Before the plea · After a conviction · ICE detainers
On criminal charges, the plea decides the immigration case.
Immigration advice for noncitizens charged with a crime in Pennsylvania, and for their criminal defense attorneys: what a plea would mean for a green card, a visa, DACA or TPS, a future citizenship application, and the risk of ICE detention, before anything is signed.
Immigration law decides for itself what counts as a conviction. A plea that avoids jail can still make someone deportable, and a disposition that withholds a finding of guilt can still count if a plea or admission came first and the judge ordered some form of punishment, penalty, or restraint.
Who this page is for
The same arrest means different things for different people.
The immigration consequences of a criminal case depend on the charge, the outcome, and the person's status. A green card holder, a visa holder, someone with DACA or TPS, and someone who entered without inspection can face very different risks from the same plea.
Before any plea
This is when the immigration analysis can still change the outcome. Once a plea is entered and a conviction exists, the options narrow sharply, and undoing a conviction for immigration purposes is much harder than avoiding one.
Use the private guideAn immigration read on the plea
The Supreme Court held in Padilla v. Kentucky (2010) that defense counsel must tell a noncitizen client whether a plea carries a risk of deportation. We work with criminal defense lawyers: with the client's permission, we review the charges and the offer and can provide a written immigration advisory opinion on a proposed plea.
How the consultation worksDetained after an arrest
An ICE detainer can follow a person from a county jail into immigration custody, and some charges or convictions require detention without bond. Custody is the first question, and it is answered under immigration law, not criminal bail rules.
Immigration bond hearingsA pending case and a trip abroad
In Blanche v. Lau (2026), the Supreme Court held that a permanent resident who has committed a listed offense can be treated as seeking admission on returning from a trip, even before any conviction. Talk to an immigration lawyer before you travel.
Read the travel questionApplying for a green card or citizenship
A conviction from years ago can still decide a green card application, and naturalization requires good moral character for the statutory period. Some convictions bar it permanently. The record is reviewed before anything is filed.
Naturalization & citizenshipTheir own criminal thresholds
TPS is barred by any felony or two misdemeanors committed in the United States. The DACA rule bars a felony, three or more misdemeanors, or a single misdemeanor of certain kinds, including driving under the influence. Even a minor charge needs review before renewal.
TPSThree facts decide the analysis: the person's immigration status today, the exact statute and subsection charged or offered in the plea, and every prior arrest or conviction, here or abroad. The firm handles the immigration side; the criminal case stays with the criminal defense attorney.
What counts as a conviction
Federal law defines the conviction, not the state court.
INA § 101(a)(48) sets its own definition. A disposition that the criminal system treats as lenient, or as no conviction at all, can still be a conviction for immigration purposes.
A formal judgment of guilt, or something close to it
A conviction is a formal judgment of guilt. Where the court withholds adjudication, it is still a conviction if the person was found guilty, pleaded guilty or no contest, or admitted enough facts to support a finding of guilt, and the judge ordered some form of punishment, penalty, or restraint.
Diversion is not automatically safe
Whether a diversion program, probation without verdict, or an ARD-type disposition counts depends on what was pleaded or admitted and what the judge ordered. That is read from the actual court papers, before the person enters the program.
A suspended sentence still counts
Any reference to a term of imprisonment includes the time ordered by the court, even if the court suspended all or part of it. A one-year suspended sentence can therefore matter as much as a year served.
Erasing a conviction rarely erases it here
Under Board and Attorney General precedent, a conviction vacated, or a sentence changed, for rehabilitation or to avoid immigration consequences still counts. One vacated because of a legal defect in the criminal case generally does not, which is why post-conviction work runs through the criminal court.
No conviction is not the same as no problem. Admitting the essential elements of a crime involving moral turpitude or a drug offense can make someone inadmissible, and the government's reason to believe that a person trafficked drugs is enough for that ground. What is said to police, to a judge, or on a form can matter.
The main criminal grounds
A few categories do most of the damage.
Immigration law sorts offenses into federal categories. Whether a particular Pennsylvania charge falls into one depends on the elements of the statute and subsection, so every charge needs its own analysis.
The grounds that reach people already admitted
- Crimes involving moral turpitude. One committed within five years after admission, if the offense can carry a sentence of a year or longer, or two at any time after admission that did not arise from a single scheme.
- Aggravated felonies. A conviction for any offense on the federal list, at any time after admission.
- Controlled substances. A conviction relating to a substance controlled under federal law, except a single offense of possessing 30 grams or less of marijuana for one's own use.
- Firearms. A conviction for buying, selling, owning, possessing, or carrying a firearm, or trying to, in violation of any law.
- Domestic violence and protection orders. A conviction for a crime of domestic violence, stalking, or child abuse, neglect, or abandonment, and a court's finding that the person violated the part of a protection order that guards against violence, threats, or harassment.
Not necessarily aggravated, and not necessarily a felony
- The label is federal. The list applies to state and federal offenses alike, and what the state calls the offense does not decide it.
- One year can be enough. Theft, burglary, a crime of violence, obstruction of justice, and forgery offenses become aggravated felonies with a term of imprisonment of at least one year, and suspended time counts.
- Some turn on the amount. Fraud or deceit with a loss to the victims over $10,000 is on the list, as is money laundering over the same amount.
- Some need no sentence at all. Murder, rape, sexual abuse of a minor, and drug or firearms trafficking are listed without any sentence requirement. Attempts and conspiracies count too.
- The consequences stack. An aggravated felony makes an admitted person deportable, bars cancellation of removal for permanent residents, counts as a particularly serious crime for asylum, permanently bars the good moral character needed for citizenship, and triggers mandatory detention.
The court compares the statute, not the story. The analysis looks at what facts a conviction under that statute necessarily establishes, not only at what the person actually did. Two pleas to the same conduct, under different subsections, can have opposite immigration results.
Deportable or inadmissible
Two different tests, and the plea has to pass both.
Deportability applies to people who were admitted. Inadmissibility applies to people seeking admission, a green card, or a visa, and sometimes to green card holders coming back from a trip. A plea that avoids one can still trigger the other.
| Deportability · INA § 237(a)(2) | Inadmissibility · INA § 212(a)(2) | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it reaches | People already admitted, including green card holders and visa holders. | People applying for admission, a green card, or a visa, and some green card holders returning from abroad. |
| What triggers it | Generally a conviction. | A conviction, or an admission of the essential elements; for drug trafficking, the government's reason to believe. |
| Moral turpitude | One within five years after admission with a possible sentence of a year or more, or two at any time after admission. | One can be enough, with narrow exceptions for a single minor offense or one committed under 18. |
| Drugs | Any conviction, except a single offense of possessing 30 grams or less of marijuana for one's own use. | Any conviction or admission. A waiver can reach only a single offense of simple possession of 30 grams or less of marijuana. |
| Multiple convictions | Covered through the two-offense moral turpitude rule. | Two or more convictions of any kind with aggregate sentences of five years or more. |
| Firearms and domestic violence | Separate grounds of their own. | No separate ground, although the same offense may raise the moral turpitude question. |
| Waivers | Limited. A full and unconditional pardon by the President or a governor covers some grounds, and cancellation of removal may be possible. | A § 212(h) waiver can reach moral turpitude, multiple convictions, and a single small marijuana possession, with strict limits for permanent residents. |
General comparison only. Each ground has exceptions and definitions not shown here, and whether a particular offense fits a ground depends on the statute of conviction and the record.
Arrests, detainers, and ICE
An arrest can bring ICE in before the criminal case ends.
In the Lehigh Valley, traffic stops and county jail bookings are where many immigration cases begin. What happens next depends on the person's status, the charge, and whether ICE has asked the jail to hold them.
A charge alone can now mean detention without bond. Since the Laken Riley Act of 2025, a person who entered without inspection, or is inadmissible for fraud or missing documents, must be detained if charged with, arrested for, or convicted of burglary, theft, larceny, shoplifting, assault of a law enforcement officer, or a crime causing death or serious bodily injury.
- Detainers. ICE can ask a jail to keep holding someone so it can take custody. Federal regulations limit that hold to 48 hours, not counting weekends and holidays, and whether a county honors detainers depends on local policy.
- 287(g) agreements. Federal law allows written agreements under which trained state and local officers carry out certain immigration functions. Read our update on traffic stops and 287(g) in the Lehigh Valley.
- Mandatory detention after certain convictions. Many offenses in the criminal grounds require ICE to detain the person on release, whether the release is on parole, supervised release, or probation.
- Criminal bail is not the end. With a detainer in place, release on bail in the criminal case can lead to a transfer to ICE instead of home, so the timing is discussed with both lawyers.
- Bond depends on the custody statute. Whether an immigration judge can set bond turns on how the person entered, the record, and where they are held. See immigration bond hearings.
- Know your rights at a stop. Our guide covers what to do if ICE stops you, and the emergency page lists the first calls to make.
What we do
The immigration work runs alongside the criminal case.
We do not handle the criminal case. We read it for its immigration consequences, explain them to the client and, with the client's permission, to the defense attorney, and then handle whatever immigration case follows.
- 01
Collect the papers
The criminal complaint or information, the docket, any proposed plea, prior dispositions here and abroad, and every immigration document the person has, including the green card, visa, DACA or TPS approval, and any ICE paper.
- 02
Map the status and the dates
Status, date and manner of entry, the date of any admission, and the date of every offense. Some grounds depend on when an offense was committed relative to admission.
- 03
Analyze the statute of conviction
Each charge and each possible plea is compared, subsection by subsection, against the federal categories, with attention to the sentence and the record of conviction.
- 04
Advise before the plea
We explain the immigration consequences of the offer and of the dispositions that might be raised instead and, when the defense attorney needs it, put that analysis in a written advisory opinion on the proposed plea. Defense attorneys book through the same intake, and the decision about the plea stays with the client and criminal counsel.
- 05
Plan for custody
If a detainer or ICE arrest is possible, we identify the custody statute, gather bond evidence, and prepare the family for what happens on release from the county jail.
- 06
After a conviction
We review whether the conviction triggers a ground, whether criminal counsel can challenge it for a legal defect, and what relief exists in immigration court, such as cancellation of removal or a waiver, where the person is eligible.
- 07
Before any application or trip
A green card, citizenship, DACA or TPS filing, or international travel is reviewed against the record first, so the filing does not become the government's reason to open a case.
Private two-minute guide
Where should the immigration review start?
Answer three general questions. The guide suggests where a first review should start; it does not analyze a charge, predict an outcome, or send your answers to the firm.
Official starting points
Read the grounds in the statute itself.
The statute and the regulations are the starting point, but whether a particular charge fits a ground is decided by case law on that statute. Confirm the current rule before relying on any summary, including this one.
Common questions
Questions about criminal charges and immigration.
General answers help you prepare. They cannot tell you what a particular charge or plea will do, which depends on the statute, the record, and your status.
I was arrested but not convicted. Can it still affect my immigration case?
It can. Admitting the essential elements of certain offenses can make someone inadmissible without a conviction, the drug trafficking ground needs only the government's reason to believe, and for people who entered without inspection a charge for certain offenses can require detention without bond. Naturalization looks at conduct during the statutory period, not only at convictions. Keep the papers showing how every arrest ended.
If I enter a diversion program or the judge withholds a finding of guilt, is that a conviction?
It can be. Under INA § 101(a)(48)(A), a disposition that withholds adjudication is still a conviction if there was a finding of guilt, a plea of guilty or no contest, or an admission of sufficient facts, and the judge ordered some form of punishment, penalty, or restraint. Whether a particular program, including ARD, meets that test depends on what was entered and ordered, so it is reviewed before you accept it.
My sentence was suspended, or I only got probation. Does the sentence still count?
For immigration purposes, a term of imprisonment includes the time the court ordered, even if it suspended all or part of it. That matters most for the aggravated felony categories that turn on a one-year term, such as theft, burglary, and crimes of violence.
Can my criminal defense attorney talk to you before I plead?
Yes, with your permission. In Padilla v. Kentucky (2010), the Supreme Court held that counsel must inform a client whether a plea carries a risk of deportation. We work with criminal defense lawyers, and they book through the same intake as any client. We explain the immigration consequences of the charges and the offer, and can provide a written immigration advisory opinion on a proposed plea; the criminal case and the decision about the plea stay with you and your defense attorney.
I have a green card and a pending criminal case. Can I travel?
Not before talking to an immigration lawyer. A permanent resident returning from abroad is normally not treated as seeking admission, but one exception covers anyone who has committed an offense identified in the criminal inadmissibility grounds. In Blanche v. Lau (2026), the Supreme Court held that the officer at the border does not need clear and convincing evidence of the offense to apply that exception, and that it can apply before any conviction. Our post on the decision explains it.
I have an old conviction. Can I apply for citizenship?
Possibly, but the record is reviewed first. Naturalization requires good moral character for the statutory period before filing. A murder conviction, or an aggravated felony conviction on or after November 29, 1990, bars it permanently; other offenses, such as a crime involving moral turpitude, a drug violation, or confinement of 180 days or more as a result of a conviction, bar it if they fall within the period. If the record makes you deportable, applying puts it in front of the government, so the review comes before the filing. See good moral character for the N-400.
Can a conviction be erased for immigration purposes?
Only in limited ways. Under Board and Attorney General precedent, a conviction vacated, or a sentence changed, because of a legal defect in the criminal case is generally given effect, but one changed for rehabilitation or to avoid immigration consequences is not. The DACA rule is one place where federal law expressly does not count expunged convictions; elsewhere, an expungement should not be assumed to remove the immigration consequence. Any post-conviction motion is filed by criminal counsel in the criminal court.
Someone was arrested and the jail says ICE has a hold. What happens now?
A detainer asks the jail to hold the person so ICE can take custody, and the regulation limits that hold to 48 hours, not counting weekends and holidays. Whether the county honors it depends on local policy. If ICE takes custody, the next questions are where the person is held and whether an immigration judge can set bond. See immigration bond hearings and our emergency page.
I am already in immigration court because of a conviction. Is there any relief?
Sometimes. Depending on the conviction and your history, options can include cancellation of removal, a waiver, adjustment of status with a waiver, or protection-based relief, and some convictions can be contested as not fitting the ground charged. An aggravated felony closes many of these doors, so the first step is reading the conviction records against the charge. See removal defense.
What does it cost?
Our legal fee is quoted as a flat fee after we review the charges and the immigration history, and payment plans are available. If the case moves to immigration court or a bond hearing, that stage is scoped and quoted separately.
Criminal charges and immigration at a glance
- Who we advise
- Noncitizens charged with or convicted of crimes, their families, and, with the client's permission, their criminal defense attorneys, in Allentown and across Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York.
- Languages
- English and Spanish.
- What we do not do
- We do not represent clients in the criminal case; that stays with the criminal defense attorney.
- Key definitions
- Conviction, INA § 101(a)(48); aggravated felony, INA § 101(a)(43).
- Criminal grounds
- Inadmissibility, INA § 212(a)(2); deportability, INA § 237(a)(2).
- Detention
- Mandatory detention, INA § 236(c); detainers, 8 C.F.R. § 287.7.
- Office
- 609 W. Hamilton Street, No. 102, Allentown, PA 18101 · (484) 763-4984
Information reviewed against official sources, including the Immigration and Nationality Act, DHS and EOIR regulations, and Supreme Court, Attorney General, and Board decisions, on October 8, 2026. General information, not legal advice about any criminal charge or plea; it does not analyze a particular offense, advise on Pennsylvania criminal law, predict an outcome, or create an attorney-client relationship. Every charge needs individual analysis, and detention law in particular is changing quickly.
Reviewed and updated
The charges · The status · The record
Send the charges and the court date. We will explain the immigration consequences before the plea.
Start with the charging papers or the docket number, the next court date, any plea offer, the name of the criminal defense attorney, prior arrests here or abroad, and every immigration document you have.
English and Spanish · Allentown · Pennsylvania · New Jersey · New York · Representation where permitted