1947

18 U.S.C. § 1546—Fraud and Misuse of Visas, Permits, and Related Documents, and False Personation

The first paragraph of 18 U.S.C. § 1546(a) proscribes the forging, counterfeiting, altering or falsely making of certain immigration documents or their use, possession, or receipt. The second paragraph proscribes the possession, or bringing into the United States of plates or distinctive papers used for the printing of entry documents. The third paragraph makes it a crime, when applying for an entry document or admission into the United States, to personate another or appear under a false name. The fourth paragraph makes it a crime to give a false statement under oath in any document required by the immigration laws or regulations. The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) amended subsection 1546(a) to provide for enhanced penalties if the offense was committed to facilitate an act of international terrorism or a drug trafficking crime. Subsection 1546(b) makes it a felony offense to use a false identification document, or misuses a real one, for the purpose of satisfying the employment verification provisions in 8 U.S.C. § 1324a(b). COMMENT: Further discussion of offenses defined in 18 U.S.C. § 1546 is set forth in Chapter 7 of Immigration Law, published as part of the Office of Legal Education's Litigation Series, and as part of the USABook computer library. [cited in USAM 9-73.600]