United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on February 25, 2025, a new registration procedure for foreign nationals in the United States.  This has apparently been done in an effort to comply with the January 20, 2025, Executive Order entitled Protecting the American People Against Invasion, which directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to ensure that foreign nationals register with the government under section 262 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), and ensure that failure to register be treated as “a civil and criminal enforcement priority.”

Registration is not a new requirement.  Under the INA, all foreign nationals 14 years of age or older who were not fingerprinted or registered when applying for a U.S. visa or entering the United States for 30 days or longer, must be registered and fingerprinted by DHS. Once a foreign national has been registered and fingerprinted, DHS will issue evidence of registration, which foreign nationals over the age of 18 must carry and keep in their possession at all times. Failure to comply will result in criminal and civil penalties.

Parents and guardians of children should make sure that their children below the age of 14 are registered within 30 days of the child turning 14, even if the child was previously registered.

Most foreign nationals who are present in the United States have already registered as required by law.  These include lawful permanent residents; foreign nationals paroled into the United States, even if the period of parole has expired; 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; foreign nationals present in the United States who were issued immigrant or nonimmigrant visas prior to arrival; foreign nationals issued an employment authorization document (EAD); foreign nationals who have applied for lawful permanent residence using Forms I-485, even if the applications were denied; and foreign nationals issued Border Crossing Cards. If a foreign national falls into one or more of these categories, no action is necessary.  Thus, an H-1B worker who was issued an I-94 on entry to the United States would not need to register once again, nor would a person who has filed an I-485 adjustment of status application or has received an EAD.

The announcement and registration process appears to target foreign nationals who are present in the United States but have hitherto had no means of registering.  These include foreign nationals who are present in the United States without inspection and admission or inspection and parole; Canadian visitors who entered the United States at land ports of entry and were not issued evidence of registration; and foreign nationals who submitted one or more benefit requests to USCIS not listed in the relevant USCIS regulations, including applications for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) or Temporary Protected Status (TPS), who were not issued evidence of registration.  For undocumented persons, the unenviable choice appears to be between registering and thus exposing their lack of documentation to the immigration authorities or failing to register and thus exposing themselves to potential criminal sanctions.

USCIS will establish a new form and process by which foreign nationals may register. A person who has been issued one of the documents designated as evidence of registration under USCIS regulations has registered and does not need to do so again.  Starting on February 25, 2025, foreign nationals who are required to register but have not done so should create a USCIS online account in preparation for the registration process. Once the registration process is implemented, foreign nationals will submit their registration through their USCIS online account.  USCIS will update its webpage to provide additional information in the coming days.

Although most foreign nationals in the United States will already have complied with the registration requirement, the USCIS’ announcement and the likely aggressive enforcement of it by DHS provides a timely reminder to all foreign nationals to carry evidence of their immigration status with them at all times.  This includes, at minimum, a copy of their passport identification page and of their I-94 admission record.