Part K - False Claim to U.S. Citizenship

This technical update to Volume 8 modifies several footnotes to note the divergence from the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA)’s decision in Matter of Richmond, 26 I&N Dec. 779, 787 (BIA 2016) in the Eleventh Circuit. In Patel v. U.S. Att'y Gen., 971 F.3d 1258, 1272 (11th Cir. 2020) (en banc), the Eleventh Circuit held that a false claim to U.S. citizenship does not have to be material in order to result in inadmissibility. This decision only applies to cases within the jurisdiction of the Eleventh Circuit, which covers Georgia, Alabama, and Florida. This update also removes redundant footnotes.

This technical update replaces all instances of the term “alien” with “noncitizen” or other appropriate terms throughout the Policy Manual where possible, as used to refer to a person who meets the definition provided in INA 101(a)(3) [“any person not a citizen or national of the United States”].

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is updating and incorporating relevant Adjudicator’s Field Manual (AFM) content into the USCIS Policy Manual. As that process is ongoing, USCIS has moved any remaining AFM content to its corresponding USCIS Policy Manual Part, in PDF format, until relevant AFM content has been properly incorporated into the USCIS Policy Manual. To the extent that a provision in the USCIS Policy Manual conflicts with remaining AFM content or Policy Memoranda, the updated information in the USCIS Policy Manual prevails. To find remaining AFM content, see the crosswalk (PDF, 322.9 KB) between the AFM and the Policy Manual.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is updating policy guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual regarding the false claim to U.S. citizenship ground of inadmissibility.

This technical update replaces all instances of the term “foreign national” with “alien” throughout the Policy Manual as used to refer to a person who meets the definition provided in INA 101(a)(3) [“any person not a citizen or national of the United States”].

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is issuing guidance to address the false claim to U.S. citizenship ground of inadmissibility under section 212(a)(6)(C)(ii) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).