Individuals seeking to come to the US may be deemed inadmissible on security grounds, whether for involvement in a terrorist group or joining a totalitarian party. Over the past 10 years, a number of changes have been made in this area of immigration law, and additional changes may be expected in response to the events of September 11.

Here are the main grounds of inadmissibility for security reasons:

• Foreign nationals are inadmissible if they have engaged in terrorist activities. What's more, they are inadmissible if a consular officer or INS inspector believes the person is currently engaged in terrorist activities or will be in the future. Foreign nationals may also be deemed inadmissible if they incited terrorist activity or served as a representative or member of a terrorist organization, as designated by the State Department. Even if it has been years since the organization engaged in terrorist activities, the group may still be considered a terrorist organization if it retains the capacity and inclination to engage in terrorism.
• If a consular officer or INS inspector either knows, or has a reasonable basis for believing, that the visa applicant is seeking to enter the US to engage in espionage or sabotage, the applicant may be deemed inadmissible. The applicant will also be denied admission for coming to the US to try to export products or technology deemed illegal for export.
• If the State Department determines that a person's entry to the US would have adverse consequences on the country's foreign policy, the person is inadmissible. Two exceptions exist to the rule. The grounds of inadmissibility do not apply to officials of a foreign government simply because of statements they may have made. In such cases, the person is inadmissible only if admission would create a clear negative foreign policy impact. Second, a person cannot be deemed inadmissible because of past statements that would be legal in the US, unless their entry would compromise competing US foreign policy interests.
• Membership in a communist or other totalitarian party makes a person inadmissible, but a number of exceptions exist to the rule. For instance, if membership was involuntary, a requirement of the nation's laws or necessary to obtain a job, the exception applies. What's more, those who have renounced their membership in the party at least two years prior to the visa application are admissible if it is determined they do not pose a threat to the US (if the person's country is still controlled by a communist or totalitarian government, the renunciation must have occurred at least five years prior to the visa application). Finally, those with close family members who are US citizens or permanent residents are eligible for a waiver.
• Individuals are also deemed inadmissible if they were participants in Nazi-era persecutions or have engaged in genocide.