History of laws concerning immigration and naturalization in the United States information
During the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, the United States had limited regulation of immigration and naturalization at a national level. Under a mostly prevailing "open border" policy, immigration was generally welcomed, although citizenship was limited to “white persons” as of 1790, and naturalization subject to five year residency requirement as of 1802. Passports and visas were not required for entry to America, rules and procedures for arriving immigrants were determined by local ports of entry or state laws, and processes for naturalization were determined by local county courts.[1][2][3]
In the course of the late 1800s and early 1900s, many policies regarding immigration and naturalization were shifted, in stages, to a national level. Court rulings giving primacy to federal authority over immigration policy, and the Immigration Act of 1891, led to the establishment of the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and the opening of the Ellis Island inspection station in 1892. Constitutional authority (Article 1 §8) was later relied upon to enact the Naturalization Act of 1906 which standardized procedures for naturalization nationwide, and created the Bureau of Naturalization (initially joined with the Bureau of Immigration; later -from 1933 to 2003- both functions were part of the Immigration and Naturalization Service).[4][5]
After 2003, the Immigration and Naturalization Service split into separate agencies under the then newly created Department of Homeland Security: Naturalization services and functions have been handled by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), immigration services and regulations have been divided between administrative (in USCIS), enforcement (in Immigration and Customs Enforcement), and border inspections (under U.S. Customs and Border Protection).
^Jones, Maldwyn A. (1992) American Immigration, University of Chicago Press, 2nd ed., 66-77. Zolberg, Aristide R. (2006) A Nation by Design, Harvard University Press, 266.
^"United States Naturalization and Citizenship". Family Search. Retrieved 2022-11-18.
^ The racial limitation on citizenship was lifted in 1952; the five year residency for naturalization has continued. "Defining Citizenship". Smithsonian Museum. Retrieved 2022-11-18. "Policy Manual: Continuous Residency". USCIS. 25 May 2021. Retrieved 2022-11-18.
^Cannato, Vincent J. (2009) American Passage: The History of Ellis Island, Harper Collins, 42-62
^"Immigration Act of 1891". Immigration History. Retrieved 2022-11-18.
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