noncitizens

Federal judges overseeing requests from immigration detainees generally conclude that noncitizens who are detained while present within the United States are entitled to due process rights.

U.S. immigration law and the U.S. Constitution recognize a distinction between noncitizens stopped at or near the border and noncitizens who reside within the country, with due process protections applying to noncitizens residing within the country but not to those stopped at or near the border.

In U.S. immigration procedure, immigration officers assess whether a noncitizen would face persecution or torture if removed to a third country, and immigration judges may review such removal-related determinations.

Constitutional protections for freedom of speech in the United States extend to people present in the country, including noncitizens.

The U.S. Department of Transportation implemented significant restrictions in 2025 on when noncitizens can obtain commercial driver's licenses.

U.S. legal doctrine distinguishes between the due process rights of noncitizens who have established connections in the United States and the rights of noncitizens at the threshold of initial entry; the U.S. Supreme Court addressed this distinction in a 2020 decision.

U.S. immigration enforcement can seek to remove noncitizens to third countries, meaning countries other than the noncitizen's country of nationality, as part of deportation operations.