The Trump administration has issued a new rule requiring all foreign nationals who remain in the United States for over 30 days to register with the federal government or face imprisonment and/or deportation.
Asking all foreign nationals in the U.S. longer than 30 days to register with the government, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt warned, “If not, you will be arrested, fined, deported, never to return to our country again.”
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shared the administration’s new directive on social media in a post titled “Message to Illegal Aliens,” tagging President Donald Trump and DHS Secretary Krisi Noem.
It underlines a renewed push to crack down on undocumented immigration and overstay, even hinting at future actions against those on temporary legal status if they fall out of compliance.
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Foreign nationals present in the U.S. longer than 30 days must register with the federal government. Failure to comply is a crime punishable by fines and imprisonment, DHS posted
“@POTUS Trump and @Sec_Noem have a clear message to Illegal aliens: LEAVE NOW and self-deport,” it warned.
DHS listed the benefits of self-deportation as:
Self-deportation is safe. Leave on your own terms by picking your departure flight.
Keep money earned in the U.S. If you self-deport as a non-criminal illegal alien.
Future opportunity for legal immigration.
If you self-deport using CBP Home instead of being deported by ICE.
Possible Flights Home. You may be eligible to a subsidized flight if you cannot afford to leave.
Consequences were listed as:
Immediate deportation. You will be apprehended by DHS with no opportunity to get your affairs in order beforehand.
Fines and penalties. A fine of $998 per day if you received a final order of removal and stayed.
A fine of $1,000 – $5,000 if you fail to self-deport after claiming that you will.
Possible imprisonment. If you fail to self-deport, you may be subject to jail time.
Barred from returning. Prohibited from reentering the U.S. through the legal immigration system.
The directive doesn’t immediately impact those currently on valid visas, like H-1B workers or international students, but it emphasizes the importance of maintaining visa status. But Individuals who lose their visa eligibility or overstay their limits may fall under the purview of this enforcement.
READ: ‘By the time my family gets green cards I will be 96!’ (March 4, 2022)
Meanwhile, describing U.S. visas as a privilege reserved for those who make the United States better, rather than a right, Secretary of State Marco Rubio says revoking visas is a way to make America safer when threats arise.
In an opinion piece for Fox News, Rubio wrote that visiting America is not an entitlement and one should never forget that it is a privilege extended to those who respect laws and values.
Rubio said that U.S. laws are clear about who can and cannot come to the United States. Each visa application is vetted through those rules and people who “endorse or espouse” terrorist activity or “persuade others to endorse or espouse terrorist activity” are ineligible for U.S. visas.
Revoking visas is not any highhandedness on the part of the Trump administration, he explained as the Immigration and Nationality Act gives the administration a broad authority to revoke a visa.
“This authority is fundamental to safeguarding our national security, as well as protecting Americans and lawful visitors within our borders. The Trump administration’s commitment to security and the enforcement of our immigration laws is unprecedented and unwavering. We expect – and the law requires – all visa holders to demonstrate their eligibility every day their visa is valid. This includes respecting our laws, behaving appropriately according to their visa type, and continuing to meet these standards throughout their stay in our country,” he wrote.
Vetting does not end once a visa is granted, wrote Rubio noting that once a visa is granted, it is not forever. The U.S. government’s rigorous security vetting does not end once a visa is granted. And every U.S. visa holder should know this.
“Working together with DHS and other law-enforcement and security agencies, we continuously monitor and review these cases. This vigilance is essential because circumstances can and do change,” he wrote.