03/10/2026
THE FOLLOWING IS GENERAL INFORMATION AND NOT SPECIFIC LEGAL ADVICE FOR ANYONE'S INDIVIDUAL SITUATION:
This is the Federal law on Unlawful Presence and Inadmissibility:
Unlawful presence is any period of time when you are present in the United States without being admitted or paroled, or when you are present in the United States after your “period of stay authorized by the Secretary” expires. Unless an exception applies, you will be found inadmissible based on your accrual of unlawful presence if you:
Seek admission again within 3 years of leaving the United States before removal proceedings begin, after you accrued more than 180 days but less than 1 year of unlawful presence during a single stay;
Seek admission again within 10 years of leaving or being removed from the United States, after you accrued 1 year or more of unlawful presence during a single stay; or
Reenter or try to reenter the United States without being admitted or paroled after you accrued more than 1 year of unlawful presence, in total, during 1 or more stays in the United States.
Inadmissibility Under INA 212(a)(9)(B)(i)(I):
If you are an alien, you are not a lawful permanent resident of the United States, and no exception applies, then you are inadmissible under INA 212(a)(9)(B)(i)(I) if:
- You accrued more than 180 days but less than 1 year of unlawful presence during a single stay in the United States on or after April 1, 1997;
- You voluntarily left the United States before DHS initiated either expedited removal proceedings under INA 235(b)(1) or removal proceedings before an immigration judge under INA 240; and
- You again seek admission within 3 years of when you left after accruing unlawful presence.
The statutory 3-year period starts when you leave the United States.
If you are inadmissible under this ground of inadmissibility, you may be eligible to apply for a waiver of inadmissibility. The legal requirements and procedures to apply for the waiver depend on the immigration benefit you seek. You are not inadmissible under this ground of inadmissibility if you accrued more than 180 days but less than 1 year of unlawful presence and left the United States after removal proceedings began, but before the 1-year mark.
However, even if you are not inadmissible under this ground of inadmissibility, you could be inadmissible under other grounds. If you leave the United States after removal proceedings begin, including voluntarily, you must inform the Executive Office for Immigration Review. If you fail to attend removal proceedings or if the immigration judge orders you removed when you are not physically present at the hearing, you could still be inadmissible, even if the reason you did not attend the removal proceedings was because you left.
Inadmissibility Under INA 212(a)(9)(B)(i)(II): If you are an alien, you are not a lawful permanent resident of the United States, and no exception applies, you are inadmissible if:
- You accrued 1 year or more of unlawful presence during a single stay in the United States on or after April 1, 1997;
- You left the United States or were removed from the United States under any provision of law; and
- You again seek admission within 10 years of when you left or were removed after accruing unlawful presence.
This ground of inadmissibility applies whether you leave before, during, or after DHS-initiated removal proceedings.
The statutory 10-year period starts when you leave or are removed from the United States.
If you are inadmissible under this ground of inadmissibility, you may be eligible to apply for a waiver of inadmissibility. The legal requirements and procedures for applying for the waiver depend on the immigration benefit you seek.
Inadmissibility Under INA 212(a)(9)(C)(i)(I): You are permanently inadmissible under INA 212(a)(9)(C)(i)(I) if:
- You accrued an aggregate period of more than 1 year of unlawful presence in the United States on or after April 1, 1997;
- You then left or were removed from the United States; and
- You entered or attempted to reenter the United States on or after April 1, 1997, without a DHS officer admitting or paroling you into the United States.
“Aggregate period” means the total number of days of unlawful presence that you accumulated during all of your stays in the United States combined.
If this ground of inadmissibility applies to you, you will be permanently inadmissible.
Although you are permanently inadmissible under this ground, you may ask for permission to reapply for admission to the United States, but only if you have been physically outside the United States for at least 10 years since the date of your last departure. This permission is called “consent to reapply for admission” to the United States. You must apply for consent to reapply for admission from outside the United States after waiting 10 years from your last departure from the United States. If the government denies your application for consent to reapply for admission, then you remain inadmissible under this ground.
Find additional information about consent to reapply for admission on Form I-212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission into the United States after Deportation or Removal page.
There are certain exceptions and waivers that are available to specific categories of aliens who are inadmissible under INA 212(a)(9)(C). If an exception applies to you, then you are not inadmissible under this ground of inadmissibility.
If you are inadmissible under any ground in INA 212(a), including INA 212(a)(9)(B)(i) and INA212(a)(9)(C)(i)(I), you generally cannot obtain a visa from the U.S. Department of State, enter the United States at a port of entry, or obtain an immigration benefit such as adjustment of status to lawful permanent resident (a Green Card) in the United States unless you first obtain a waiver or another form of relief (such as consent to reapply for admission).
