Alien (law)

In law, an alien is a person who resides within the borders of a country and is not a national of that country, though definitions and terminology differs to some degree.

Etymology

The term "alien" is derived from the Latin alienus, meaning stranger, foreign.

Categories

Different countries use varying terms for "aliens" including:

  • a legal alien is a non-citizen who is legally permitted to remain in a country. This is a very broad category which includes tourists, guest workers, legal permanent residents and student visa resident aliens.
    • a nonresident alien is a non-citizen who is visiting a country, for example as a tourist, on business, entertainers, sportspeople or in the country to receive medical treatment.
    • a resident alien is a non-citizen who has temporary resident status in a country.
  • a nonresident alien is a non-citizen who is visiting a country, for example as a tourist, on business, entertainers, sportspeople or in the country to receive medical treatment.
  • a resident alien is a non-citizen who has temporary resident status in a country.
  • Illegal immigration to the United States

    Illegal immigration to the United States is the act by foreign nationals violating United States immigration laws by either entering the country without government permission (i.e., a visa) or once lawfully entering, remaining within the country beyond the termination date of a temporary visa.

    The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has estimated that 11.4 million unauthorized immigrants lived in the United States in January 2012. According to DHS estimates, "the number of illegal immigrants peaked around 12 million in 2007 and has gradually declined to closer to 11 million." The DHS estimate "is in the same ballpark as several independent organizations that study illegal immigration, including Pew Research Center (11.3 million); the Center for Migration Studies (11 million), which studies migration and promotes policies that safeguard the rights of migrants, and the Center for Immigration Studies, which advocates for low levels of legal immigration (11-12 million)."

    Illegal Alien

    Illegal Alien or Illegal Aliens may refer to:

  • Alien (law), legal concept of aliens
  • Illegal Aliens (film), a 2007 film starring Anna Nicole Smith and Chyna
  • Illegal Aliens (novel), a 1989 science fiction novel by Nick Pollotta and Phil Foglio
  • Illegal Alien (Sawyer novel), a 1997 science fiction novel by Robert J. Sawyer
  • Illegal Alien (Tucker and Perry novel), a 1997 Doctor Who novel by Mike Tucker & Robert Perry
  • Illegal Alien, a graphic novel published by Kitchen Sink and Dark Horse, by James Robinson
  • "Illegal Alien" (song), the 5th track on the album Genesis by Genesis (1983)
  • Podcasts:

    PLAYLIST TIME:

    Latest News for: illegal aliens

    Edit

    Oxnard man among 20 defendants charged by feds for alleged immigration violations

    VC Star 30 Mar 2025
    What to do if you see a crime being committed ... Friday's announcement by the U.S ... Prosecutors had worked with U.S ... Federal prosecutors charged him with being an "illegal alien found in the United States following deportation," according to the complaint.
    Edit

    Right-wing media have decided undocumented migrants don't have the right to due process under the law

    Media Matters 29 Mar 2025
    “Except when it comes to illegal aliens being allowed into the country and college students being accused of things and the prosecution of Trump, supporters and the prosecution of Trump himself.
    Edit

    Democrats’ response to losing? Profanity chic and terrorist porn

    New York Post 29 Mar 2025
    They supported globalism over nationalism, high-priced green energy over lower gas and electricity prices and an open border and 12 million unaudited illegal aliens over security and legal-only immigration.
    Edit

    Mexican national indicted in reentry into U.S.

    Star Advertiser 29 Mar 2025
    A federal grand jury Thursday indicted a 51-year-old Mexican national on charges of being an illegal alien present in the United States after being convicted of a felony and removed from this country ... .
    Edit

    Wrong turn at Ambassador Bridge exit leads to detention for Detroit immigrant mom, kids

    Detroit Free Press 29 Mar 2025
    Federal authorities say she was an "illegal alien" who had crossed into the U.S ... "In this case, an illegal alien was encountered at the Detroit Ambassador Bridge after driving into Canada without travel documents.".
    Edit

    Right-wing activist targets Republican lawmaker with calls for ICE raids

    The Oregonian 29 Mar 2025
    Along with the Californian nonprofit, three offices of the United Farm Workers union were anonymously sent postcards featuring the phrases “Report Illegal Aliens” and “There is nowhere to hide,” along with the ICE tip line.
    Edit

    Kristi Noem, Trump’s secretary of Homeland Security, meets Mexican president

    The Los Angeles Times 29 Mar 2025
    ... extradition procedures, and dispatched 10,000 troops to Mexico's northern border to help deter illegal immigration and smuggling ... “President Trump and I have a clear message to criminal illegal aliens.
    Edit

    General manager and 3 workers charged after immigration raid at East County business

    San Diego Union-Tribune 29 Mar 2025
    Washburn was charged with conspiracy to harbor aliens after investigators reported finding a room in the warehouse that they said he had allowed undocumented immigrants to live in illegally ... U.S ... .
    Edit

    Will keeping a ‘cool head’ allow Mexico to avoid the worst of the tariffs?

    CNN 29 Mar 2025
    “Our relationship has been a very good one, and we are working hard, together, on the Border, both in terms of stopping Illegal Aliens from entering the United States and, likewise, stopping Fentanyl,” Trump wrote earlier this month on Truth Social.
    Edit

    Randy Fine Is Right for Florida-6 US House Seat

    The American Spectator 29 Mar 2025
    Conservatives are nervous about the prospects of keeping Florida’s Sixth Congressional District in Republican hands ... Plenty ... ... He chopped taxes, booted illegal aliens, and shielded the Second Amendment, scoring an A from the National Rifle Association ... .
    Edit

    Illegal alien indicted for smuggling 19 other illegal aliens (United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas)

    Public Technologies 28 Mar 2025
    Illegal alien indicted for smuggling 19 other illegal aliens ... A search allegedly resulted in the discovery of 19 illegal aliens in the back with no legal status to enter or remain in the United States.
    Edit

    HUD Ends FHA-Backed Loans for 'Non-Permanent Residents,' Closes Illegal Alien Loophole

    Breitbart 28 Mar 2025
    ... effectively eliminating illegal aliens' access to the taxpayer-funded program.
    Edit

    CBP officers arrest Canadian attempting to smuggle illegal alien (CBP - US Customs and Border Protection)

    Public Technologies 28 Mar 2025
    ). The text version of this document is not available ... Disclaimer ... (noodl. 123337700) .
    Edit

    9-time illegal alien offender admits to unlawfully returning to U.S. again (United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas)

    Public Technologies 28 Mar 2025
    9-time illegal alien offender admits to unlawfully returning to U.S ... During a routine immigration inspection, authorities discovered Dominguez-Sanchez to be an illegal alien who had been previously ordered removed from the country.
    ×