Client Alert
March 24, 2025
Dear Clients,
We have several critical and urgent items to share with you. Please see below regarding guidance on carrying immigration status documents at all times, new registration requirements taking effect on April 11th, and considerations to take into account ahead of all travel into the U.S. Please share this with all of your foreign national employees, including permanent residents, and business visitors traveling to the U.S.
Carrying Immigration Documents
All foreign nationals, including permanent residents (green card holders), must be prepared to present status documents if requested by immigration authorities or law enforcement officers. Importantly, please note, permanent residents are specifically required to keep their green cards with them at all times per a little known and (until now) rarely utilized provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
Additionally, beginning April 11th, all foreign nationals over the age of 18 and present in the U.S. for more than 30 days will be required to carry proof of registration (typically green card, I-94 admission record, or EAD card). The criminal penalty for failure to carry proof of registration is a fine of up to $100 and/or imprisonment of up to 30 days.
Aside from new registration documents, foreign nationals present in the U.S. may wish to also carry a digital copy of their passport ID page when traveling close to home and their original passport for all travel within the U.S. The risk of loss or theft of original identity documents is significant with replacement documents expensive and time consuming to replace. As a result, foreign nationals are encouraged to exercise discretion and extreme caution when carrying original identity documents. Similarly, foreign nationals should only present their documents to immigration and law enforcement authorities who properly identify themselves as such.
New Alien Registration Requirement
Effective April 11, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security will begin enforcing registration and fingerprinting requirements impacting ALL non-U.S. citizen foreign nationals present in the U.S. for more than 30 days. Failure to comply with registration and fingerprinting is subject to criminal penalty of up to
$5,000 and/or imprisonment of up to 6 months. Parents or guardians who fail to comply with registration on behalf of their children are subject to these same penalties. In addition, failure to timely register a change of address via Form AR-11 within 10 days is subject to the same criminal penalties as the failure to carry registration documents and is a deportable offense unless the failure is reasonably excusable or not willful.
For the vast majority of foreign nationals, the registration requirement has been met by admission through a U.S. port of entry and issuance of an I-94 admission record (demonstrating ESTA, visitor, H-1B, TN, L-1, E visa status, etc), issuance of an I-551 Permanent Resident Card, or an I-766 Employment Authorization Card (EAD). No additional registration is required for these individuals.
However, the following individuals will need to undertake a separate registration process:
• Canadian visitors who entered at land borders and do not have an I-94 record
• Non-U.S. citizen children under the age of 14
• Non-U.S. citizen children upon turning 14 must update their registration and be fingerprinted within 30 days of their 14th birthday
• All other non-U.S. citizens who did not complete registration or fingerprinting
A Form G-325R must be completed online through an individual USCIS account available at http://my.USCIS.gov. Please note, each foreign national required to complete registration must have their own unique USCIS account. Applicants are encouraged to seek legal counsel with questions on the Form G-325R, as necessary. Once the Form G-325R has been submitted, a Biometrics fingerprinting appointment will be scheduled at a USCIS Application Support Center. Fingerprinting will be waived for Canadians and for all foreign nationals under the age of 14. Once completed, a Proof of Registration document must be downloaded and carried at all times if age 18 or older.
International Travel
There have been increasing reports on foreign nationals being detained and/or deported at the U.S. port- of-entry when returning to the U.S. after international travel. These actions are impacting those with valid nonimmigrant visas and permanent residents (green card holders). In light of these reports, please seriously consider the following before traveling internationally.
All foreign nationals should be aware that pursuant to the President’s January 2025 Executive Orders, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) may conduct enhanced vetting at the port-of-entry of any foreign national entering the U.S. Enhanced vetting includes additional questioning and the possibility of searches, including personal computers, tablets, and cell phones. Officers will also consider the traveler’s country of birth, countr(ies) of citizenship, immigration status, where they traveled, and what activities they participated in while previously in the U.S., as well as activities abroad. Officers may also evaluate social media usage, and foreign nationals should be aware that posts, reactions, commentary, opinions, protests, etc. on various platforms may be reviewed as part of these enhanced vetting procedures. Any information or activity discovered by DHS in its questioning, searches, or review that is perceived as a potential threat to national security may result in detention and/or deportation.
Additionally, new travel bans are expected imminently. Citizens of countries included in a travel ban should expect the inability to depart and return to the U.S. While we await confirmation of the impacted countries and whether such travel restrictions will include lawful permanent residents and dual-citizens of the United States, foreign nationals are encouraged to exercise caution and seek counsel as necessary.
In anticipation of any and all travel outside the U.S., ALL sponsored foreign nationals holding temporary, nonimmigrant visa status are strongly encouraged to check with HR to ensure they have the necessary travel documents to return to the U.S. Additionally, please consider the following:
• Those requiring visa stamping should expect an increase in wait times for consular appointments and a higher rate of visa denials in accordance with enhanced vetting initiatives.
• Upon each return to the U.S., it is imperative that all foreign nationals immediately check I-94 admission records for themselves and each dependent family member. If any information appears to be incorrect, such as visa classification or duration of admission, immediately contact HR who will coordinate with outside counsel to remedy. Failure to timely check and resolve CBP errors may lead to a three- or ten-year bar on admission to the U.S. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection website to check I-94 records is https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/home.
We are encouraging all of our clients and foreign national employees to continue to stay apprised of immigration-related news, as policy changes rapidly without notice. Please also encourage your employees to share their experiences with you and let us know how we can continue to support you and your employees during these uncertain and evolving times.
-Brown Glier Law