:Alien (law)

The term "alien" is derived from the Latin {{Lang|la|alienus}}. The Latin later came to mean a stranger, a foreigner, or someone not related by blood.Oxford Latin Dictionary entry for Alienus Similar terms to "alien" in this context include foreigner and lander.Van Houtum, Henk. "The mask of the border." The Routledge Research Companion to Border Studies. Routledge, 2016. 71-84.

{{Redirect|Resident alien|other uses|Resident Alien (disambiguation){{!}}Resident Alien}}

Different countries around the world use varying terms for aliens. The following are several types of aliens:

• legal alien {{emdash}} any foreign national who is permitted under the law to be in the host country. This is a very broad category which includes travel visa holders or foreign tourists, registered refugees, temporary residents, permanent residents, and those who have relinquished their citizenship and/or nationality.{{usc|8|1481}} ("Loss of nationality by native-born or naturalized citizen; voluntary action; burden of proof; presumptions") Categories of legal alien include
• temporary resident alien {{emdash}} any foreign national who has been lawfully granted permission by the government to drive, fly, travel, lodge, reside, study or work for a specific number of years and then apply for an extension or leave the country before such permission expires.{{cite web |date=October 23, 2020 |title=Conditional Permanent Residence |url=https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/after-we-grant-your-green-card/conditional-permanent-residence |access-date=2021-02-10 |work=United States Citizenship and Immigration Services}}
• permanent resident alien {{emdash}} any immigrant who has been lawfully admitted into a nation and granted the legal right to remain therein as a permanent resident in accord with the nation's immigration laws.{{cite journal |last1=Rosenberg |first1=Michael |last2=Rich |first2=Mark D. |title=Foreign Investment In U.S. Real Estate-Beyond FIRPTA: Regulatory Requirements and Planning StrategiesRequirements and Planning Strategies |journal=University of Miami Business Law Review Unive |date=April 1995 |volume=5 |issue=1 |page=107}}
• nonresident alien {{emdash}} any foreign national who is lawfully within a nation but whose legal domicile is in another nation.{{cite journal |last1=Hennig |first1=Cherie J. |last2=Wang |first2=Ningkun |last3=Yuan |first3=Xiaoli |title=Cross-Border Taxation of Employee Stock Options |journal=The ATA Journal of Legal Tax Research |date=2006 |volume=4 |issue=1 |pages=59–75 |doi=10.2308/jltr.2006.4.1.59}}{{cite journal |last1=Shuntich |first1=Louis S. |title=Estate Planning Strategies for Resident and Nonresident Aliens |journal=Journal of Financial Service Professionals |date=July 2012 |volume=66 |issue=4 |pages=55–60}}
• alien enemy (or enemy alien) {{emdash}} any foreign national of any country that is at war with the host country.{{cite web|url=https://blacks_law.en-academic.com/1418/alien_enemy |title=alien enemy |publisher=law.academic.com |access-date=2021-02-12}}{{usc|8|1442}} ("Alien enemies"); {{usc|18|757}} ("Prisoners of war or enemy aliens")
• undocumented alien (or illegal alien) {{emdash}} any person who is liable to deportation because their presence in a nation is in violation of that nation's immigration laws.{{cite journal |last1=Kelly |first1=Charles B. |title=Counting the Uncountable: Estimates of Undocumented Aliens in the United States |journal=Population and Development Review |date=December 1977 |volume=3 |issue=4 |pages=473–481 |doi=10.2307/1971686|jstor=1971686 }}

{{See also|History of British nationality law#Early English and British nationality law}}

An "alien" in English law denoted any person born outside of the monarch's dominions and who did not owe allegiance to the monarch. Aliens were not allowed to own land and were subject to different taxes to subjects.William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (1753), Book 1, Chapter 10 This idea was passed on in the Commonwealth to other common law jurisdictions.

In Australia, citizenship is defined in the Australian nationality law. Non-citizens in Australia are permanent residents, temporary residents, or illegal residents (technically called "unlawful non-citizens").[http://www.cccs.law.unimelb.edu.au/download.cfm?DownloadFile=98E80E9C Key Issue 5. Citizenship Fact Sheet 5.2 Citizenship in Australia] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200312064550/https://apps.law.unimelb.edu.au/farcry/core/webtop/login.cfm?returnUrl=%2Findex.cfm%3Ffurl%3D%2Fcccs%26&error=draft&showdraft=1 |date=March 12, 2020 }} Retrieved 2012-03-05. Most non-citizens (including those who lack citizenship documents) traveling to Australia must obtain a visa prior to travel. The only exceptions to the rule are holders of New Zealand passports and citizenship, who may apply for a visa on arrival according to the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement.{{cite web |url=http://www.aph.gov.au/house/committee/mig/report/olympics/Chap2.pdf |title=Australia's Visitor and Temporary Entry Provisions |publisher=Joint Standing Committee on Migration, Parliament of Australia |date=27 September 1999 |access-date=20 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629154251/http://www.aph.gov.au/house/committee/mig/report/olympics/Chap2.pdf |archive-date=June 29, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}

In 2020, in Love v Commonwealth, the High Court of Australia ruled that Aboriginal Australians (as defined in Mabo v Queensland (No 2)) cannot be considered aliens under the Constitution of Australia, regardless of whether they were born in Australia or hold Australian citizenship.{{cite web|url=https://www.sbs.com.au/news/high-court-rules-aboriginal-australians-cannot-be-aliens-under-the-constitution |title=High Court rules Aboriginal Australians cannot be 'aliens' under the constitution |work=SBS News |date=11 February 2020}}{{cite web |last=Karp |first=Paul |title=High court rules Aboriginal Australians are not 'aliens' under the constitution and cannot be deported |website=The Guardian |date=11 February 2020 |url=http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/feb/11/high-court-rules-aboriginal-australians-are-not-aliens-under-the-constitution-and-cannot-be-deported |access-date=11 February 2020}}{{cite web |last1=Byrne |first1=Elizabeth |last2=Robertson |first2=Josh |title=Man released from detention as High Court rules Aboriginal people cannot be deported |website=ABC News|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation | date=11 February 2020 |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-11/high-court-rules-aboriginal-people-cant-be-deported/11953012 |access-date=11 February 2020}}

In Canada, the term "alien" is not used in federal statutes. Instead, the term "foreign national" serves as its equivalent and is found in legal documents. The Immigration and Refugee Protection Act defines "foreign national" as "a person who is not a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident, and includes a stateless person."[http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/I-2.5/page-1.html#h-2 Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (S.C. 2001, c. 27)]

{{Further|British Nationality Act}}

In the United Kingdom, the British Nationality Act of 1981 defines an alien as a person who is not a British citizen, a citizen of Ireland, a Commonwealth citizen, or a British protected person.[http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1981/61/section/51 section 51], British Nationality Act 1981 The Aliens Act of 1905, the British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act of 1914 and the Aliens Restriction (Amendment) Act of 1919 were all products of the turbulence in the early part of the 20th century.

{{Further|Refugee Act of 1980|United States person}}

File:"WARNING - ALIENS - ARMY SERVICE FORCES". (Provost Marshall General) - NARA - 516037.jpg poster]]

In the United States, the term "alien" is as synonymous with foreign national.{{uscsub|52|30121|b}} (explaining that "the term 'foreign national' means.... (2) an individual who is not a citizen of the United States or a national of the United States (as defined in section 1101(a)(22) of title 8) and who is not lawfully admitted for permanent residence, as defined by section 1101(a)(20) of title 8."). Under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) of the United States, "[t]he term 'alien' means any person not a citizen or national of the United States."{{cite book |title=alien |publisher=Black's Law Dictionary |date=June 25, 2009 |edition=9th |access-date=2018-08-17 |url=https://www.amazon.com/s?search-alias=stripbooks&field-isbn=0314199497 |last=Garner |first=Bryan A. |page=84 |quote=A person who resides within the borders of a country but is not a citizen or subject of that country; a person not owing allegiance to a particular nation. - In the United States, an alien is a person who was born outside the jurisdiction of the United States, who is subject to some foreign government, and who has not been naturalized under U.S. law. |isbn=978-0-314-19949-2}}{{uscsub|8|1101|b|3}} ("The term 'person' means an individual or an organization.") People born in American Samoa or on Swains Island are statutorily "non-citizen nationals."{{Cite web |url=https://cite.case.law/f3d/788/300/4230126/#p302 |title=Tuaua v. United States, 788 F.3d 300 |page=302 |work=D.C. Circuit |date=June 5, 2015 |publisher=Harvard Law School |access-date=February 8, 2021 |archive-date=November 12, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211112052306/https://cite.case.law/f3d/788/300/4230126/#p302 |url-status=dead }} Others, such as natives of Palau and the Marshall Islands, are legal immigrants and aliens for INA purposes.{{cite journal |last1=McElfish |first1=Pearl Anna |last2=Hallgren |first2=Emily |last3=Yamada |first3=Seiji |title=Effect of US Health Policies on Health Care Access for Marshallese Migrants |journal=American Journal of Public Health |date=April 2015 |volume=105 |issue=4 |pages=637–643 |doi=10.2105/AJPH.2014.302452|pmid=25713965 |pmc=4358182 }}

Every refugee that is admitted to the United States under {{USC|8|1157}} automatically becomes an "immigrant" and then a "special immigrant" after receiving a green card.

File:Naturalization ceremony at Kennedy Space Center.jpg in Florida (2010). Before the naturalization they were lawfully admitted permanent resident aliens.]]

The usage of the term "alien" dates back to 1790, when it was used in the Naturalization Act and then 1798 when it was used in the Alien and Sedition Acts.{{Cite web |date=2021-05-19 |title=Alien and Sedition Acts (1798) |url=https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/alien-and-sedition-acts |access-date=2025-04-25 |website=National Archives |language=en}} Although the INA provides no overarching explicit definition of the term "illegal alien", it is mentioned in a number of provisions under title 8 of the US code.See, e.g., {{uscsub|8|1252c|a|1}}; {{uscsub|8|1330|b|3|A|iii}}; {{uscsub|8|1356|r|3|ii}}; {{uscsub|8|1365|b}} ("An illegal alien ... is any alien ... who is in the United States unlawfully...."); {{uscsub|8|1366}} Several provisions even mention the term "unauthorized alien".{{uscsub|8|1324a|h|3}} According to PolitiFact, the term "illegal alien" occurs in federal law, but does so scarcely, writing that, "where the term does appear, it's undefined or part of an introductory title or limited to apply to certain individuals convicted of felonies.”{{Cite web |last=Selby |first=W. Gardner |date=May 9, 2018 |title=Is 'illegal alien' a term in federal law? |url=https://www.politifact.com/texas/statements/2018/may/09/steve-mccraw/illegal-alien-legal-term-federal-law/ |access-date=2019-02-26 |website=PolitiFact |language=en}}

Since the U.S. law says that a corporation is a person, the term alien is not limited to natural humans because what are colloquially called foreign corporations are technically called alien corporations. Because corporations are creations of local state law, a foreign corporation is an out-of-state corporation.

There are a multitude of unique and highly complex U.S. domestic tax laws and regulations affecting the U.S. tax residency of foreign nationals, both nonresident aliens and resident aliens, in addition to income tax and social security tax treaties and totalization agreements.{{cite web|url=https://www.protaxconsulting.com/foreign-nationals-nonresident-resident-aliens/ |title=Foreign Nationals: Non-Resident Aliens and Resident Aliens |publisher=Protax Consulting Services}}

"Alienage", i.e., citizenship status, has been prohibited since 1989 in New York City from being considered for employment, under that town's Human Rights legislation.{{cite news |last1=Tyler Blint-Welsh |date=25 September 2019 |title=New York City Employers Who Say 'Go Back to Your Country' Could Face Fines |work=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/new-york-city-employers-who-say-go-back-to-your-country-could-face-fines-11569438201 |url-access=subscription |access-date=30 September 2019 |quote=Since 1989, the city's human-rights law has banned discrimination based on citizenship status or "alienage" in employment, housing and public accommodations.}}"[https://www1.nyc.gov/site/cchr/law/in-housing.page The protected classes covered under the New York City Human Rights Law are:Age Alienage or Citizenship Status]"

{{See also|Bedoon}}

In the Gulf Cooperation Council (United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, and Qatar), many non-natives have lived in the region since birth. However, these Arab states do not easily grant citizenship to non-natives.{{cite news |last=Habboush |first=Mahmoud |date=October 10, 2013 |title=Call to naturalise some expats stirs anxiety in the UAE |newspaper=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-emirates-citizenship-feature/call-to-naturalise-some-expats-stirs-anxiety-in-the-uae-idUKBRE99904J20131010}}{{cite web |date=November 24, 2013 |title=Say no to expats calling for Saudi citizenship |url=http://www.arabnews.com/news/482086 |website=Arab News}}{{cite web |last=Harrison |first=Ryan |date=January 5, 2014 |title=GCC Citizenship Debate: A Place To Call Home |url=http://gulfbusiness.com/2014/01/gcc-citizenship-debate-a-place-to-call-home/#.VKfqDxA4Lw8 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140901125525/http://gulfbusiness.com/2014/01/gcc-citizenship-debate-a-place-to-call-home/#.VKfqDxA4Lw8 |archive-date=September 1, 2014 |access-date=January 3, 2015 |website=Gulf Business}} Most stateless Bedoon in Kuwait belong to indigenous northern tribes.{{cite news |last=Elbasnaly |first=Dina |date=21 July 2019 |title=Bedoons: Kuwait's stateless minority |work=Deutsche Welle |url=https://www.dw.com/en/the-bedoons-kuwaits-stateless-minority/a-49674107}}

• Alien land laws
• Alien Tort Statute
• California Alien Land Law of 1913
• Gaijin
• Laowai
• Persona non grata
• Unaccompanied Alien Children

{{Reflist|30em}}

{{Wiktionary|alien|aliens}}

• [https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/cat.aspx Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment]
• [https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/biden-seeks-replace-alien-less-dehumanizing-term-immigration-laws-n1255350 Biden seeks to replace 'alien' with less 'dehumanizing term' in immigration laws] (NBC News, Jan. 22, 2021)
• [https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199796953/obo-9780199796953-0047.xml Aliens - International Law - Oxford Bibliographies] (24 July 2013)
• [http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Publications/noncitizensen.pdf The rights of non-citizens], Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, 2006
• Council of Europe Commission for Democracy through Law [https://web.archive.org/web/20090214064001/http://www.venice.coe.int/docs/2007/CDL-AD(2007)001-e.asp report on noncitizens and minority rights], 2007
• D. C. Earnest [https://web.archive.org/web/20221130230734/https://ww2.odu.edu/~dearnest/pdfs/Earnest_APSA_2003.pdf Noncitizen Voting Rights: A Survey of an Emerging Democratic Norm], 2003
• University of Minnesota Human Rights Center: [http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/edumat/studyguides/noncitizens.html Study Guide: The Rights of Non-Citizens], 2003
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20120609172135/https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/aliens.asp UK Aliens' registration cards on The National Archives' website.]

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Category:American legal terminology

Category:Expatriates

Category:Human migration

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Category:Nationality

Category:People by legal status

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Category:United States immigration law

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