Home > West's Encyclopedia of American Law > Visa

An official endorsement on a passport or other document required to secure an alien's admission to a country.

Under U.S. immigration law, an alien is any person who is not a citizen or national of the United States. Two types of visas exist: nonimmigrant and immigrant. The immigration laws delineate specific categories of persons who may be eligible for an immigrant visa, which generally allows a person to live in the United States permanently and perhaps eventually seek citizenship. Persons visiting the United States on a temporary basis to engage in an activity delineated under the nonimmigrant classifications of the federal immigration laws must generally possess a nonimmigrant visa. A visit under a nonimmigrant visa may be of very short duration or may validly last for years, depending on the classification of nonimmigrant visa used.

Immigrant visa classifications include family-sponsored immigrants, employment-based...