President. this bill would amend section 212 of the act by adding a new subsection. This new provision would change the law to permit the Attorney General to exercise discretion in admitting to the United States an alien who has previously entered the United States. or tried to enter. through fraud or concealment of a material fact. Under section 212 as presently written an alien is forever barred from receiving a visa if he has committed such a fraud. regardless of the circumstances or length of time that has passed since his misrepresentation. The new subsection (j) to section 212 which I propose would authorize the Attorney General to allow such an alien to apply for admission to the United States. under appropliate conditions. if the fraud or misrepresentation occurred more than 10 years prior to such application by the alien. It would not guarantee the alien admission. but would merely give the Attorney General the authority to allow such an alien to apply for admission in any case appropriate. Mr. President. this is a small but important step forward in making our immigration practices more equitable. Over the years. I have had a number of unfortunate situations brought to my attention in which an alien. in his eager desire to become a resident and citizen of our great country. misrepresented a fact relating to his status.
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immigration visa