If you have been deported, removed, or excluded from the United States, you are generally barred from returning for 5, 10, or 20 years — depending on the circumstances. Form I-212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission, allows you to request early permission to apply for a visa or admission before the bar period ends.
Key Facts
Filing fee: $930. Processing: 6–18+ months. Required if you want to return to the U.S. before your reentry bar expires. Not guaranteed — USCIS considers multiple factors including reason for removal, length of time since removal, and evidence of rehabilitation.
When I-212 Is Required
After removal or deportation (5–20 year bar), after expedited removal (5-year bar), after voluntary departure that was not completed (10-year bar), and after certain removals involving aggravated felonies (20-year bar). The I-212 is often filed together with an I-601 waiver if you also have inadmissibility grounds.
Approval Factors
USCIS considers: the basis for your removal, recency of the removal, length of U.S. residence before removal, moral character evidence, family ties in the U.S., need for the applicant's services, and evidence of rehabilitation if removed for criminal grounds.