Sponsor
James E. Banks
Senator · R-IN
Senator · R-IN
The bill tightens and raises penalties to deter visa overstays and improper entry—potentially improving compliance and enforcement—but does so by imposing significant criminal and financial risks on noncitizens, increasing government enforcement costs and risking deterrence of lawful visitors.
Nonimmigrant visa holders and immigration enforcement: the bill creates clearer, enforceable penalties (including criminal exposure) for aggregated overstays of 10+ days, which should improve rule clarity and help immigration authorities identify and sanction noncompliance.
Immigration enforcement and deterrence: the bill raises the civil penalty per improper entry from the prior $50–$250 range to $500–$1,000, strengthening financial deterrence against unlawful entry and increasing potential penalty revenue for the government.
Noncitizens who briefly or inadvertently fall out of status: individuals (including students and temporary workers) could face criminal charges (up to six months) and fines for short overstays, increasing risk of arrest, removal, and serious legal consequences for minor or accidental lapses.
Immigrants (including students and workers): substantially higher civil penalties and doubled fines for repeat violations create new and potentially severe financial burdens for people who miss deadlines or make minor status errors.
Taxpayers and federal agencies: expanding criminalization and penalties for overstays will increase caseloads for DHS, DOJ, and federal courts and could raise administrative, detention, and enforcement costs borne by taxpayers.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Raises civil fines for improper entry and creates civil and criminal penalties for nonimmigrant visa overstays of an aggregate 10+ days, with fines $500–$1,000 and jail exposure for repeat offenders.
Creates higher civil penalties and new criminal and civil penalties for nonimmigrant visa overstays and other failures to maintain nonimmigrant status. It raises the per-entry civil penalty for improper entry and adds a new enforcement subsection that treats an aggregate 10+ day failure to maintain admitted nonimmigrant status as a violation subject to civil fines ($500–$1,000 per violation, higher for repeat civil violators) and criminal penalties (up to 6 months imprisonment for a first offense; up to 2 years for repeat offenses or where a related criminal illegal-entry conviction exists). The Department of Homeland Security would apply these penalties when determining status and periods of stay.
Official title: Amend section 275 of the Immigration and Nationality Act to expand penalties for illegal entry and unlawful presence.
Introduced June 3, 2025 by James E. Banks · Last progress June 3, 2025