8 U.S.C. § 1327
Section 1327 · Aiding or assisting certain aliens to enter
This is § 277 of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (McCarran-Walter)
Amended 4 times on record
Applied in 35 court decisions — leading case Flores-Figueroa v. United States (2009)
Most recently applied in United States v. Stanley Wintfield Rolle (April 2023)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
Any person who knowingly aids or assists any alien inadmissible under section 1182(a)(2) (insofar as an alien inadmissible under such section has been convicted of an aggravated felony) or 1182(a)(3) (other than subparagraph (E) thereof) of this title to enter the United States, or who connives or conspires with any person or persons to allow, procure, or permit any such alien to enter the United States, shall be fined under title 18, or imprisoned not more than 10 years, or both.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Amendments
1996—Pub. L. 104–208 substituted “inadmissible” for “excludable” in two places.
1990—Pub. L. 101–649, §603(a)(16), substituted “1182(a)(2) (insofar as an alien excludable under such section has been convicted of an aggravated felony) or 1182(a)(3) (other than subparagraph (E) thereof)” for “1182(a)(9), (10), (23) (insofar as an alien excludable under any such paragraph has in addition been convicted of an aggravated felony), (27), (28), or (29)”.
Pub. L. 101–649, §543(b)(4), substituted “shall be fined under title 18, or imprisoned not more than 10 years” for “shall be guilty of a felony, and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not more than $5,000 or by imprisonment for not more than five years”.
1988—Pub. L. 100–690 substituted “certain aliens” for “subversive alien” in section catchline and inserted “(9), (10), (23) (insofar as an alien excludable under any such paragraph has in addition been convicted of an aggravated felony),” after “1182(a)”.
Effective Date of 1996 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 104–208 effective, with certain transitional provisions, on the first day of the first month beginning more than 180 days after Sept. 30, 1996, see section 309 of Pub. L. 104–208, set out as a note under section 1101 of this title.
Effective Date of 1990 Amendment
Amendment by section 543(b)(4) of Pub. L. 101–649 applicable to actions taken after Nov. 29, 1990, see section 543(c) of Pub. L. 101–649, set out as a note under section 1221 of this title.
Amendment by section 603(a)(16) of Pub. L. 101–649 applicable to individuals entering United States on or after June 1, 1991, see section 601(e)(1) of Pub. L. 101–649, set out as a note under section 1101 of this title.
Effective Date of 1988 Amendment
Section 7346(b) of Pub. L. 100–690 provided that: “The amendment made by subsection (a) [amending this section] shall apply to any aid or assistance which occurs on or after the date of the enactment of this Act [Nov. 18, 1988].”
Cross References
Definition of alien, entry, and United States, see section 1101 of this title.