text:
Otherwise known as the McCarran-Walter Act, the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 was meant to exclude certain immigrants from immigrating to America, post World War II and in the early Cold War. The McCarran-Walter Act moved away from excluding immigrants based simply upon country of origin. Instead it focused upon denying immigrants who were unlawful, immoral, diseased in any way, politically radical etc. and accepting those who were willing and able to assimilate into the US economic, social, and political structures, which restructured how immigration law was handled. Furthermore, the most notable exclusions were anyone even remotely associated with communism which in the early days of the Cold War was seen as a serious threat to US democracy. The main objective of this was to block any spread of communism from outside post WWII countries, as well as deny any enemies of the US during WWII such as Japan and favor "good Asian" countries such as China. The McCarran-Walter Act was a strong reinforcement in immigration selection, which was labeled the best way to preserve national security and national interests. President Truman originally vetoed the law, deeming it discriminatory; however there was enough support in Congress for the law to pass.
(Summary by Wade Johnson)
United States Statutes at Large, 1952, Vol. 66, 82nd Cong., p. 163-282
To revise the laws relating to immigration, naturalization, and nationality; and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That this Act, divided into titles, chapters, and sections according to the following table of contents, may be cited as the "Immigration and Nationality Act".
Title I-General
Title II-Immigration
Chapter 1-Quota System
Chapter 2-Qualifications for Admission of Aliens; Travel Control of Citizens and Aliens
Chapter 3-Issuance on Entry Documents
Chapter 4-Provisions Relating to Entry and Exclusion
Chapter 5-Deportation; Adjustment of Status
Chapter 6-Special Provisions Relating to Alien Crew Men
Chapter 7-Registration of Aliens
Chapter 8-General Penalty Provisions
Chapter 9-Miscellaneous
Title III-Nationality and Naturalization
Chapter 1-Nationality at Birth and By Collective Naturalization
Chapter 2-Nationality through Naturalization
Chapter 3-Loss of Nationality
Title IV-Miscellaneous
Section 101. (a) As used in this Act-
(1) The term "administrator" means the administrator of the Bureau of Security and Consular Affairs of the Department of State.
(2) The term "advocates" includes, but is not limited to, advises, recommends, furthers by overt act, and admits belief in.
(3) The term "alien means any person not a citizen or national of the United States.
(4) The term "application for admission" has reference to the application for admission into the United States and not to the application for the issuance of an immigrant or nonimmigrant visa.
(5) The term "Attorney General" means the Attorney General of the United States.
(6) The term "border crossing identification card" means a document of identity bearing that designation issued to an alien who is lawfully admitted for permanent residence, or to an alien who is a resident in foreign contiguous territory, by a consular officer or an immigration officer for the purpose of crossing over the borders between the United States foreign contiguous territory in accordance with such conditions for its issuance and use as may be prescribed by regulations.
(7) The term "clerk of court" means a clerk of naturalization court.
(8) The term "Commissioner" and "Deputy Commissioner" mean the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization and a Deputy Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization, respectively.
(9) The term "consular officer" means any consular, diplomatic, or other officer of the United States designated under regulations prescribed under authority contained in this Act, for the purpose of issuing immigrant or nonimmigrant visas. In cases of aliens, in the Canal Zone and the outlying possessions of the United States, the term "consular officer" means an officer designated by the Governor of the Canal Zone, or the governors of the outlying possessions, for the purpose of issuing immigrant or nonimmigrant visas under this Act.
(10) The term "crewman" means a person serving in any capacity on board a vessel or aircraft.
(11) The term "diplomatic visa" means a nonimmigrant visa bearing that title and issued to a nonimmigrant in accordance with such regulations as the Secretary of State may prescribe.
(12) The term "doctrine" includes, but is not limited to, policies, practices, purposes, aims, or procedures.
(13) The term "entry" means any coming of an alien into the United States, from a foreign port or place or from an outlying possession, whether voluntarily or otherwise, except that an alien having a lawful permanent residence in the United States shall not be regarded as making an entry into the United States for the purposes of the immigration laws if the alien proves to the satisfaction of the Attorney General that his departure to a foreign port or place or to an outlying possession was not intended or reasonably to be expected by him or his presence in a foreign port or place or in an outlying possession was not voluntary: Provided, That no person whose departure from the United States was occasioned by deportation proceedings, extradition, or other legal process shall be held to be entitled to such exception.
(14) The term "foreign state" includes outlying possessions of a foreign state, but self-governing dominions or territories under mandate or trusteeship shall be regarded as separate foreign states.
(15) The term "immigrant" means every alien except an alien who is within one of the following classes of nonimmigrant aliens-
(A) (i) an ambassador, public minister, or career diplomatic or consular officer who has been accredited by a foreign government recognized de jure by the United States and who is accepted by the President or by the Secretary of State, and the members of the alien's immediate family;
(ii) upon a basis of reciprocity, other officials and employees who have been accredited by a foreign government recognized de jure by the United States, who are accepted by the Secretary of State, and the members of their immediate families; and
(iii) upon a basis of reciprocity, attendants, servants, personal employees, and members of their immediate families, of the officials and employees who have a nonimmigrant status under (i) and (ii) above;
(B) an alien (other than one coming for the purpose of study or of performing skilled or unskilled labor or as a representative of foreign press, radio, film, or other foreign information media coming to engage in such vocation) having a residence in a foreign country which he has no intention of abandoning and who is visiting the United States temporarily for business or temporarily for pleasure;
(C) an alien in immediate and continuous transit through the United States, or an alien who qualifies as a person entitled to pass in transit to and from the United Nations Headquarters District and foreign countries, under the provisions of paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) of section 11 of the Headquarters Agreement with the United Nations (61 Stat. 758);
(D) an alien crewman serving in good faith as such in any capacity required for normal operation and service on board a vessel (other than a fishing vessel having its home port or an operating base in the United States) or aircraft, who intends to land temporarily and solely in pursuit of his calling as a crewman and to depart from the United States with the vessel or aircraft on which he arrived or some other vessel or aircraft;
(E) an alien entitled to enter the United States under and in pursuance of the provisions of a treaty of commerce and navigation between the United States and the foreign state of which he is a national, and the spouse and children of any such alien if accompanying or following to join him: (i) solely to carry on substantial trade, principally between the United States and the foreign state of which he is a national; or (ii) solely to develop and direct the operations of an enterprise in which he has invested, or of an enterprise in which he is actively in the process of investing, a substantial amount of capital;
(F) an alien having a residence in a foreign country which he has no intention of abandoning, who is a bona fide student qualified to pursue a full course of study and who seeks to enter the United States temporarily and solely for the purpose of pursuing such a course of study at an established institution of learning or other recognized place of study in the United States, particularly designated by him and approved by the Attorney General after consultation with the Office of Education of the United States, which institution or place of study shall have agreed to report to the Attorney General the termination of attendance of each nonimmigrant student, and if any such institution of learning or place of study fails to make reports promptly the approval shall be withdrawn;
(G) (i) a designated principal resident representative of a foreign government recognized de jure by the United States, which foreign government is a member of an international organization entitled to enjoy privileges, exemptions, and immunities as an international organization under the International Organizations Immunities Act (59 Stat. 669), accredited resident members of the staff of such representatives, and members of his or their immediate family;
(ii) other accredited representatives of such a foreign government to such international organizations, and the members of their immediate families;
(iii) an alien able to qualify under (i) or (ii) above except for the fact that the government of which such alien is an accredited representative is not recognized de jure by the United States, or that the government of which he is an accredited representative is not a member of such international organization, and the members of his immediate family;
(iv) officers, or employees of such international organizations, and the members of their immediate families;
(v) attendants, servants, and personal employees of any such representative, officer, or employee, and the members of the immediate families of such attendants, servants, and personal employees;
(H) an alien having a residence in a foreign country which he has no intention of abandoning (i) who is of distinguished merit and ability and who is coming temporarily to the United States to perform temporary services of an exceptional nature requiring such merit and ability; or (ii) who is coming temporarily to the United States to perform other temporary services or labor, if unemployed persons capable of performing such service or labor cannot be found in this country; or (iii) who is coming temporarily to the United States as an industrial trainee;
(I) upon a basis of reciprocity, an alien who is a bona fide representative of foreign press, radio, film, or other foreign information media, who seeks to enter the United States solely to engage in such vocation, and the spouse and children of such a representative, if accompanying of following to join him.
(16) The term "immigrant visa" means an immigrant visa required by this Act and properly issued by a consular officer at his office outside of the United States to an eligible immigrant under the provisions of this Act.
(17) The term "immigration laws" includes this Act and all laws, conventions, and treaties of the United States relating to the immigration, exclusion, deportation, or expulsion of aliens.
(18) The term "immigration officer" means any employee or class of employees of the Service or of the United States designated by the Attorney General, individually or by regulation, to perform the functions of an immigration officer specified by this Act or any section thereof.
(19) The term "ineligible to citizenship," when used in reference to any individual, means, notwithstanding the provisions of any treaty relating to military service, an individual who is, or was at any time, permanently debarred from becoming a citizen of the United States under section 3 (a) of the Selective Training and Service Act of 1940, as amended (54 Stat. 885; 55 Stat. 844), or under section 4 (a) of the Selective Service Act of 1948, as amended (62 Stat. 605;65 Stat.76), or under any section of this Act, or any other Act, or under any law amendatory of, supplementary to, or in substitution for, any of such sections or Acts.
(20) The term "lawfully admitted for permanent residence" means the status of having been lawfully accorded the privilege of residing permanently in the United States as an immigrant in accordance with the immigration laws, such status not having changed.
(21) The term "national" means a person owing permanent allegiance to a state.
(22) The term "national of the United States" means (A) a citizen of the United States, or (B) a person who, though not a citizen of the United States owes permanent allegiance to the United States.
(23) The term "naturalization" means the conferring of nationality of a state upon a person after birth, by any means whatsoever.
(24) The term "naturalization court", unless otherwise particularly described, means a court authorized by section 310 (a) of title III to exercise naturalization jurisdiction.
(25) The term "noncombatant service" shall not include service in which the individual is not subject to military discipline, court martial, or does not wear the uniform of any branch of the armed forces.
(26) The term "nonimmigrant visa" means a visa properly issued to an alien as an eligible nonimmigrant by a competent officer as provided in this Act.
(27) The term "nonquota immigrant" means-
(A) an immigrant who is the child or the spouse of a citizen of the United States;
(B) an immigrant, lawfully admitted for permanent residence, who is returning from a temporary visit abroad;
(C) an immigrant who was born in Canada, the Republic of Mexico, the Republic of Cuba, the Republic of Haiti, the Dominican Republic, the Canal Zone, or an independent country of Central of South America, and the spouse or the child of any such immigrant, if accompanying or following to join him;
(D) an immigrant who was a citizen of the United States and may, under section 324 (a) or 327 of title III, apply for reacquisition of citizenship;
(E) an immigrant included within the second proviso to section 349 (a) (1) of title III;
(F) (i) an immigrant who continuously for at least two years immediately preceding the time of his application for admission to the United States has been, and who seeks to enter the United States solely for the purpose of carrying on the vocation of minister of a religious denomination, and whose services are needed by such religious denomination having a bona fide organization in the United States; and (ii) the spouse or the child of any such immigrant, if accompanying or following to join him; or
(G) an immigrant who is an employee, or an honorably retired former employee, of the United States Government abroad, and who has performed faithful service for a total of fifteen years, or more, and his accompanying spouse and children; Provided, That the principal officer of a Foreign Service establishment, in his discretion, shall have recommended the granting of nonquota status to such alien in exceptional circumstances and the Secretary of State approves such recommendation and finds that it is in the national interest to grant such status.
(28) The term "organization" means, but is not limited to, an organization, corporation, company, partnership, association, trust, foundation or fund; and includes a group of persons, whether or not incorporated, permanently or temporarily associated together with joint action on any subject or subjects.
(29) The term "outlying possessions of the United States" means American Samoa and Swains Island.
(30) The term "passport" means any travel document issued by competent authority showing the bearer's origin, identity, and nationality if any, which is valid for the entry of the bearer into a foreign country.
(31) The term "permanent" means a relationship of continuing or lasting nature, as distinguished from temporary, but a relationship may be permanent even though it is one that may be dissolved eventually at the instance either of the United States or of the individual, in accordance with law.
(32) The term "quota immigrant" means any immigrant who is not a nonquota immigrant. An alien who is not particularly specified in this Act as a nonquota immigrant or a nonimmigrant shall not be admitted or considered in any manner to be either a nonquota immigrant or a nonimmigrant notwithstanding his relationship to any individual who is so specified or by reason of being excepted from the operation of any other law regulating or forbidding immigration.
(33) The term "residence" means the place of general abode; the place of general abode of a person his principal, actual dwelling place in fact, without regard to intent. Residence shall be considered continuous for the purposes of sections 350 and 352 of title III where there is a continuity of stay but not necessarily an uninterrupted physical presence in a foreign state or states or outside the United States.
(34) The term "Service" means the Immigration and Naturalization Service of the Department of Justice.
(35) The term "spouse", "wife", or "husband" do not include a spouse, wife, or husband by reason of any marriage ceremony where the contracting parties thereto are not physically present in the presence of each other, unless the marriage shall have been consummated.
(36) The term "State" includes (except as used in section 310 (a) of title III) Alaska, Hawaii, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands of the United States.
(37) The term "totalitarian party" means an organization which advocates the establishment in the United States of a totalitarian dictatorship or totalitarianism. The terms "totalitarian dictatorship" and "totalitarianism" mean and refer to systems of government not representative in fact, characterized by (A) the existence of a single political party, organized on a dictatorial basis, with so close an identity between such party and its policies and the governmental policies of the country in which it exists, that the party and the government constitute an indistinguishable unit, and (B) the forcible suppression of opposition to such party.
(38) The term "United States", except as otherwise specifically herein provided, when used in a geographical sense, means the continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands of the United States.
(39) The term "unmarried", when used in reference to any individual as of any time, means an individual who at such time is not married, whether or not previously married.
(40) The term "world communism" means a revolutionary movement, the purpose of which is to establish eventually a Communist totalitarian dictatorship in any or all the countries of the world through the medium of an internationally coordinated Communist political movement.
(b) As used in titles I and II-
(1) The term "child" means an unmarried person under twenty-one years of age who is-
(A) a legitimate child; or
(B) a stepchild, provided the child had not reached the age of eighteen years at the time the marriage creating the status of stepchild occurred; or
(C) a child legitimated under the law of the child's residence or domicile, or under the law of the father's residence or domicile, whether in or outside the United States, if such legitimation takes place before the child reaches the age of eighteen years and the child is in the legal custody of the legitimating parent or parents at the time of such legitimation.
(2) The term "parent", "father", or "mother" mean a parent, father, or mother only where the relationship exists by reason of any of the circumstances set forth in (1) above.
(3) The term "person" means an individual or an organization.
(4) The term "special inquiry officer" means any immigration officer who the Attorney General deems specially qualified to conduct specified classes of proceedings, in whole or in part, required by this Act to be conducted by or before a special inquiry officer and who is designated and selected by the Attorney General, individually or by regulation, to conduct such proceedings. Such special inquiry officer shall be subject to such supervision and shall perform such duties, not inconsistent with this Act, as the Attorney General shall prescribe.
(5) The term "adjacent islands" includes Saint Pierre, Miquelon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Bermuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Jamaica, the Windward and Leeward Islands, Trinidad, Martinique, and other British, French, and Netherlands territory or possessions in or bordering on the Caribbean Sea.
(c) As used in title III-
(1) The term "child" means an unmarried person under twenty-one years of age and includes a child legitimated under the law of the child's residence or domicile, or under the law of the father's residence or domicile, whether in the United States or elsewhere, and, except as otherwise provided in sections 320, 321, 322, and 323 of title III, a child adopted in the United States, if such legitimation or adoption takes place before the child reaches the age of sixteen years, and the child is in the legal custody of the legitimating or adopting parent or parents at the time of such legitimation or adoption.
(2) The terms "parent", "father", and "mother" include in the case of posthumous child a deceased parent, father, and mother.
(d) As used in chapter 3 of III-
(1) The term "veteran" means a person who served in the armed forces of the United States at any time in an active-duty status during the period from April 21, 1898, to August 12, 1898, or from April 6, 1917, to November 11, 1918, or from December 7, 1941, to December 31, 1946, all dates inclusive, and who was discharged therefrom under honorable conditions. The records of the armed forces shall be conclusive as to type of a discharge and as to whether the conditions under which a discharge was given were honorable.
(2) (A) The term "Spanish-American War" relates to the period from April 12, 1898, to August 12, 1898; (B) the term "World War I" relates to the period from April 6, 1917, to November 11, 1918; and (C) the term "World War II" relates to the period from December 7, 1941, to December 31, 1946, all dates inclusive.
(e) For the purposes of this Act-
(1) The giving, loaning, or promising of support or of money or any other thing of value to be used for advocating any doctrine shall constitute the advocating of such doctrine; but nothing in this paragraph shall be construed as an exclusive definition of advocating.
(2) The giving, loaning, or promising of support or of money or any other thing of value for any purpose to any organization shall be presumed to constitute affiliation therewith; but nothing in this paragraph shall be construed as an exclusive definition of affiliation.
(3) Advocating the economic, international, and governmental doctrines of world communism means advocating the establishment of a totalitarian Communist dictatorship in any or all of the countries of the world through the medium of an internationally coordinated Communist movement.
(f) For the purposes of this Act-
No person shall be regarded as, or found to be, a person of good moral character who, during the period for which good moral character is required to be established, is, or was-
(1) a habitual drunkard;
(2) one who during such period has committed adultery;
(3) a member of one or more of the classes of persons, whether excludable or not, described in paragraphs (11), (12), and (31) of section 212 (a) of this Act; or paragraphs (9), (10), and (23) of section 212 (a), if the offense described therein, for which such person was convicted or of which he admits the commission, was committed during such period;
(4) one whose income is derived principally from illegal gambling activities;
(5) one who has been convicted of two or more gambling offenses committed during such period;
(6) one who has given false testimony for the purpose of obtaining any benefits under this Act;
(7) one who during such period has been confined, as a result of conviction, to a penal institution for an aggregate period of one hundred and eighty days or more, regardless of whether the offense, or offenses, for which he has been confined were committed within or without such period;
(8) one who at any time has been convicted of the crime of murder.
The fact that any person is not within any of the foregoing classes shall not preclude a finding that for other reasons such person is or was not of good moral character.
(g) For the purposes of this Act any alien ordered deported (whether before or after the enactment of this Act) who has left the United States, shall be considered to have been deported in pursuance of law, irrespective of the source from which the expenses of his transportation were defrayed or of the place to which he departed.
Applicability of Title II to Certain Nonimmigrants
Sec. 102. Except as otherwise provided in this Act, for so long as they continue in the nonimmigrant classes enumerated in this section, the provisions of this Act relating to ineligibility to receive visas and the exclusion or deportation of aliens shall not be construed to apply to nonimmigrants-
(1) within the class described in paragraph (15) (A) (i) of section 101 (a), except those provisions relating to reasonable requirements of passports and visas as a means of identification and documentation necessary to establish their qualifications under such paragraph (15) (A) (i), and, under such rules and regulations as the President may deem to be necessary, the provisions of paragraph (27) of section 212 (a);
(2) within the class described in paragraph (15) (G) (i) of section 101 (a), except those provisions relating to reasonable requirement of passports and visas as a means of identification and documentation necessary to establish their qualifications under such paragraph (15) (G) (i), and the provisions of paragraph (27) of section 212 (a); and
(3) within the classes described in paragraphs (15) (A) (ii), (15 (G) (ii), (15) (G) (iii), or (15) (G) (iv) of section 101 (a), except those provisions relating to reasonable requirements of passports and visas as a means of identification and documentation necessary to establish their qualifications under such paragraphs, and the provisions of paragraphs (27) and (29) of section 212 (a).
Powers and Duties of the Attorney General and the Commissioner
Sec. 103. (a) The Attorney General shall be charged with the administration and enforcement of this Act and all other laws relating to the immigration and naturalization of aliens, except insofar as this Act or such laws relate to the powers, functions, and duties conferred upon the President, the Secretary of State, the officers of the Department of State, or diplomatic or consular officers: Provided, however, That determination and ruling by the Attorney General with respect to all questions of law shall be controlling. He shall have control, direction, and supervision of all employees and of all the files and records of the Service. He shall establish such regulations; prescribe such forms of bond, reports, entries, and other papers; issue such instructions; and perform such other acts as he deems necessary for carrying out his authority under the provisions of this Act. He is authorized, in accordance with the civil- service laws and regulations and the Classification Act of 1949, to appoint such employees of the Service as he deems necessary, and to delegate to them or to any officer or employee of the Department of Justice in his discretion any of the duties and powers imposed upon him in this Act; he may require or authorize any employee of the Service or the Department of Justice to perform or exercise any of the power, privileges, or duties conferred or imposed by this Act or regulations issued thereunder upon any other employee of the Service. He shall have the power and duty to control and guard the boundaries and borders of the United States against the illegal entry of aliens and shall, in his discretion, appoint for that purpose such number of employees of the Services as to him shall appear necessary and proper. He is authorized to confer or impose upon any employee of the United States, with the consent of the head of the Department or other independent establishment under whose jurisdiction the employee is serving, any of the powers, privileges, or duties conferred or imposed by this Act or regulations issued thereunder upon officers or employees of the Service. He may, with the concurrence of the Secretary of State, establish offices of the Service in foreign countries; and, after consultation with the Secretary of State, he may, whenever in his judgment such action may be necessary to accomplish the purposes of this Act, detail employees of the Service for duty in foreign countries.
(b) The Commissioner shall be a citizen of the United States and shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and shall receive compensation at the rate of $17,500 per annum. He shall be charged with any and all responsibilities and authority in the administration of the Service and of this Act which are conferred upon the Attorney General as may be delegated to him by the Attorney Generally or which may be prescribed by the Attorney General.
Powers and Duties of the Secretary of State; Bureau of Security and Consular Affairs
Sec. 104. (a) The Secretary of State shall be charged with the administration and the enforcement of the provisions of this Act and all other immigration and nationality laws relating to (1) the powers, duties and functions of diplomatic and consular officers of the United States, except those powers, duties and functions conferred upon the consular officers relating to the granting or refusal of visas; (2) the powers, duties and functions of the Bureau of Security and Consular Affairs; and (3) the determination of nationality of a person not in the United States. He shall establish such regulations; prescribe such forms of reports, entries and other papers; issue such instructions; and perform such other acts as he deems necessary for carrying out such provisions. He is authorized to confer or impose upon any employee of the United States, with the consent of the head of the department or independent establishment under whose jurisdiction the employee is serving, any of the powers, functions, or duties conferred or imposed by this Act or regulations issued thereunder upon officers or employees of the Department of State or of the American Foreign Service.
(b) There is hereby established in the Department of State a Bureau of Security and Consular Affairs, to be headed by an administrator (with an appropriate title to be designated by the Secretary of State), with rank and compensation equal to that of an Assistant Secretary of State. The administrator shall be a citizen of the United States, qualified by experience, and shall maintain close liaison with the appropriate committees of Congress in order that they may be advised regarding the administration of this Act by consular officers. He shall be charged with any and all responsibility and authority in the administration of the Bureau and of this Act which are conferred on the Secretary of State a may be delegated to him by the Secretary of State or which may be prescribed by the Secretary of State. He shall also perform such other duties as the Secretary of State may prescribe.
(c) Within the Bureau there shall be a Passport Office, a Visa Office, and such other offices as the Secretary of State may deem to be appropriate, each office to be headed by a director. The Directors of the Passport Office and the Visa Office shall be experienced in the administration of the nationality and immigration laws.
(d) The functions heretofore performed by the Passport Division and the Visa Division of the Department of State shall hereafter be performed by the Passport Office and the Visa Office, respectively, of the Bureau of Security and Consular Affairs.
(e) There shall be a General Counsel of the Visa Office, who shall be appointed by the Secretary of State and who shall serve under the general direction of the Legal Adviser of the Department of State. The General Counsel shall have authority to maintain liaison with the appropriate officers of the Service with a view to securing uniform interpretations of the provisions of this Act.
(f) The Bureau shall be under the immediate jurisdiction of the Deputy Under Secretary of State for Administration.
Liaison with Internal Security Officers
Sec. 105. The Commissioner and the administrator shall have authority to maintain direct and continuous liaison with the Directors of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Central Intelligence Agency and with other internal security officers of the Government for the purpose of obtaining and exchanging information for use in enforcing the provisions of this Act in the interest of the internal security of the United States. The Commissioner and the administrator shall maintain direct and continuous liaison with each other with a review to a coordinated, uniform, and efficient administration of this Act, and all other immigration and nationality laws.
Numerical Limitations; Annual Quota Based upon National Origin; Minimum Quotas
Sec. 201. (a) The annual quota of any quota area shall be one-sixth of 1 per centum of the number of inhabitants in the continental United States in 1920, which number, except for the purpose of computing quotas for quota areas within the Asia-Pacific triangle, shall be the same number heretofore determined under the provisions of section 11 of the Immigration Act of 1924, attributable by national origin to such quota area: Provided, That the quota existing for Chinese persons prior to the date of enactment of this Act shall be continued, and, except as otherwise provided in section 202 (e), the minimum quota for any quota area shall be one hundred.
(b) The determination of the annual quota of any quota area shall be made by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Attorney General, jointly. Such officials shall, jointly, report to the President the quota of each quota area, and the President shall proclaim and make known the quotas so reported. Such determination and report shall be made and such proclamation shall be issued as soon as practicable after the date of enactment of this Act. Quotas proclaimed therein shall take effect on the first day of the fiscal year, or the next fiscal half year, next following the expiration of six months after the date of the proclamation, and until such date the existing quotas proclaimed under the Immigration Act of 1924 shall remain in effect. After the making of a proclamation under this subsection the quotas proclaimed therein shall continue with the same effect as if specifically stated herein and shall be final and conclusive for every purpose, except (1) insofar as it is made to appear to the satisfaction of such officials and proclaimed by the President, that an error of fact has occurred in such determination or in such proclamation, or (2) in the case provided for in section 202 (e).
(c) There shall be issued to quota immigrants chargeable to any quota (1) no more immigrant visas in any fiscal year than the quota for such year, and (2) in any calendar month of any fiscal year, no more immigrant visas than 10 per centum of the quota for such year; except that during the last two months of any fiscal year immigrant visas may be issued without regard to the 10 per centum limitation contained herein.
(d) Nothing in this Act shall prevent the issuance (without increasing the total number of quota immigrant visas which may be issued) of an immigrant visa to an immigrant as a quota immigrant even though he is a nonquota immigrant.
(e) The quota numbers available under the annual quotas of each quota area proclaimed under this Act shall be reduced by the number of quota numbers which have been ordered to be deducted from the annual quotas authorized prior to the effective date of the annual quotas proclaimed under this Act under-
(1) section 19 (c) of the Immigration Act of 1917, as amended;
(2) the Displaced Persons Act of 1948, as amended; and
(3) any other Act of Congress enacted prior to the effective date of the quotas proclaimed under this Act.
Determination of Quota to which an Immigrant is Chargeable
Sec. 202. (a) Each independent country, self-governing dominion, mandated territory, and territory under the international trusteeship system of the United Nations, other than the United States and its outlying possessions and the countries specified in section 101(a) (27) (C), shall be treated as a separate quota area when approved by the Secretary of State. All other inhabited lands shall be attributed to a quota area specified by the Secretary of State. For the purposes of this Act, the annual quota to which an immigrant is chargeable shall be determined by birth within a quota area, except that-
(1) an alien child, when accompanied by his alien parent or parents may be charged to the quota of the accompanying parent or of either accompanying parent if such parent has received or would be qualified for an immigrant visa, if necessary to prevent the separation of the child from the accompanying parent or parents, and if the quota to which such parent has been or would be chargeable is not exhausted for that fiscal year;
(2) if an alien is chargeable to a different quota from that of his accompanying spouse, the quota to which such alien is chargeable may, if necessary to prevent the separation of husband and wife, be determined by the quota of the accompanying spouse, if such spouse has received or would be qualified for an immigrant visa and if the quota to which such spouse has been or would be chargeable is not exhausted for that fiscal year;
(3) an alien born in the United States shall be considered as having been born in the country of which he is a citizen or subject, or if he is not a citizen or subject of any country then in the last foreign country in which he had his residence as determined by the consular officer;
(4) an alien born within any quota area in which neither of his parents was born and in which neither of his parents had a residence at the time of such alien's birth may be charged to the quota area of either parent;
(5) notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) of this subsection, any alien who is attributable by as much as one-half of his ancestry to a people or peoples indigenous to the Asia-Pacific triangle defined in subsection (b) of this section, unless such alien is entitled to a nonquota immigrant status under paragraph (27) (A), (27) (B), (27) (D), (27) (E), (27) (F), or (27) (G) of section 101 (a), shall be chargeable to a quota as specified in subsection (b) of this section: Provided, That the child of an alien defined in section 101 (a) (27) (C), if accompanying or following to join him, shall be classified under section 101 (a) (27) (C), notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (b) of this section.
(b) With reference to determination of the quota to which shall be chargeable an immigrant who is attributable by as much as one-half of his ancestry to a people or peoples indigenous to the Asia-Pacific triangle comprising all quota areas and all colonies and other dependent areas situate wholly east of the meridian sixty degrees east of Greenwich, wholly west of the meridian one hundred and sixty-five degrees west, and wholly north of the parallel twenty-five degrees south latitude-
(1) there is hereby established, in addition to quotas for separate quota areas comprising independent countries, self-governing dominions, and territories under the international trusteeship system of the United Nations situate wholly within said Asia-Pacific triangle, an Asia-Pacific quota of one hundred annually, which quota shall not be subject to the provisions of subsection (e);
(2) such immigrant born within a separate quota area situate wholly within such Asia-Pacific triangle shall not be chargeable to the Asia-Pacific quota, but shall be chargeable to the quota for the separate quota area in which he was born;
(3) such immigrant born within a colony or other dependent area situate wholly within said Asia- Pacific triangle shall be chargeable to the Asia-Pacific quota;
(4) such immigrant born outside the Asia-Pacific triangle who is attributable by as much as one- half of his ancestry to a people or peoples indigenous to not more than one separate quota area, situate wholly within the Asia-Pacific triangle, shall be chargeable to the quota of that quota area;
(5) such immigrant born outside the Asia-Pacific triangle who is attributable by as much as one- half of his ancestry to a people or peoples indigenous to one or more colonies or other dependent areas situate wholly within the Asia-Pacific triangle, shall be chargeable to the Asia-Pacific quota;
(6) such immigrant born outside the Asia-Pacific triangle who is attributable by as much as one- half of his ancestry to peoples indigenous to two or more separate quota areas situate wholly within the Asia-Pacific triangle, or to a quota area or areas and one or more colonies and other dependent areas situate wholly therein, shall be chargeable to the Asia-Pacific quota.
(c) Any immigrant born in a colony or other component or dependent area of a governing country for which no separate or specific quota has been established, unless a nonquota immigrant as provided in section 101 (a) (27) of this Act, shall be chargeable to the quota of the governing country, except that (1) not more than one hundred persons born in any one such colony or other component or dependent area overseas from the governing country shall be chargeable to the quota of its governing country in any one year, and (2) any such immigrant, if attributable by as much as one-half of his ancestry to a people or peoples indigenous to the Asia-Pacific triangle, shall be chargeable to a quota as provided in subsection (b) of this section.
(d) The provision of an immigration quota for a quota area shall not constitute recognition by the United States of the political transfer of territory from one country to another, or recognition of a government not recognized by the United States.
(e) After the determination of quotas has been made as provided in section 201, revision of the quotas shall be made by the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Attorney General, jointly, whenever necessary, to provide for any change of boundaries resulting in transfer of territory from one sovereignty to another, a change of administrative arrangements of a colony or other dependent area, or any other political change, requiring a change in the list of quota areas or of the territorial limits thereof, but any increase in the number of minimum quota areas above twenty within the Asia-Pacific triangle shall result in a proportionate decrease in each minimum quota of such area in order that the sum total of all minimum quotas within the Asia-Pacific triangle shall not exceed two thousand. In the case of any change in the territorial limits of quota areas, not requiring a change in the quotas for such areas, the Secretary of State shall, upon recognition of such change, issue appropriate instructions to all consular offices concerning the change in the territorial limits of the quota area involved.
Allocation of Immigrant Visas within Quotas
Sec. 203. (a) Immigrant visas to quota immigrants shall be allotted in each fiscal year as follows:
(1) The first 50 per centum of the quota of each quota area for such year, plus any portion of such quota not required for the issuance of immigrant visas to the classes specified in paragraphs (2) and (3), shall be made available for the issuance of immigrant visas (A) to qualified quota immigrants whose services are determined by the Attorney General to be needed urgently in the United States because of the high education, technical training, specialized experience, or exceptional ability of such immigrants and to be substantially beneficial prospectively to the national economy, cultural interests, or welfare of the United States, and (B) to qualified quota immigrants who are the spouse or children of any immigrant described in clause (A) if accompanying him.
(2) The next 30 per centum of the quota for each quota area for such year, plus any portion of such quota not required for the issuance of immigrant visas to the classes specified in paragraphs (1) and (3), shall be made available for the issuance of immigrant visas to qualified quota immigrants who are the parents of citizens of the United States, such citizens being at least twenty-one years of age.
(3) The remaining 20 per centum of the quota for each quota area for such year, plus any portion of such quota not required for the issuance of immigrant visas to the classes specified in paragraphs (1) and (2), shall be made available for the issuance of immigrant visas to qualified quota immigrants who are the spouses or the children of aliens lawfully admitted for permanent residence.
(4) Any portion of the quota for each quota area for such year not required for the issuance of immigrant visas to the classes specified in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) shall be made available for the issuance of immigrant visas to other qualified quota immigrants chargeable to such quota. Qualified quota immigrants of each quota area who are the brothers, sisters, sons, or daughters of citizens of the United States shall be entitled to a preference of not exceeding 25 per centum of the immigrant visas available for issuance for each quota area under this paragraph.
(b) Quota immigrant visas issued pursuant to paragraph (1) of subsection (a) shall, in the case of each quota area, be issued to eligible quota immigrants in the order in which a petition on behalf of each such immigrant is filed with the Attorney General as provided in section 204; and shall be issued in the first calendar month after receipt of notice of approval of such petition in which a quota number is available for an immigrant chargeable to such quota area.
(c) Quota immigrant visas issued to aliens in the classes designated in paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) of subsection (a) shall, in the case of each quota, be issued to qualified quota immigrants strictly in the chronological order in which such immigrants are registered in each class on quota waiting lists which shall be maintained for each quota in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Secretary of State.
(d) In determining the order for consideration of applications for quota immigrant visas under subsection (a), consideration shall be given first to applications under paragraph (1), second to applications under paragraph (2), third to applications under paragraph (3), and fourth to applications under paragraph (4).
(e) Every immigrant shall be presumed to be a quota immigrant until he establishes to the satisfaction of the consular officer, at the time of application for a visa, and to the immigration officers, at the time of application for admission, that he is a nonquota immigrant. Every quota immigrant shall be presumed to be a nonpreference quota immigrant until he establishes to the satisfaction of the consular officer and the immigration officers that he is entitled to a preference quota status under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of subsection (a) or to a preference under paragraph (4) of such subsection.
Procedure for Granting Immigrant Status under Section 101 (a) (27) (F) (i) or Section 203 (a) (1) (A)
Sec. 204. (a) In the case of any alien claiming in his application for an immigrant visa to be entitled to an immigrant status under section 101 (a) (27) (F) (i) or section 203 (a) (1) (A), the consular officer shall not grant such status until he has been authorized to do so as provided in this section.
(b) Any person, institution, firm, organization, or governmental agency desiring to have an alien classified as an immigrant under section 101 (a) (27) (F) (i) or section 203 (a) (1) (A) shall file a petition with the Attorney General for such classification of the alien. The petition shall be in such form as the Attorney General may by regulations prescribed and shall state the basis for the need of the services of such alien and contain such additional information and be supported by such documentary evidence as may be required by the Attorney General. The petition shall be made under oath administered by any individual having authority to administer oaths, if executed in the United States, but, if executed outside the United States, administered by a consular officer.
(c) After an investigation of the facts in each case, and after consultation with appropriate agencies of the Government, the Attorney General shall, if he determines that the facts stated in the petition are true and that the alien in respect of whom the petition is made is eligible for an immigrant status under section 101(a) (27) (F) (i) or section 203(a) (1) (A), approve the petition and forward one copy thereof to the Department of State. The Secretary of State shall then authorize the consular officer concerned to grant such immigrant status.
(d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to entitle an immigrant, in respect of whom a petition under this section is approved, to enter the United States as an immigrant under section 101 (a) (27) (F) (i) or section 203 (a) (1) (A) if upon his arrival at a port of entry in the United States he is found not to be entitled to such classification.
Procedure for Granting Nonquota Status or Preference by Reason or Relationship
Sec. 205. (a) In the case of any alien claiming in his application for an immigrant visa to be entitled to a nonquota immigrant status under section 101 (a) (27) (A), or to a quota immigrant status under section 203 (a) (2) or 203 (a) (3), or to a preference under section 203 (a) (4), the consular officer shall not grant such status or preference until he has been authorized to do so provided in this section.
(b) Any citizen of the United States claiming that any immigrant is his spouse or child and that such immigrant is entitled to a nonquota immigrant status under section 101 (a) (27) (A), or any citizen of the United States claiming that any immigrant is his parent and that such immigrant is entitled to a quota immigrant status under section 203 (a) (2), or any alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence claiming that any immigrant is his spouse or child and that such immigrant is entitled to a quota immigrant status under section 203 (a) (3), or any citizen of the United States claiming that any immigrant is his brother, sister, son, or daughter and that such immigrant is entitled to a preference under section 203 (a) (4) may file a petition with the Attorney General. The petition shall be in such form and shall contain such information and be supported by such documentary evidence as the Attorney General may by regulations prescribe. The petition shall be made under oath administered by any individual having authority to administer oaths, if executed in the United States, but, if executed outside the United States, administered by a consular officer.
(c) After an investigation of the facts in each case the Attorney General shall, if he determines the facts stated in the petition are true and that the alien in respect of whom the petition is made is eligible for a nonquota immigrant status under section 101 (a) (27) (A), or for a quota immigrant status under section 203 (a) (2) or 203 (a) (3), or for a preference under section 203 (a) (4), approve the petition and forward one copy thereof to the Department of State. The Secretary of State shall then authorize the consular officer concerned to grant the nonquota immigrant status, quota immigrant status, or preference, as the case may be.
(d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to entitle an immigrant, in respect of whom a petition under this section is approved, to enter the United States as a nonquota immigrant under section 101 101 (a) (27) (A) if upon his arrival at a port of entry in the United States he is found not to be entitled to such classification, or to enter the United States as a quota immigrant under section 203 (a) (2) or 203 (a) (3) if upon his arrival at a port of entry in the United States he is found not to be entitled to such classification, or to enter the United States as a preference quota immigrant under section 203 (a) (4) if upon his arrival at a port of entry in the United States he is found not to be entitled to such preference.
Revocation of Approval of Petitions
Sec. 206. The Attorney General may, at any time, for what he deems to be good and sufficient cause, revoke the approval of any petition approved by him under section 204, section 205, or section 214 (c) of this title. Such revocation shall be effective as of the date of approval of any such petition. In no case, however, shall such revocation have effect unless there is mailed to the petitioner's last known address a notice of the revocation and unless notice of the revocation is communicated through the Secretary of State to the beneficiary of the petition before such beneficiary commences his journey to the United States. If notice of revocation is not so given, and the beneficiary applies for admission to the United States, his admissibility shall be determined in the manner provided for by sections 235 and 236.
Unused Quota Immigrant Visas
Sec. 207. If a quota immigrant having an immigrant visa is excluded from admission to the United States and deported, or does not apply for admission to the United States before the expiration of the validity of the immigrant visa, or if an alien having an immigrant visa issued to him as a quota immigrant is found not to be a quota immigrant, no immigrant visa shall be issued in lieu thereof to any other immigrant.
Sec. 211. (a) No immigrant shall be admitted into the United States unless at the time of application for admission he (1) has a valid unexpired immigrant visa or was born subsequent to the issuance of such immigrant visa of the accompanying parent, (2) is properly chargeable to the quota specified in the immigrant visa, (3) is a nonquota immigrant if specified as such in the immigrant visa, (4) is of the proper status under the quota specified in the immigrant visa, and (5) is otherwise admissible under this Act.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 212 (a) (20) of this Act, in such cases or in such classes of cases and under such conditions as may be by regulations prescribed, otherwise admissible aliens lawfully admitted for permanent residence who depart from the United States temporarily may be readmitted to the United States by the Attorney General in his discretion without being required to obtain a passport, immigrant visa, reentry permit or other documentation.
(c) The Attorney General may in his discretion, subject to subsection (d), admit to the United States any otherwise admissible immigrant not admissible under clause (2), (3), or (4) of subsection (a), if satisfied that such inadmissibility was not known to and could not have been ascertained by the exercise of reasonable diligence by, such immigrant prior to the departure of the vessel or aircraft from the last port outside the United States and outside foreign contiguous territory, or, in the case of an immigrant coming from foreign contiguous territory, prior to the application of the immigrant for admission.
(d) No quota immigrant within clause (2) or (3) of subsection (a) shall be admitted under subsection (c) if the entire number of immigrant visas which may be issued to quota immigrants under the same quota for the fiscal year, or the next fiscal year, has already been issued. If such entire number of immigrant visas has not been issued, the Secretary of State, upon notification by the Attorney General of the admission under subsection (c) of a quota immigrant within clause (2) or (3) of subsection (a), shall reduce by one the number of immigrant visas which may be issued to quota immigrants under the same quota during the fiscal year in which such immigrant is admitted, or, if the entire number of immigrant visas which may be issued to quota immigrants under the same quota for the fiscal year has been issued, then during the next following fiscal year.
(e) Every alien making application for admission as an immigrant shall present a valid unexpired passport, or other suitable travel document, or document of identity and nationality, if such document is required under the regulations issued by the Attorney General.
General Classes of Aliens Ineligible to Receive Visas and Excluded from Admission
Sec. 212. (a) Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the following classes of aliens shall be ineligible to receive visas and shall be excluded from admission into the United States:
(1) Aliens who are feeble-minded;
(2) Aliens who are insane;
(3) Aliens who have had one or more attacks of insanity;
(4) Aliens afflicted with psychopathic personality, epilepsy, or a mental defect;
(5) Aliens who are narcotic drug addicts or chronic alcoholics;
(6) Aliens who are afflicted with tuberculosis in any form, or with leprosy, or any dangerous contagious disease;
(7) Aliens not comprehended within any of the foregoing classes who are certified by the examining surgeon as having a physical defect, disease, or disability, when determined by the consular or immigration officer to be of such a nature that it may affect the ability of the alien to earn a living, unless the alien affirmatively establishes that he will not have to earn a living;
(8) Aliens who are paupers, professional beggars, or vagrants;
(9) Aliens who have been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude (other than a purely political offense), or aliens who admit having committed such a crime, or aliens who admit committing acts which constitute the essential elements of such a crime; except that aliens who have committed only one such crime while under the age of eighteen years may be granted a visa and admitted if the crime was committed more than five years prior to the date of the application for a visa or other documentation, and more than five years prior to date of application for admission to the United States, unless the crime resulted confinement in a prison or correctional institution, in which case such alien must have been released from such confinement more than five years prior to the date of the application for a visa or other documentation, and for admission, to the United States;
(10) Aliens who have been convicted of two or more offenses (other than purely political offenses), regardless of whether the conviction was in a single trial or whether the offenses arose from a single scheme of misconduct and regardless of whether the offenses involved moral turpitude, for which the aggregate sentences to confinement actually imposed were five years or more;
(11) Aliens who are polygamists or who practice polygamy or advocate the practice of polygamy;
(12) Aliens who are prostitutes or who have engaged in prostitution, or aliens coming to the United States solely, principally, or incidentally to engage in prostitution; aliens who directly or indirectly procure or attempt to procure, or who have procured or attempted to procure or to import, prostitutes or persons for the purpose of prostitution or for any other immoral purpose; and aliens who are or have been supported by, or receive or have received, in whole or in part, the proceeds of prostitution or aliens coming to the United States to engage in any other unlawful commercialized vice, whether or not related to prostitution;
(13) Aliens coming to the United States to engage in any immoral sexual act;
(14) Aliens seeking to enter the United States for the purpose of performing skilled or unskilled labor, if the Secretary of Labor has determined and certified to the Secretary of State and to the Attorney General that (A) sufficient workers in the United States who are able, willing, and qualified are available at the time (of application for a visa and for admission to the United States) and place (to which the alien is destined) to perform such skilled or unskilled labor, or (B) the employment of such aliens will adversely affect the wages and working conditions of the workers in the United States similarly employed. The exclusion of aliens under this paragraph shall apply only to the following classes: (i) those aliens described in the nonpreference category of section 203 (a) (4), (ii) those aliens described in section 101 (a) (27) (C), (27) (D), or (27) (E) (other than the parents, spouses, or children of United States citizens or of aliens lawfully admitted to the United State for permanent residence), unless their services are determined by the Attorney General to be needed urgently in the United States because of the high education, technical training, specialized experience, or exceptional ability of such immigrants and to be substantially beneficial prospectively to the national economy, cultural interest or welfare of the United States;
(15) Aliens who, in the opinion of the consular officer at the time of application for a visa, or in the opinion of the Attorney General at the time of application for admission, are likely at any time to become public charges;
(16) Aliens who have been excluded from admission and deported and who again seek admission within one year from the date of such deportation, unless prior to their reembarkation at a place outside the United States or their attempt to be admitted from foreign contiguous territory the Attorney General has consented to their reapplying for admission;
(17) Aliens who have been arrested and deported, or who have fallen into distress and have been removed pursuant to this or any prior act, or who have been removed as alien enemies, or who have been removed at Government expense in lieu of deportation pursuant to section 242 (b), unless prior to their embarkation or reembarkation at a place outside the United States or their attempt to be admitted from foreign contiguous territory the Attorney General has consented to their applying or reapplying for admission;
(18) Aliens who are stowaways;
(19) Any alien who seeks to procure, or has sought to procure, or has procured a visa or other documentation, or seeks to enter the United States, by fraud, or by willfully misrepresenting a material fact;
(20) Except as otherwise specifically provided in this Act, any immigrant who at the time of application for admission is not in possession of a valid unexpired immigrant visa, reentry permit, border crossing identification card, or other valid entry document required by this Act, and a valid unexpired passport, or other suitable travel document, or document of identity and nationality, if such document
Certificate of Nationality to Be Issued by the Secretary of State for a Person not a Naturalized Citizen of the United States for Use in Proceedings of a Foreign State
Sec. 359. The Secretary of State is hereby authorized to issue, in his discretion and in accordance with rules and regulations prescribed by him, a certificate of nationality for any person not a naturalized citizen of the United States who presents satisfactory evidence that he is an American national and that such certificate is needed for use in judicial or administrative proceedings in a foreign state. Such certificate shall be solely for use in the case for which it was issued and shall be transmitted by the Secretary of State through appropriate official channels to the judicial or administrative officers of the foreign state in which it is to be used.
Proceedings for Declaration of United States Nationality in the Event of Denial of Rights and Privileges as National
Sec. 360. (a) If any person who is within the United States claims a right or privilege as a national of the United States and is denied such right or privilege by any department or independent agency, or official thereof, upon the ground that he is not a national of the United States, such person may institute an action under the provisions of section 2201 of title 28, United States Code, against the head of such department or independent agency for a judgment declaring him to be a national of the United States, except that no such action may be instituted in any case if the issue of such person's status as a national of the United States (1) arose by reason of, or in connection with any exclusion proceeding under the provisions of this or any other act, or (2) is in issue in any such exclusion proceeding. An action under this subsection may be instituted only within five years after the final administrative denial of such right or privilege and shall be filed in the district court of the United States for the district in which such person resides or claims a residence, and jurisdiction over such officials in such cases is hereby conferred upon those courts.
(b) If any person who is not within the United States claims a right or privilege as a national of the United States and is denied such right or privilege by any department or independent agency, or official thereof, upon the ground that he is not a national of the United States, such person may make application to a diplomatic or consular officer of the United States in the foreign country in which he is residing for a certificate of identity for the purpose of traveling to a port of entry in the United States and applying for admission. Upon proof to the satisfaction of such diplomatic or consular officer that such application is made in good faith and has a substantial basis, he shall issue to such person a certificate of identity. From any denial of an application for such certificate the applicant shall be entitled to an appeal to the Secretary of State, who, if he approves the denial, shall state in writing his reasons for his decision. The Secretary of State shall prescribe rules and regulations for the issuance of certificates of identity as above provided. The provisions of this subsection shall be applicable only to a person who at some time prior to his application for the certificate of identity has been physically present in the United States, or to a person under sixteen years of age who was born abroad of a United States citizen parent.
(c) A person who has been issued a certificate of identity under the provisions of subsection (b), and while in possession thereof, may apply for admission to the United States at any port of entry, and shall be subject to all the provisions of this Act relating to the conduct of proceedings involving aliens seeking admission to the United States. A final determination by the Attorney General that any such person is not entitled to admission to the United States shall be subject to review by any court of competent jurisdiction in habeas corpus proceedings and not otherwise. Any person described in this section who is finally excluded from admission to the United States shall be subject to all the provisions of this Act relating to aliens seeking admission to the United States.
Joint Congressional Committee
Sec.401. (a) There is hereby established a joint congressional committee to be known as the Joint Committee on Immigration and Nationality Policy (hereinafter referred to as the "Committee") to be composed of ten members as follows: (1) five members who are members of the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate, three from the majority and two from the minority party to be appointed by the President of the Senate; and (2) five members who are members of the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives, three from the majority and two from the minority party to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
(b) No person shall continue to serve a member of the Committee after he has ceased to be a member of the Committee on the Judiciary of either the Senate or the House of Representatives.
(c) A vacancy in the membership of the Committee shall be filled in the same manner as the original selection and the Committee shall elect a Chairman from among its members.
(d) It shall be the function of the Committee to make a continuous study of (1) the administration of this Act, and its effect on the national security, the economy, and the social welfare of the United States, and (2) such conditions within or without the United States which in the opinion of the Committee might have any bearing on the immigration and nationality policy of the United States.
(e) The Committee shall make from time to time a report to the Senate and the House of Representatives concerning the results of its studies together with such recommendations as it may deem desirable.
(f) The Secretary of State and the Attorney General shall without delay submit to the Committee all regulations, instructions, and all other information as requested by the Committee relative to the administration of this Act; and the Secretary of State and the Attorney General shall consult with the Committee from time to time with respect to their activities under this Act.
(g) The Committee or any duly authorized Subcommittee thereof is authorized to hold such hearings; to sit and act at such times and places; to require by subpena or otherwise the attendance of such witnesses and the production of such books, papers, and documents;, to administer such oaths; to take such testimony; to procure such printing and binding as it deems advisable. The provisions of sections 102 and 104, inclusive, of the Revised Statutes shall apply in case of any failure of any witnesses to comply with any subpena or to testify when summoned under the authority of this Act.
(h) The members of the Committee shall serve without compensation in addition to that received for their services as Members of Congress but they shall be reimbursed for travel, subsistence, and other expenses incurred by them in the performance of the duties vested in the Committee other than expenses in connection with meetings of the Committee held in the District of Columbia during such times as the Congress is in session.
(i) The Committee is authorized, without regard to the civil service laws or the Classification Act of 1949, to appoint and fix the compensation of such clerks, experts, consultants, and clerical and stenographic assistants as it deems necessary and advisable. The Committee is authorized to reimburse the members of its staff for travel, subsistence and the other necessary expenses incurred by them in the performance of the duties vested in the Committee other than expenses in connection with meetings of the Committee held in the District of Columbia during such times as the Congress is in session. The chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives may assign members of the staff of the said committees to serve on the staff of the Committee, without additional compensation, except for the reimbursement of expenses incurred by such staff members as prescribed in this subsection.
(j) The expenses of the Committee shall be paid one-half from the contingent fund of the Senate and one-half from the contingent fund of the House of Representatives, upon vouchers signed by the Chairman of the Committee or by any member of the Committee duly authorized by the Chairman.
(k) This section shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.
Amendments to Other Laws
Sec. 402. (a) Section 1546 of title 18 of the United States Code is amended to read as follows:
Section 1546. Fraud and misuse of visas, permits, and other entry documents
"Whoever, knowingly, forges, counterfeits, alters, or falsely makes any immigrant or nonimmigrant visa, permit, or other document required for entry into the United States, or utters, uses, attempts to use, possesses, obtains, accepts, or receives any such visa, permit, or document, knowing it to be forged, counterfeited altered, or falsely made, or to have been procured by means of any false claim or statement, or to have been otherwise procured by fraud or unlawfully obtained; or
"Whoever, except under direction of the Attorney General or the Commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, or other proper officer, knowingly possesses any blank permit, or engraves, sells, brings into the United States, or has in his control or possession any plate in the likeness of a plate designed for the printing of permits, or makes any print, photograph, or impression in the likeness of any immigrant or nonimmigrant visa, permit, or other document required for entry into the United States, or has in his possession a distinctive paper which has been adopted by the Attorney General or the Commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service for the printing of such visas, permits, or documents; or
"Whoever, when applying for an immigrant or nonimmigrant visa, permit, or other document required for entry into the United States, or for admission to the United States personates another, or falsely appears in the name of a deceased individual, or evades or attempts to evade the immigration laws by appearing under an assumed or fictitious name without disclosing his true identity, or sells or otherwise disposes of, or offers to sell or otherwise dispose of, or utters, such visa, permit, or other document, to any person not authorized by law to receive such document; or
"Whoever knowingly makes under oath any false statement with respect to a material fact in any application, affidavit, or other document required by the immigration laws or regulations prescribed thereunder, or knowingly presents any such application, affidavit, or other document containing any such false statement-
"Shall be fined not more than $2,000 or imprisoned not more than five years, or both."
(b) Chapter 69 of title 18, United States Codes, is amended by adding after section 1428 the following new section:
"Sec. 1429. Penalties for neglect or refusal to answer subpena.
"Any person who has been subpenaed under the provisions of subsection (e) of section 336 of the Immigration and Nationality Act to appear at the final hearing of a petition for naturalization, and who shall neglect or refuse to so appear and to testify, if in the power of such person to do so, shall be fined not more than $5,000 or imprisoned not more than five years, or both."
(c) Section 1114 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by deleting the language "any immigrant inspector or any immigration patrol inspector" and by substituting therefor the language "any immigration officer".
(d) Subsection (c) of section 8 of the Act of June 8, 1938 (52 Stat. 631; 22 U.S.C. 611-621), entitled "An Act to require the registration of certain persons employed by agencies to disseminate propaganda in the United States, and for other purposes", as amended, is hereby further amended by deleting the language "sections 19 and 20 of the Immigration Act of 1917 (39 Stat. 889, 890), as amended." and by substituting therefor the language "sections 241, 242, and 243 of the Immigration and Nationality Act."
(e) Section 4 of the Act of June 30, 1950 (Public Law 597, Eighty-first Congress, second session), entitled "An Act to provide for the enlistment of aliens in the regular army" is amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 4. Notwithstanding the dates or periods of service specified and designated in section 329 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, the provisions of that section are applicable to aliens enlisted or reenlisted pursuant to the provisions of this Act and who have completed five or more years of military service, if honorably discharged therefrom. Any alien enlisted or reenlisted pursuant to the provisions of this Act who subsequently enters the United States, American Samoa, Swains Island, or the Canal Zone, pursuant to military orders shall, if otherwise qualified for citizenship, and after completion of five or more years of military service, if honorably discharged therefrom, be deemed to have been lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence within the meaning of such section 329(a)."
(f) Section 201 of the Act of January 27, 1948 (Public Law 402, Eightieth Congress, second session, 62 Stat. 6) entitled "An Act to promote the better understanding of the United States among the peoples of the world and to strengthen cooperative international relations" is amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 201. The Secretary is authorized to provide for interchanges on a reciprocal basis between the United States and other countries of students, trainees, teachers, guest instructors, professors, and leaders in fields of specialized knowledge or skill and shall wherever possible provide these interchanges by using the services of existing reputable agencies which are successfully engaged in such activity. The Secretary may provide for orientation courses and other appropriate services for such persons from other countries upon their arrival in the United States, and for such persons going to other countries from the United States. When any country fails or refuses to cooperate in such program on a basis of reciprocity the Secretary shall terminate or limit such program, with respect to such country, to the extent he deems to be advisable in the interests of the United States. The persons specified in this section shall be admitted as nonimmigrants under section 101 (a) (15) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, for such time and under such conditions as may be prescribed by regulations promulgated by the Secretary of State and the Attorney General. A person admitted under this section who fails to maintain the status under which he was admitted or who fails to depart from the United States at the expiration of the time for which he was admitted, or who engages in activities of a political nature detrimental to the interest of the United States, or in activities not consistent with the security of the United States, shall, upon the warrant of the Attorney General, be taken into custody and promptly deported pursuant to sections 241, 242, and 243 of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Deportation proceedings under this section shall be summary and the findings of the Attorney General as to matters of fact shall be conclusive. Such persons shall not be eligible for suspension of deportation under section 244 of the Immigration and Nationality Act."
(g) Paragraph 7 of section 1 of the Act of February 4, 1887, as amended (24 Stat. 379; 54 Stat. 899; 62 Stat. 602; 49 U.S.C. 1 (7)), is further amended by deleting the words "immigration inspectors" and by substituting therefor the words "immigration officers".
(h) (1) The first sentence of subsection (c) of section 3 of the Act of June 25, 1948, as amended (62 Stat. 1009; 64 Stat. 219), is amended by deleting therefrom the language "from the immigration quota for the country of the alien's nationality as defined in section 12 of the Immigration Act of May 26, 1924 (8 U.S.C. 212)" and by substituting therefor the language "from the annual quota to which an immigrant is chargeable as provided in section 202 of the Immigration and Nationality Act,".
(2) The second proviso to subsection (c) of section 3 of the Act of June 25, 1948, as amended (62 Stat. 1009; 64 Stat. 219), is amended by deleting the language "as defined in section 6 of the Act of May 26, 1924, as amended (8 U.S.C. 206)," and by substituting therefor "as provided in section 203 (a) (4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act,".
(3) The proviso to section 4 (a) of the Act of June 25, 1948, as amended, is amended by deleting the language "the immigration quota of the country of the alien's nationality as defined in section 12 of the Immigration Act of May 26, 1924," and by substituting therefor the language "the annual quota to which an immigrant is chargeable as provided in section 202 of the Immigration and Nationality Act,".
(4) Section 5 of the Act of June 25, 1948, as amended (62 Stat. 1009; Public Law 60, Eighty- second Congress), is amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 5. The quota to which an alien is chargeable for the purposes of this Act shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of section 202 of the Immigration and Nationality Act and no eligible displaced person shall be issued an immigrant visa if he is known or believed by the consular officer to be subject to exclusion from the United States under any provision of the immigration laws, with the exception of section 212 (a) (14) of the Immigration and Nationality Act; and all eligible displaced persons, eligible displaced orphans and orphans under section 2 (f) shall be exempt from paying visa fees and head taxes."
(5) Section 6 of the Act of June 25, 1948, as amended (62 Stat. 1009; 64 Stat. 219), is further amended by deleting the language "section 6 of the Immigration Act of 1924, as amended (8 U.S.C. 206)," and by substituting therefor the language "section 203 of the Immigration and Nationality Act,". The last sentence of section 6 of the Act of June 25, 1948, is amended by deleting the language "sections 19 and 20 of the Immigration Act of February 5, 1917, as amended." and by substituting therefor the language "sections 241, 242, and 243 of the Immigration and Nationality Act."
(6) The first sentence of subsection (a) of section 12 of the Act of June 25, 1948, as amended (62 Stat. 1009; 64 Stat. 219), is amended by deleting the language "section 12 of the Act of May 26, 1924, as amended," and by substituting therefor the language "section 202 of the Immigration and Nationality Act,". Subsection (b) of section 12 of the Act of June 25, 1948, as amended (62 Stat. 1009; 64 Stat. 219), is amended by deleting the language "section 11 (f) of the Immigration Act of May 26, 1924 (8 U.S.C. 211)," and by substituting therefor the language "section 201 of the Immigration and Nationality Act,". Subsection (b) of section 12 of the Act of June 25, 1948, as amended, is amended by deleting the language "from the immigration quota of the country of nationality of the person who receives the visa as defined in section 12 of the Immigration Act of May 26, 1924 (8 U.S.C. 212)" and by substituting therefor the language "from the annual quota to which the person who receives the visa is chargeable as provided in section 202 of the Immigration and Nationality Act". The last sentence of subsection (c) of section 12 of the Act of June 25, 1948, as amended, is further amended to read as follows:
"Those provisions of section 5 of this Act which relate to section 212 (a) (14) of the Immigration and Nationality Act shall be applicable to persons whose admission is authorized under the provisions of this section."
(i) (1) Section 1 of the Act of March 2, 1931 (46 Stat. 1467; 8 U.S.C.109a), is amended by deleting the word "inspectors" and by substituting therefor the words "immigration officers".
(2) The Act of August 22, 1940 (54 Stat. 858; 8 U.S.C.109c), is amended by deleting the word "inspectors" and by substituting therefor the words "immigration officers".
(j) Public Law 114, Eighty-second Congress, first session, is hereby amended to read as follows:
That a person who, while a citizen of the United States, has lost citizenship of the United States solely by reason of having voted in a political election or plebiscite held in Italy between January 1, 1946, and April 18, 1948, inclusive, and who has not subsequent to such voting committed any act which, had he remained a citizen, would have operated to expatriate him, may be naturalized by taking, prior to two years from the enactment of this Act, before any naturalization court specified in subsection (a) of section 310 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, or before any diplomatic or consular officer of the United States abroad, the oath required by section 337 of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Certified copies of such oath shall be sent by such diplomatic or consular officer or such court to the Department of State and to the Department of Justice. Such person shall have, from and after naturalization under this section, the same citizenship status as that which existed immediately prior to its loss: Provided, That no such person shall be eligible to take the oath required by section 337 of the Immigration and Nationality Act unless he shall first take an oath before any naturalization court specified in subsection (a) of section 310 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, or before any diplomatic or consular officer of the United States abroad, that he has done nothing to promote the cause of communism. The illegal or fraudulent procurement of naturalization under this amendment shall be subject to cancellation in the same manner as provided in section 340 of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
"Sec. 2. The Act of August 7, 1946 (Public Law 614; 60 Stat. 866), is hereby repealed."
Sec. 403. (a) The following Acts and all amendments thereto and parts of Acts and all amendments thereto are repealed:
(1) Section 2164 of the Revised Statutes (8 U.S.C. 135);
(2) Act of February 26, 1885 (23 Stat. 332);
(3) Second paragraph under the heading "Treasury Department" in Act of October 19, 1888 (25 Stat. 567; 8 U.S.C. 140);
(4) Second and fourth sentences of section 7 of the Act of March 3, 1891 (26 Stat. 1085; 8 U.S.C. 101);
(5) Section 8 of Act of March 3, 1893 (27 Stat. 570; 8 U.S.C. 172);
(6) The last paragraph of section 10 of Act of April 30, 1900 (31 Stat. 143; 48 U.S.C. 504);
(7) Section 3 of Act of April 29, 1902 (32 Stat. 177);
(8) The proviso to the paragraph headed "Bureau of Immigration" under caption "Department of Commerce and Labor" in Act of February 3, 1905 (33 Stat. 684);
(9) The proviso to the paragraph headed "Enforcement of Chinese Exclusion Act" under caption "Department of Commerce and Labor" in Act of March 3, 1905 (33 Stat. 1182);
(10) Section 2(e) of Act of February 9, 1909 (35 Stat. 614; 42 Stat. 596; 21 U.S.C. 175);
(11) The last proviso to the first paragraph headed "Expenses of Regulating Immigration" under caption "Department of Commerce and Labor" in the Act of March 4, 1909 (35 Stat. 982; 8 U.S.C. 133);
(12) The proviso to the first paragraph headed "Immigration Service" under caption "Department of Commerce and Labor" in the Act of March 4, 1911 (36 Stat. 1442);
(13) Act of February 5, 1917 (39 Stat. 874);
(14) Section 5b of Act of March 2, 1917 (39 Stat. 951; 48 Stat. 1245; 48 U.S.C. 733a-1);
(15) Act of May 22, 1918 (40 Stat. 559; 22 U.S.C. 223-226b);
(16) Act of October 16, 1918 (40 Stat. 1012; 8 U.S.C. 137);
(17) Joint resolution of October 19, 1918 (40 Stat. 1014);
(18) Act of May 10, 1920 (41 Stat. 593; 8 U.S.C. 157);
(19) Act of December 26, 1920 (41 Stat. 1082; 8 U.S.C. 170);
(20) The proviso to the paragraph headed "Expenses Passport Control Act" in the Act of March 2, 1921 (41 Stat. 1217; 22 U.S.C. 227);
(21) Act of May 19, 1921 (42 Stat. 5);
(22) Joint resolution of December 27, 1922 (42 Stat. 1065);
(23) Act of May 26, 1924 (43 Stat. 153);
(24) Act of February 25, 1925 (43 Stat. 976; 8 U.S.C. 202(i));
(25) The last proviso to the paragraph headed "Bureau of Immigration" in title IV of the Act of February 27, 1925 (43 Stat. 1049; 8 U.S.C. 110);
(26) Section 7 (d) of the Act of May 20, 1926 (44 Stat. 572; 49 U.S.C. 177 (d));
(28) Act of May 26, 1926 (44 Stat. 654; 8 U.S.C. 241-246);
(29) Act of April 2, 1928 (45 Stat. 401; 8 U.S.C. 226a);
(30) Act of March 4, 1929 (45 Stat. 1551; 8 U.S.C. 180-180d);
(31) Act of February 18, 1931 (46 Stat. 1171; 8 U.S.C. 156a);
(32) Act of March 17, 1932 (47 Stat. 67; 8 U.S.C. 137b-d);
(33) Section 7 of Act of May 25, 1932 (47 Stat. 166; 8 U.S.C. 181);
(34) Act of July 2, 1932 (47 Stat. 571; 8 U.S.C. 368b);
(35) Sections 8 and 14 of the Act of March 24, 1934, as amended (48 Stat. 462; 48 U.S.C. 1238; 48 Stat. 464; 48 U.S.C. 1244);
(36) Section 3 of the Act of May 14, 1937 (50 Stat. 165; 8 U.S.C. 213a);
(37) Act of August 19, 1937 (50 Stat. 696, ch. 698);
(38) Act of July 27, 1939 (53 Stat. 1133; 48 U.S.C. 1251-1257);
(39) Title III of Act of June 28, 1940 (54 Stat. 673; 8 U.S.C. 451-460);
(40) Act of July 2, 1940 (54 Stat. 715-716);
(41) Section 2 of Act of August 16, 1940 (54 Stat.788);
(42) Act of October 14, 1940 (54 Stat. 1137);
(43) Act of June 20, 1941 (55 Stat. 252; 22 U.S.C. 228, 229);
(44) Section 2 of Act of December 17, 1943 (57 Stat. 601; 8 U.S.C. 212a);
(45) Section 4 and 5 of Act of July 2, 1946 (60 Stat. 417; 8 U.S.C. 212b, 212c);
(47) The paragraph headed "General provisions-Department of Justice" in Chapter III of the Supplemental Appropriation Act, 1951 (Public Law 843, Eighty-first Congress);
(48) The Act of March 28, 1951 (Public Law 14, Eighty-second Congress, first session).
(b) Except as otherwise provided in section 405, all other laws, or parts of laws, in conflict or inconsistent with this Act are, to the extent of such conflict or inconsistency, repealed.
Authorization of Appropriations
Sec. 404. There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.
Savings Clauses
Sec. 405. (a) Nothing contained in this Act, unless otherwise specifically provided therein, shall be construed to affect the validity of any declaration of intention, petition for naturalization, certificate of naturalization, certificate of citizenship, warrant of arrest, order or warrant of deportation, order of exclusion, or other document or proceeding which shall be valid at the time this Act shall take effect; or to affect any prosecution, suit, action, or proceedings, civil or criminal, brought, or any status, condition, right in process of acquisition, act, thing, liability, obligation, or matter, civil or criminal, done or existing, at the time this Act shall take effect; but as to all such prosecutions, suits, actions, proceedings, statutes, conditions, rights, acts, things, liabilities, obligations, or matters the statutes or parts of statutes repealed by this Act are, unless otherwise specifically provided therein, hereby continued in force and effect. When an immigrant, in possession of an unexpired immigrant visa issued prior to the effective date of this Act, makes application for admission, his admissibility shall be determined under the provisions of law in effect on the date of the issuance of such visa. An application of suspension of deportation under section 19 of the Immigration Act of 1917, as amended, or for adjustment of status under section 4 of the Displaced Persons Act of 1948, as amended, which is pending on the date of enactment of this Act, shall be regarded as a proceeding within the meaning of this subsection.
(b) Except as otherwise specifically provided in title III, any petition for naturalization heretofore filed which may be pending at the time this Act shall take effect shall be heard and determined in accordance with the requirements of law in effect when such petition was filed.
(c) Except as otherwise specifically provided in this Act, the repeal of any statute by this Act shall not terminate nationality heretofore lawfully acquired nor restore nationality heretofore lost under any law of the United States or any treaty to which the United States may have been a party.
(d) Except as otherwise specifically provided in this Act, or any amendment thereto, fees, charges and prices for purposes specified in title V of the Independent Offices Appropriation Act, 1952 (Public Law 137, Eighty-second Congress, approved August 31, 1951), may be fixed and established in the manner and by the head of any Federal Agency as specified in that Act.
(e) This Act shall not be construed to repeal, alter, or amend section 231 (a) of the Act of April 30, 1946 (60 Stat. 148; 22 U.S.C. 1281 (a)), the Act of June 20, 1949 (Public Law 110, section 8, Eighty-first Congress, first session; 63 Stat. 208), the Act of June 5, 1950 (Public Law 535, Eighty-first Congress, second session), nor title V of the Agricultural Act of 1949, as amended (Public Law 78, Eighty-second Congress, first session).
Sec. 406. If any particular provision of this Act, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, is held invalid, the remainder of the Act and the application of such provision to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby.
Sec. 407. Except as provided in subsection (k) of section 401, this Act shall take effect at 12:01 ante meridian United States Eastern Standard Time on the one hundred eightieth day immediately following the date of its enactment.
Sam Rayburn Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Alben W. Barkley Vice President of the United States and President of the Senate.
In the House of Representatives, U.S. June 26, 1952.
The House of Representatives having proceeded to reconsider the bill (H. R. 5678) entitled "An Act to revise the laws relating to immigration, naturalization, and nationality; and for other purposes," returned by the President of the United States with his objections, to the House of Representatives, in which it originated, it was
Resolved, That the said bill pass, two-thirds of the House of Representatives agreeing to pass the same.
Ralph R Roberts Clerk.
I certify that this Act originated in the House of Representatives.
In the Senate of the United States, June 27, 1952.
The Senate having proceeded to reconsider the bill (H. R. 5678) entitled "An Act to revise the laws relating to immigration, naturalization, and nationality; and for other purposes", returned by the President of the United States with his objections, to the House of Representatives, in which it originated, and passed by the House of Representatives on reconsideration of the same, it was
Resolved, That the said bill pass, two-thirds of the Senators present having voted in the affirmative.
Leslie L Biffle Secretary.
Last update: February 28th, 2003.
Source: http://tucnak.fsv.cuni.cz/~calda/Documents/1950s/McCarran_52.html