In order for a foreign national to be admitted to the United States, he or she must be admissible. A foreign national can be deemed inadmissible to the United States by USCIS, CBP and a Consulate. If the foreign national is deemed inadmissible due to the United States, he or she cannot enter without a waiver of inadmissibility or a determination that the inadmissibility charge was made in error.
INA 212(a)(2)(A)(i)(I)
Crime Involving Moral Turpitude (CIMT)
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212(a)(2)(A)(i)(I) Crime Involving Moral Turpitude (CIMT)
What is a grounds of inadmissibility?
212(a)(2)(A)(i)(I) Inadmissibility due to Crime Involving Moral Turpitude (CIMT)
Foreign nationals may be inadmissible due to the commission of a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT). CIMT includes fraud, arson, blackmail, burglary, theft and others.
Any alien convicted of, or who admits having committed, or who admits committing acts which constitute the essential elements of a crime involving moral turpitude (other than a purely political offense) or an attempt or conspiracy to commit such a crime is inadmissible.
However it shall not apply to an alien who committed only one crime if the crime was committed when the alien was under 18 years of age, and the crime was committed (and the alien released from any confinement to a prison or correctional institution imposed for the crime) more than 5 years before the date of application for a visa or other documentation and the date of application for admission to the United States, or
the maximum penalty possible for the crime of which the alien was convicted (or which the alien admits having committed or of which the acts that the alien admits having committed constituted the essential elements) did not exceed imprisonment for one year and, if the alien was convicted of such crime, the alien was not sentenced to a term of imprisonment in excess of 6 months (regardless of the extent to which the sentence was ultimately executed).
How to obtain a determination that the 212(a)(2)(A)(i)(I) ground of inadmissibility was incorrectly made.
No matter which US government agency made the inadmissibility determination, each provides a method to dispute the determination, though each has drastically different processing times. We have achieved successful outcomes by petitioning the US Department of State where the determination was made by the Consulate in as little as 2 weeks. CBP quotes turnaround times of as little as 30 days and USCIS will not offer a time frame. In our experience, the more difficult the situation, the longer it will take to get resolved.
How to obtain a 212(a)(2)(A)(i)(I) waiver
There are two types of waivers that apply to each grounds of inadmissibility: one for immigrants and one for nonimmigrants. Immigrants are foreign nationals who are trying to obtain an immigrant visa or green card. Nonimmigrants are foreign nationals who are trying to obtain or enter with a temporary visa such as a B2 tourist visa, F1 student visa or H1B work visa, among others. Some grounds of inadmissibility allows both immigrant and nonimmigrant waivers, some allow one and some offer no waiver at all.
Many people who are faced with a inadmissibility determination believe that they will never be able to obtain a waiver or enter the US again. This is simply not true. For almost all types of inadmissibility classes, a waiver is available and there is always an option to challenge the determination. We have successfully helped many clients who were determined to be inadmissible and we can assist you. We believe that with the right approach, there is always a hope to win your case.
