green-card (or visa) process at a U.S. consulate abroad, ending with a visa interview and entry to the U.S. as an immigrant. INA §§ 221–222. Its trade-offs against adjustment of status — timing, evidence, and the limited review available after a consular refusal — are strategy decisions in nearly every family case.
Next clusters — family, employment, humanitarian, citizenship, removal, and waivers — are in preparation. These FAQs are general information, not legal advice.