ADMISSION

A noncitizen is admitted if the following conditions are met:

• The noncitizen applied for admission as an “alien” at a port of entry; and
• An immigration officer inspected the applicant for admission as an “alien” and authorized him or her to enter the United States in accordance with the procedures for admission.

A noncitizen who meets these two requirements is admitted, even if the person obtained the admission by fraud. Likewise, the noncitizen is admitted, even if the CBP officer performed a cursory inspection.

As long as the noncitizen meets the procedural requirements for admission, the noncitizen meets the inspected and admitted requirement for adjustment of status. Any type of admission can meet the inspected and admitted requirement, which includes, but is not limited to, admission as a nonimmigrant, an immigrant, or a refugee.

See INA 101(a)(13)(A) (“The terms ‘admission’ and ‘admitted’ mean, with respect to an alien, the lawful entry of the alien into the United States after inspection and authorization by an immigration officer.”). Legislative history does not elaborate on the meaning of “lawful.”

Evidence of Admission

An Arrival/Departure Record (Form I-94), including a replacement when appropriate, is the most common document evidencing a noncitizen’s admission. The following are other types of documentation that may be accepted as proof of admission into the United States:

• Admission stamp in passport, which may be verified using DHS systems;
• Employment Authorization Card (Form I-688A), for special agricultural worker applicants, provided it was valid during the last claimed date of entry on the adjustment application;
• Temporary Resident Card (Form I-688), for special agricultural workers or legalization applicants granted temporary residence, provided it was valid during the last claimed date of entry on the adjustment application; and Border Crossing Card (Form I-586 or Form DSP-150), provided it was valid on the date of last claimed entry.

When inspected and admitted to the United States, the following nonimmigrants are exempt from the issuance of an Arrival/Departure Record:

• A Canadian citizen admitted as a visitor for business, visitor for pleasure, or who was permitted to directly transit through the United States;
• A nonimmigrant residing in the British Virgin Islands who was admitted only to the United States Virgin Islands as a visitor for business or pleasure;
• A Mexican national admitted with a B-1/B-2 Visa and Border Crossing Card (Form DSP-150) at a land or sea port of entry as a visitor for business or pleasure for a period of 30 days to travel within 25 miles of the border; and
• A Mexican national in possession of a Mexican diplomatic or official passport.

False Claim to Citizenship Cannot be an Admission/Inspection

A noncitizen who gains admission to the U.S. upon a knowing false claim to U.S. citizenship cannot be deemed to have been inspected and admitted. See Matter of Pinzon (PDF), 26 I&N Dec. 189 (BIA 2013).

Deferred Admission

Deferred inspection is a form of parole. A noncitizen who is deferred inspection is paroled into the United States for the period of time necessary to complete the inspection. See 8 CFR 235.2(c). For more information on deferred inspection, see Subsection 3, Parole [7 USCIS-PM B.2(A)(3)].