Alien (law)

In law, an alien is generally any person (including an organization) who is not a citizen or a national of a specific country,[1][2][3][4] although definitions and terminology differ across legal systems.

The only exceptions to the rule are holders of New Zealand passports and citizenship, who may apply for a visa on arrival according to the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement.

"[24] Others, such as natives of Palau and the Marshall Islands, are legal immigrants and aliens for INA purposes.

[26] Although the INA provides no overarching explicit definition of the term "illegal alien", it is mentioned in a number of provisions under title 8 of the US code.

[28] According to PolitiFact, the term "illegal alien" occurs in federal law, but does so scarcely, writing that, "where the term does appear, it's undefined or part of an introductory title or limited to apply to certain individuals convicted of felonies.”[29] Since the U.S. law says that a corporation is a person,[4] the term alien is not limited to natural humans because what are colloquially called foreign corporations are technically called alien corporations.

[30] "Alienage", i.e., citizenship status, has been prohibited since 1989 in New York City from being considered for employment, under that town's Human Rights legislation.

[31][32] In the Gulf Cooperation Council (United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, and Qatar), many non-natives have lived in the region since birth.