Trump Proposes Fines, Prison Time for Migrants Who Don’t Join Registry

The Trump administration created a registry for immigrants in the U.S. illegally to submit their personal information or face fines and prison time, according to documents including a draft regulation seen by The Wall Street Journal.

Immigrants in the country illegally including children 14 and older would be required to submit fingerprints and home addresses to the registry, the documents show. Immigrants who qualify but fail to register could be fined up to $5,000 and sentenced to up to six months in prison.

The move to criminalize being in the U.S. illegally would build on the Trump administration’s efforts to toughen immigration laws. Previously, immigrants in the country illegally were committing a civil offense and could be detained and deported, but weren’t considered to have committed a crime.

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The administration’s plans rely on obscure provisions of immigration law that have proved impractical to enforce in the past. {snip}

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President Trump’s re-established registry requires anyone in the country illegally who hasn’t interacted with the government, such as by applying for asylum or a work permit, to come forward. The administration created a registration form and gave people 30 days to complete it {snip}

Immigrants who overstay their visas or are in deportation proceedings wouldn’t need to register, as the government already has their information, though they would be required to submit any changes of address.

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