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Glossary of Immigration and
Naturalization Terms
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Acquired Citizenship: Citizenship conferred at birth on
children born abroad to a U.S. citizen parents.
Adjustment to Immigrant Status: Procedure allowing certain
aliens already in the United States to apply for immigrant status. Aliens
admitted to the United States in a non-immigrant, refugee, or parolee category
may have their status changed to that of lawful permanent resident if they are
eligible to receive an immigrant visa and one is immediately available. In such
cases, the alien is counted as an immigrant as of the date of adjustment, even
though the alien may have been in the United States for an extended period of
time. Beginning in October 1994, the INA allowed illegal residents who were
eligible for immigrant status to remain in the United States and adjust to
permanent resident status by applying at a USCIS office and paying an additional
penalty fee. Prior to October 1994, most illegal residents were required to
leave the United States and acquire a visa abroad from the Department of State
as they are again now.
Agricultural Worker: As a non-immigrant class of admission,
an alien coming temporarily to the United States to perform agricultural labor
or services, as defined by the Secretary of Labor.
Alien: Any person not a citizen or national of the United
States.
Application Support Centers: USCIS Offices fingerprint
applicants for immigration benefits. Some USCIS applications, such as the
Application for Naturalization or the Application to Register Permanent
Residence or Adjust Status, require the USCIS to conduct a FBI fingerprint
background check on the applicant. Most applicants that require a background
check will be scheduled to appear at a specific Application Support Center (ASC)
or Designated Law Enforcement Agency (DLEA) for fingerprinting.
Apprehension: The arrest of a removable alien by U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Each apprehension of the same alien in a
fiscal year is counted separately.
Asylee:
An alien in the United States or at a port of entry who is found to be unable or
unwilling to return to his or her country of nationality, or to seek the
protection of that country because of prosecution or a well-founded fear of
prosecution. Prosecution or the fear thereof must be based on the alien’s race,
religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political
opinion. For persons with no nationality, the country of nationality is
considered to be the country in which the alien last habitually resided. Asylees
are eligible to adjust to lawful permanent
resident status after one year of continuous
presence in the United States. These immigrants
are limited to 10,000 adjustments per fiscal
year. | 
