Good moral character
Good moral character is a separate test from removability, and a plea can fail it without being a ground of removal at all. INA 101(f) lists the people who cannot be found to have it: some permanently, some for as long as the offense falls inside the period being measured. Naturalization, cancellation of removal for non-permanent residents, VAWA cancellation and voluntary departure at the end of a case all require it, each over a different number of years. This page is the list of bars, the periods, and the rules about probation and confinement that decide whether a plea entered this year costs you an application next year.
Current as of October 2026. We re-check this page regularly and after any rule change.
A plea is checked against the grounds of removal first, because those decide whether you can be charged. It is checked against good moral character second, because that decides whether the applications you were counting on can be granted. The two tests use some of the same categories and different thresholds, and the character test has a period attached: the years before the application during which the offense counts. The grounds are on the crimes and removal page. This page is the character test.
The permanent bars
INA 101(f)(8) and 8 C.F.R. 316.10(b)(1) name two things that bar good moral character at any time, no matter how long ago and no matter which application.
- A conviction of murder, at any time.
- A conviction of an aggravated felony on or after November 29, 1990.
The second one is why the aggravated felony label matters even to a permanent resident who is never placed in proceedings. It is defined by the list in INA 101(a)(43), several entries on that list turn on a sentence of one year, and a suspended year is a year. A permanent resident who takes a plea that is an aggravated felony can never naturalize, and the aggravated felony page explains what else it closes.
The conditional bars during the statutory period
INA 101(f)(1), (3), (4), (5), (6) and (7) and 8 C.F.R. 316.10(b)(2) list the things that bar good moral character if they fall within the period being measured. A conviction outside the period is not a listed bar, though it can still be weighed.
| Bar | What it requires | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| Crime involving moral turpitude | A conviction of, or admission of, a CIMT, subject to the petty offense exception: one offense, a maximum penalty not exceeding one year, and a sentence of six months or less | INA 101(f)(3); 8 C.F.R. 316.10(b)(2) |
| Two or more offenses | Convictions with aggregate sentences to confinement of 5 years or more | INA 101(f)(3); 8 C.F.R. 316.10(b)(2) |
| Controlled substances | A violation of any law relating to a controlled substance, except a single offense of simple possession of 30 grams or less of marijuana | INA 101(f)(3), incorporating 212(a)(2)(A)(i)(II); 8 C.F.R. 316.10(b)(2)(iii) |
| Confinement | Confinement of 180 days or more as a result of a conviction, counted in the aggregate | INA 101(f)(7); 8 C.F.R. 316.10(b)(2) |
| False testimony | False testimony for the purpose of obtaining an immigration benefit | INA 101(f)(6); 8 C.F.R. 316.10(b)(2) |
| Prostitution; smuggling; polygamy | The prostitution and commercialized vice ground; alien smuggling; the practice of polygamy | INA 101(f)(1)-(7); 8 C.F.R. 316.10(b)(2) |
| Habitual drunkard; gambling | Habitual drunkenness; gambling offenses | INA 101(f)(1)-(7); 8 C.F.R. 316.10(b)(2) |
Three of these repeat the inadmissibility grounds, and the categorical approach and the petty offense exception apply to them the way they apply to admission. The 180-day rule is different. It does not ask what the offense was. It asks how long you were confined as a result of a conviction during the period, and a conviction that is not a ground of anything else can bar character on this rule alone. How a suspended sentence interacts with the word "confined" in that rule is a question to ask us about your sentence; the rules that plainly count suspended time are the ones on the aggravated felony list and in the petty offense exception, where the statute says "sentence."
Beyond the list
The list is not the whole test. Under 8 C.F.R. 316.10(b)(3)(iii), a person who has committed unlawful acts that fall outside the listed bars can still be found to lack good moral character, unless extenuating circumstances are shown. An arrest without a conviction, a dismissed charge, a violation-level offense: each is conduct the adjudicator can weigh. This is the rule that makes a criminal record relevant to a character finding even when every disposition on it is outside the listed bars.
Under Matter of Castillo-Perez, 27 I&N Dec. 664 (A.G. 2019), two or more DUI convictions during the statutory period create a rebuttable presumption against good moral character. A simple DUI is not a crime involving moral turpitude under Matter of Torres-Varela, 23 I&N Dec. 78 (BIA 2001), so a single one is not a listed bar; two inside the period shift the burden to you.
Probation has to be finished
Under 8 C.F.R. 316.10(c)(1), a naturalization application will not be approved while any probation, parole or suspended sentence is still running, and conduct during the period is considered. A plea with three years of probation is a plea that defers naturalization by at least three years, on top of whatever the conviction itself does to the statutory period. The length of the probationary term is a negotiable part of a plea, and it is negotiated for this reason.
Which applications require it, and for how long
| Application | Period | Notes | Authority |
|---|---|---|---|
| Naturalization | 5 years; 3 years for the spouse of a citizen | Character must continue through the oath. The permanent bars apply regardless of the period | INA 316(a)(3), 319(a); 8 C.F.R. 316.10(a)(1) |
| Cancellation of removal, non-permanent residents | 10 years | Also barred outright by any conviction under 212(a)(2), 237(a)(2) or 237(a)(3) | INA 240A(b)(1) |
| VAWA cancellation | 3 years | Also requires not being inadmissible under 212(a)(2) or (3), not deportable under the listed grounds, and no aggravated felony conviction | INA 240A(b)(2) |
| Voluntary departure at the conclusion of proceedings | 5 years | Barred for an aggravated felony regardless. Voluntary departure before the conclusion of proceedings has no character requirement but is also barred for an aggravated felony | INA 240B(a)(1), (b)(1)(B), (C); 8 C.F.R. 1240.26 |
| Cancellation of removal, permanent residents | No character requirement | Discretion is still exercised. The bars are the five and seven years and the aggravated felony | INA 240A(a) |
The period runs backward from the application and forward to the decision. An offense committed inside the window bars the application for as long as the window includes it. For a naturalization applicant, that means a plea entered today to a listed offense with a sentence under 180 days is a plea that pushes the application back five years from the date of the offense, and a plea to an aggravated felony pushes it back forever.
The naturalization trap
A permanent resident with a criminal record who files for naturalization is presenting that record to the agency that can start a removal case. Under INA 318, no naturalization application may be decided while removal proceedings are pending, and none may be granted to a person under a final order of removal. If the record contains a ground of deportability, the application does not just fail; it can become a Notice to Appear. The order of work is fixed: read the record against the deportability grounds on the crimes and removal page first, then against the character bars, and file only when both are clear. The naturalization page goes through the sequence.
At the plea, the character test adds three things to the negotiation that the removability analysis does not: the length of any probation, the number of days of confinement, and the date of the offense relative to the application you plan to file. The plea strategy pages take it from there.
Read next: naturalization and a criminal record, the petty offense exception, DUI and driving offenses, or pleas with a pending application.
Common questions
My conviction is not a ground of removal. Can it still stop my naturalization?
Yes. Good moral character under INA 101(f) is a separate test. A single crime involving moral turpitude inside the statutory period bars it unless the petty offense exception applies, and a conviction with 180 days or more of confinement bars it regardless of what the crime was. Under 8 C.F.R. 316.10(b)(3)(iii), an unlawful act that fits none of the listed bars can still be found to reflect adversely on character unless extenuating circumstances are shown. A conviction that does not make you removable can still cost you the application.
I am still on probation. Can I file for naturalization?
You can file, but under 8 C.F.R. 316.10(c)(1) the application will not be approved until any probation, parole or suspended sentence has been completed, and your conduct during that period is considered. The practical answer is that the sentence has to be finished before the case can be granted, and the conviction itself is then measured against the statutory period.
Is a DUI a bar to good moral character?
A single simple DUI is not on the list of bars. Under Matter of Castillo-Perez, 27 I&N Dec. 664 (A.G. 2019), two or more DUI convictions during the statutory period create a rebuttable presumption against good moral character. A DUI with an aggravating element can be a crime involving moral turpitude, which is a separate bar.
How long is the statutory period?
It depends on the application. Five years for naturalization, or three for the spouse of a citizen under INA 319(a), and character must continue through the oath. Ten years for cancellation of removal for non-permanent residents under INA 240A(b)(1). Three years for VAWA cancellation under INA 240A(b)(2). Five years for voluntary departure at the conclusion of proceedings under INA 240B(b)(1)(B). The permanent bars apply regardless of the period.
Tell us about the charge before you take the plea. Not after.
You get a free conversation with an immigration attorney, in your language. We speak English, Russian, Spanish and Uzbek in-house, and we bring in a live interpreter for anything else. We will read the charge against the immigration statute, tell you what the offered plea does to your status and to every form of relief, and tell you what to ask your criminal lawyer to negotiate instead. If the plea has already been entered, we will tell you what can still be done.