The Trump Administration Alien Registration Requirement

On January 20, 2025, President Trump in the Protecting the American People Against Invasion executive order directed the Department of Homeland Security to ensure that aliens comply with their duty to register with the government under section 262 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) (8 U.S.C. 1302), and ensure that failure to comply is treated as a civil and criminal enforcement priority. Here is the U.S. Citizenship and Citizenship Requirement Alien Registration webpage.

For background and details, click here.  The alien registration requirement is based in the Alien Registration Act of 1940,  which Congress passed at a time of national security anxieties as the United States was on the verge of entering World War II.

Analysis by the American Immigration Council states that

“[i]n February 25, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that the Trump administration will reanimate a provision of U.S. immigration law that has essentially been dormant for decades: a requirement for all immigrants who did not enter with a visa to register with the federal government after their arrival, and carry proof of their registration with them.

The administration is clarifying which immigrants already count as being registered—please see the section below on `Who the Registration Process Will Affect’ for a full explanation of this—and plans to issue a new form for immigrants who are not already registered to submit.

The administration is using this forthcoming registration process alongside federal criminal law—which makes it a crime for immigrants to fail to register or fail to carry proof of registration. In doing so, the Trump administration is giving itself another tool to use against immigrants: the threat of criminal prosecution.

The registration requirement will force many people in the United States—including those who entered without
inspection and have had no contact with the federal government during their years living in American communities—to make a choice between two options that both carry serious risk. Many others, such as immigrants who are already deemed  registered—which includes both many undocumented immigrants and many who have legal status in the United States—will
face a risk of prosecution if they fail to carry registration papers with them at all times.”

KJ