New Alien Registration Requirements for Foreigners in the U.S. 30 Days or Longer, Starting April 11th

By Elizabeth M. Klarin

March 14, 2025 | Immigration Blog
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Starting April 11, 2025, certain foreign national visitors staying in the U.S. for 30 days or more will need to register with the U.S. government. Information about this program is available at https://www.uscis.gov/alienregistration.
 
Specifically, the interim rule (as published in the Federal Register) states that the Department of Homeland Security intends to designate “a new registration form for aliens to comply with statutory alien registration and fingerprinting provisions. Aliens who are subject to alien registration requirements of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended (“INA”) who have not yet registered may use this registration form to satisfy their statutory obligations.”
 
However, not everyone who is a foreigner in the U.S. must affirmatively do something to register in this system after entry to the U.S., if they believe that they will stay for 30 days or longer.
 

Who will the new rule apply to?

 
  • Foreign nationals age 14 and above: All who were not registered and fingerprinted (if required) when applying for a visa to enter the United States and who remain in the United States for 30 days or longer, must apply before the expiration of those 30 days;
  • Children under age 14: Parents and legal guardians must ensure that their children below the age of 14 who will remain in the U.S. for 30 days or longer are registered before the expiration of the 30 days following entry.
  • Children under age 14 when they entered, but who turn 14 while in the U.S.: Within 30 days of reaching his or her 14th birthday, the foreign national child must apply in person for registration and to be fingerprinted.
 

Who will the new rule NOT apply to?

 
  • A and G visa holders
  • American Indians born in Canada who entered the United States under section 289 of the INA, and members of the Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas who entered the United States under the Texas Band of Kickapoo Act.
  • U.S. citizens (naturalized or otherwise) holding dual citizenship with other countries

 

Who is already registered?

 

  • Lawful permanent residents;
  • Foreign nationals admitted to the United States as nonimmigrants who were issued Form I-94 or I-94W (paper or electronic), even if the period of admission has expired;
  • All foreign nationals present in the United States who were issued immigrant or nonimmigrant visas before their last date of arrival;
  • Foreign nationals paroled into the United States under INA 212(d)(5), even if the period of parole has expired;
  • Foreign nationals whom DHS has placed into removal proceedings;
  • Foreign nationals issued an employment authorization document;
  • Foreign nationals who have applied for lawful permanent residence using Forms I-485, I-687, I-691, I-698, I-700, and provided fingerprints (unless waived), even if the applications were denied; and
  • Foreign nationals issued Border Crossing Cards.
 

What forms/records serve as “registration forms”?

 
The following forms have been designated by DHS as satisfying registration requirements, and can serve as evidence of registration:
 
  • I-94, Arrival-Departure Record—Aliens admitted as nonimmigrants; aliens paroled into the United States under section 212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act; aliens whose claimed entry prior to July 1, 1924, cannot be verified, they having satisfactorily established residence in the United States since prior to July 1, 1924; aliens lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence who have not been registered previously; aliens who are granted permission to depart without the institution of deportation proceedings or against whom deportation proceedings are being instituted.
 
Importantly, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has specifically warned foreigners to “carefully consider whether you have already registered.” And provided the following example:
 
“For example, if you have an Arrival-Departure Record number to provide in response to the question “What is your Form I-94 Arrival-Departure Record Number,” then DHS already issued you evidence of registration. Anyone issued Form I-94 or I-94W upon their admission or parole to the United States is already registered. Only aliens who were previously registered but were not previously fingerprinted and who attained their 14th birthday in the United States should submit Form G-325R within 30 days of attaining their 14th birthday.”
 
  • I-485, Application for Status as Permanent Resident—Applicants under sections 245 and 249 of the Immigration and Nationality Act as amended, and section 13 of the Act of September 11, 1957, should carry their I-797 Receipt Notice as evidence of registration.
  • I-67, Inspection Record—Hungarian refugees (Act of July 25, 1958) should carry their inspection record as evidence of registration.
  • I-95, Crewmen's Landing Permit—Crewmen arriving by vessel or aircraft should carry their permit as evidence of registration.
  • I-181, Memorandum of Creation of Record of Lawful Permanent Residence—Aliens presumed to be lawfully admitted to the United States under8 CFR 101.1 should carry evidence of their creation of record.
  • I-590, Registration for Classification as Refugee-Escapee—Refugee-escapees paroled pursuant to section 1 of the Act of July 14, 1960 should carry evidence of their parole into the U.S.
  • I-687, Application for Status as a Temporary Resident—Applicants under section 245A of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended, should carry their I-797 Receipt Notice as evidence of registration.
  • I-691, Notice of Approval for Status as a Temporary Resident—Aliens adjusted to lawful temporary residence under 8 CFR 210.2 and 245A.2 should carry their notice of approval as evidence of registration.
  • I-698, Application to Adjust Status from Temporary to Permanent Resident—Applicants under section 245A of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended, should carry their I-797 Receipt Notice as evidence of registration.
  • I-700, Application for Status as a Temporary Resident—Applicants under section 210 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended.
  • I-817, Application for Voluntary Departure under the Family Unity Program.
 

HOW TO COMPLY

 
  • Those required to register can create a USCIS online account to do so. Once you create your or your child’s (if you are the parent or legal guardian of an alien under 14 years of age) USCIS online account, you will be able to fill out an electronic version of the Form G-325R, Biographic Information (Registration). Form G-325R must be filed online through a USCIS online account. It cannot be filed by mail or in person.
  • If, when completing the form online, it appears to USCIS that you have already complied with the registration requirements in some other way and do not need to submit Form G-325R, USCIS will notify you that you have already complied with the registration requirement. If you have already registered as required under the applicable law, USCIS will not schedule you for a biometric services appointment or provide you with evidence of registration. If it appears that you are required to register, USCIS will review your Form G-325R to determine if you are required to appear for a biometric services appointment. If you are not required to appear for a biometric services appointment (for example, Canadian visitors and aliens under 14 years of age), USCIS will provide you with evidence of registration.
  • If you are required to register and provide biometrics, USCIS will schedule you for a biometric services appointment at one of its Application Support Centers (ASCs). Registrants are not required to pay a biometric services fee.
  • Unless noted otherwise above, once registered and fingerprinted (if required), foreign registrants will receive a notice (USCIS Proof of G-325R Registration) that provides proof of their registration to their USCIS online account, which they can then download and print. Every registered foreign national age 18 and older must carry this evidence of registration.
  • Each person required to be registered under the regulations, who is within the United States, must notify DHS in writing of each change of address and new address within ten days from the date of their move.
 

PENALTIES FOR FAILURE TO COMPLY:

 
  • Any alien who willfully fails or refuses to apply to register or be fingerprinted (if required), and any parent or legal guardian who is required to apply for the registration on behalf of an foreign child less than 14 years of age and who willfully fails or refuses to file an application for the registration of such child, will be guilty of a misdemeanor and will, upon conviction, be fined up to $5,000 or be imprisoned for up to 6 months, or both. 
  • A conviction for fraudulent registration also constitutes a ground of deportability.
  • Failure to “at all times carry and have in their personal possession” the certificate of alien registration or alien registration receipt card given upon registration is considered a misdemeanor crime punishable by a fine of up to $5,000 or imprisonment for up to 30 days, or both.
  • Failure to report a change of address within the 10-day time frame is also considered a misdemeanor crime punishable by a fine of up to $5,000 or imprisonment for up to 30 days, or both, and also makes the person deportable unless he or she establishes that such failure was reasonably excusable or was not willful.
 
Please reach out to a Lippes Mathias immigration team professional with any questions or concerns about this new requirement. 

Disclaimer: The information in this post is provided for general informational purposes only, and may not reflect the current law in your jurisdiction. No information contained in this post should be construed as legal advice from our firm or the individual author, nor is it intended to be a substitute for legal counsel on any subject matter. No reader of this post should act or refrain from acting on the basis of any information included in, or accessible through, this post without seeking the appropriate legal or other professional advice on the particular facts and circumstances at issue from a lawyer licensed in the recipient’s state, country or other appropriate licensing jurisdiction.


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