Tourist Overstayed 20+ Years: Unlawful Presence, 10-year Bar

Immigration and Customs Enforcement says a tourist accused of overstaying a visa in the United States for more than 20 years now faces some of the harshest penalties in the immigration system, under laws that carry both civil and criminal consequences. The case centers on what U.S. officials call Unlawful Presence, the legal term for remaining in the country without permission after a visa expires or a status violation occurs, and it shows how badly things can go once that clock runs for years instead of months.

How Unlawful Presence is measured and why it matters

Under current law, once a person with a tourist visa stays even one day past the approved period, they begin accruing Unlawful Presence. The legal consequences change sharply depending on how long that Unlawful Presence continues:

• If Unlawful Presence reaches more than 180 days but less than one year, and the person then leaves, they face a three‑year bar from returning.
• If the overstay crosses one year and the person departs, the law imposes a 10‑year bar on reentering the country.

In the ICE case described, officers say the tourist remained more than two decades beyond the allowed stay — far past the threshold that leads to long‑term bans.

Quick reference: common inadmissibility bars

What the 10‑year bar means

The 10‑year bar makes a person legally inadmissible for a full decade after departure. That status can block reentry even if the person later qualifies for a family or work visa.

• Waivers are available in very limited situations (for example, by filing [Form I-601, Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility]).
• The waiver standard is high and typically requires proving extreme hardship to a qualifying U.S. citizen or permanent resident spouse or parent.

When a Permanent bar applies

A Permanent bar can apply in more severe scenarios:

• It arises when a person has built more than one year of Unlawful Presence in total across one or more stays, then departs and later tries to enter or actually reenters without proper admission.
• The result is a lifelong block on returning unless the person first obtains permission to reapply.

To request that permission, the person files [Form I‑212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission into the United States After Deportation or Removal]. Even if granted, that process does not erase prior bars; it merely allows the individual to seek a future visa or admission despite the Permanent bar rules.

Compound legal risks with long overstays

Analysis by VisaVerge.com notes that long overstays often stack multiple legal problems:

• A past Unlawful Presence period may already have created a 10‑year bar.
• Repeat violations, departure, and reentry can trigger the Permanent bar.
• When Unlawful Presence reaches the scale of 20 years, nearly every path to legal status becomes extremely narrow — especially for people lacking close qualifying family members in the U.S.

Recent changes: criminal penalties (effective June 2025)

Historically, visa overstays were treated as civil violations in immigration court. That shifted with legislation effective June 2025:

• Repeat offenders or people with aggravating factors (such as fraud or criminal conduct tied to their stay) can now face criminal charges and possible prison sentences up to two years.
• First‑time overstays, even very long ones, are still usually handled as civil cases, but ICE can detain people while removal proceedings move forward.

In the current ICE case, the agency has begun removal proceedings — a step that makes deportation highly likely given the overstay duration.

The removal process and burden of proof

The formal removal process typically follows these steps:

1. ICE issues a Notice to Appear, a charging document that places the person before an immigration judge.
2. The government must prove the individual entered with a lawful visa and then remained beyond the authorized time.
3. Once that is established, the burden shifts to the person to show a legal reason to stay (e.g., asylum, certain family‑based protections, or rare forms of relief).

With more than 20 years of Unlawful Presence, judges have very little room to approve regular immigration benefits.

Family impacts and difficult choices

One of the most painful consequences of a 20‑year overstay is how it disrupts family immigration plans:

• A spouse or adult child who might usually sponsor a green card may be unable to fix the problem once the person departs to process a visa abroad, because the 10‑year or Permanent bar will apply.
• Families face a painful dilemma: staying risks continued Unlawful Presence and possible arrest, while leaving can trigger a long ban.

No automatic forgiveness with time

Time in the United States without permission does not heal legal damage; it deepens it. Waivers exist but are:

• Rarely granted for long‑term overstays unless extraordinary humanitarian or family hardship reasons are proven.
• Discretionary, with the person’s long immigration record weighed against positive factors.

Key takeaway: simply remaining in the U.S. longer does not reduce penalties — it typically increases the legal obstacles to future lawful entry.

Criminal prosecution concerns under new law

The June 2025 criminal provisions create additional risks:

• Individuals with past fraud, use of false documents, or criminal charges tied to their overstay could face prosecution in addition to deportation.
• Prosecutors may view reentry after removal or use of false identities for employment as aggravating factors that justify criminal charges.

Although the tourist in ICE custody appears more likely to face civil removal rather than prison, attorneys warn that others with aggravating facts may be vulnerable to both prosecution and deportation.

Public guidance and practical complexity

Official guidance about these penalties and bars is dispersed across statutes and policy documents. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services provides materials explaining Unlawful Presence and inadmissibility on the [USCIS website], but the overall system remains hard for many families to navigate without legal assistance.

• The rules interconnect: length of overstay, manner of exit/reentry, and timing of immigration applications all matter.
• A misstep in any one action can trigger a 10‑year or Permanent bar that is difficult to undo.

Prospects for the tourist in custody

For the tourist now in ICE custody, available options look limited:

• Removal (deportation) is probable, and upon departure the 10‑year bar will apply at minimum.
• If officials find multiple periods of Unlawful Presence with departure and return between them, the Permanent bar could be imposed.
• Future lawful visits — even as a tourist — will likely require:
  • Permission to reapply via Form I‑212, and
  • Possibly a separate waiver application depending on the inadmissibility ground.

Neither of these remedies guarantees success; each is discretionary and weighed against the person’s immigration history.