Legal Reasons that can Get a US Immigrant Deported

 

Legal reasons that can get a US immigrant deported. What are the reasons that somebody can actually get deported?. We'll talk about some legal reasons why the US immigration authorities may want to deport somebody from the United States, meaning send that person back to their home country or where they came from. Now, there are some obvious reasons where if somebody came here without the right visa, they can be deported. If somebody came here with the right visa and overstayed, they can also be deported. Right? This is some obvious reasons, but there's quite a few other reasons where it's important for you to know why you can get deported. 

So number one is actually, failure to obey the terms of your current visa. 

For example, let's say you’re here on a tourist visa, and you're still within the term of your visa, so you're here let's say for six months, you haven't overstayed but you worked on your tourist visa, that's a violation of the tourist visa, and that can get you deported. 

For example, let's say you're here on a student visa and you are not attending school. You get your visa, you have your visa, you have an I-94, but you're not actually going to school, that's a violation of your student visa, and that potentially can get you deported. And also, if you work on a student visa, that can also be a reason for you to be deported.

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Another reason if let's say you're here on a work visa, on H-1B visa, and you're working for the employer who got you the visa, but on the side, you started your own personal business, and you didn't get a visa for that. Potentially, that can also get you deported. So again, reason number one, violating the terms of your current visa can get you deported. 

Number two, failure to let the USCIS know of a change of address. So typically, you have 10 days to notify the USCIS of the change of address. And if you don't do that, potentially, you can be deportable. Now, how often does that happen? Probably not very often, but the law specifically says that failure to notify the USCIS why you're going through the immigration process of a change of address by completing form AR-11, potentially, could get you deported. So remember, again, it may not happen as often.

But sometimes, when you go to an interview, and they look at the address, and they see you haven't updated it, that may cause some delays and some hiccups. So we always recommend people always update your address. But as you know, potentially, it's a deportable offense so you should always update your address. So, that's reason number two, failure to update your address with the USCIS. 

Number three, commission of a crime. Committing some kind of crime. So, there are certain crimes, not all crimes, but there are certain crimes that can get you deported. For example, the Immigration and Nationality Act, section 237a has a list of all these crimes. For example, it could be crimes of moral turpitude, could be certain drug offenses, domestic violence, money laundering, certain aggravated felonies, aggravated felonies are definitely crimes that will get you deported.

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So, if you committed some of these crimes that are listed in that section and the ones I mentioned right now, it is important that you consult an immigration attorney to see if you have any rights at all, and how to avoid deportation, how to fight deportation.

But again, the US government is really strict about people who commit crimes and for a good reason, obviously, but there are certain crimes… again, not all crimes, if you commit petty theft, that crime has an exception. So that's not a deportable offense. If you committed one DUI, it's not a deportable offense, per se, if you have multiple DUIs, it may be an issue. But again, crimes could lead to deportation. So, that's another reason why somebody can be deportable, reason number three. 

Number four, violation of the US immigration laws.

What does it mean? So, people come here, and they have the right to be here based on a visa or a green card, but what if you actually defrauded the government? So, let's say you entered into a marriage which was a fake marriage, a sham marriage, you married somebody just for the green card. If they find out, and they can prove it. You can be deported. If you committed a crime like alien smuggling.

Let’s say you assisted somebody who smuggled somebody into the US, you were in the car with them or you paid somebody to bring them over here, that's a deportable offense, even if you have a legal status here. So, marriage fraud, alien smuggling, these are some examples of violating immigration laws that could get you deported, number four. Number five, receiving public assistance or becoming a public charge.

So, that's another reason where… typically, when you immigrate to the United States, you attest and you promise and you sign forms, that you're not going to become a public charge, meaning that you're not going to take benefits, public benefits from the government until you’re eligible to become a green card holder or a US citizen depending on what public benefits you're eligible for. 

But if you come to the United States, you attest the fact that you have enough funding, you have enough money or you have a sponsor, that's going to help you not become a public charge. But if you are found in violation of that, that potentially could make you deportable. That's what the law says in the Immigration and Nationality Act. So remember, and recently, we had a lot of discussion about public charge, some changes to the public chose rules. Some of them currently are on hold based on injunctions. But the whole debate of a public charge was because it's part of the law, it's here, it's always been part of the law that or if somebody immigrates to the United States, they have to prove that they are able to be self-sufficient, as they go through the immigration process, and they're not going to become a public charge, they're not going to take public benefits from the government. 

So, if somebody is found in violation of that, potentially, they could be deported, they could be deportable and may not be able to keep their benefits anymore. So that's number five, violation of public benefits rules. So, these are just some five examples of what can actually get you deported. 

Now, remember, those are general things but it's important to know and be aware of that, that even if you have legal status in the US, even if you are on your visa or even if you have a green card, some things, certain things until you become a US citizen can get you deported. So, it's important to be aware of that, be mindful and stay safe this way. So, hopefully, you found this information useful.