According to statistics released by the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency, June 2024 was the month with the lowest number of migrant apprehensions along the southern border with Mexico since 2021. Of the 30,771 migrants intercepted, detained, or turned away because they weren’t eligible to enter the asylum application process, all of them count as having entered the country illegally. This number is sharply lower than the 249,785 migrant encounters that resulted in CBP apprehension in December 2023.
Illegal border crossings represent less than half of migrant apprehensions. Most of the detentions were at major ports of entry such as San Ysidro and El Paso, and they involved foreigners who intended to cross through an authorized station but were determined to be inadmissible. CBP makes no distinction between illegal border crossings and other inadmissible foreigners. However, things are different at the legal immigration level.
Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution gives Congress primary authority for border control. Federal law states all individuals who intend to enter the country must do so at ports of entry such as airports and Border Patrol crossing stations. Permission to enter is ultimately granted by CBP agents under the guidance of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and it’s called admissibility. Anyone with an American passport is fully admissible upon inspection, and the same applies to green card holders and visa recipients after they go through secondary status checks.
No One Can Enter the U.S. without Permission
Anyone who isn’t deemed admissible isn’t allowed to stay in the country. This includes American citizens caught skipping passport control because of long lines at the crossing stations. Their admissibility is granted after they’re charged with criminal offenses even if their passports are valid. This situation may also apply to legal residents returning with expired green cards or after being away for more than a year without getting reentry permits. The difference with U.S. citizens is that they may be turned away and told to return with waivers.
Admissibility is the underlying legal status of all foreigners in the U.S. Anyone who is determined inadmissible loses the right to remain in the country, so you always want to treat it as permission to enter. USCIS adjudicators don’t grant visas to foreign applicants abroad until embassy officials reach a determination of admissibility, which must be ascertained a second time at the port of entry. Let’s say a Chinese businesswoman is deemed admissible after submitting an EB-5 investor visa application. If she travels to North Korea before landing at Los Angeles International Airport, she may lose her admissibility and permission to enter.
Law firms that specialize in immigration services in San Diego, CA, constantly keep their clients informed about situations that could put their admissibility status at risk. You should always avoid falling into this classification because getting it back can be a long and complicated process in many cases.
If you have questions about any aspect of immigration regulations, contact the immigration attorneys San Diego residents trust. The lawyers at KS Visa Law have vast experience with every aspect of immigration law, and they’re the attorneys to call on when you need the most up-to-date information about immigration regulations. Call KS Visa Law today to schedule an appointment.