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Undocumented Immigrant
Also written: Undocumented, Undocumented immigrant, Undocumented immigrants, Undocumented person
person-first-languagepreferred-alternativeevolving-usage
At a glance
Source-by-source
“By definition, a person is never illegal; an “illegal immigrant” makes as much a sense as saying an “illegal accountant,” were they accused of tax fraud. An asylum seeker can become an undocumented immigrant only if he or she remains after having failed to respond to a removal notice.”
SumOfUs places 'undocumented immigrant' on its list of terms used by immigrant-rights activists and contrasts it directly with the rejected 'illegal immigrant,' arguing no person is illegal. It defines the term precisely: an asylum seeker only becomes undocumented after failing to respond to a removal notice.
“PROBLEMATIC TERM: “Illegal immigrant.” … ALTERNATIVES: Undocumented immigrant, Immigrant without current status.”
IDP's 2020 Journalist Style Guide prescribes 'undocumented immigrant' (and 'immigrant without current status') as the alternative to 'illegal immigrant,' which it lists as a problematic term that ignores the complexities of immigration status and has been widely rejected by news organizations.
“PROBLEMATIC TERM: “Illegal immigrant.” This term ignores the complexities of immigration status and has been widely rejected by news organizations over the last several years. ALTERNATIVES: Undocumented immigrant, Immigrant without current status.”
The Comm/Unity revision (third edition, dated March 2022 on its title page) carries the same prescription as IDP's 2020 guide: 'undocumented immigrant' or 'immigrant without current status' replaces 'illegal immigrant.' The rationale is that the rejected term flattens a complex legal reality and has been widely abandoned by newsrooms.
“Never use the term “illegal” to describe a person. If a person lacks legal permission to live or work in the U.S., you can refer to them as an “undocumented” immigrant or someone with a complex immigration status.”
Sierra Club's contribution to the page is a second alternative the journalism guides skip — "someone with a complex immigration status" — useful when a writer can't confirm a person is undocumented but wants to avoid "illegal." Its "never" is the most absolute framing here, an editorial line rather than the newsroom-norm reasoning IDP and Define American lean on.
“Preferred terms to illegal alien, illegal immigrant, or illegal(s). … does not dehumanize them in the manner that such terms as aliens and illegals do.”
The Diversity Style Guide names 'undocumented immigrant' (and 'undocumented individual') the preferred term over illegal alien, illegal immigrant, or illegals, because it points to a person's lack of documentation without dehumanizing them. It notes that in February 2021 USCIS itself moved to 'noncitizen,' 'undocumented noncitizen,' or 'undocumented individual.'
“Problematic Terms: illegals, illegal immigrant, alien, illegal alien. Preferred Terms: undocumented immigrant, unauthorized immigrant, immigrant without legal status. The bottom line: The term “illegal” is dehumanizing and unfairly replaces complex legal circumstances with an assumption of guilt.”
Define American lists 'undocumented immigrant' (with 'unauthorized immigrant' and 'immigrant without legal status') as the preferred replacement for the dehumanizing 'illegal' family of terms. It defines 'undocumented' as someone who currently lacks legal status, and offers 'undocumented' or 'unauthorized' as neutral options, encouraging detailed, humanizing description where possible.
Synthesis
“Undocumented immigrant” is the corpus’s prescribed term — the agreed replacement for the “illegal” family of words. All six sources here recommend it, and most name it explicitly as the alternative to “illegal immigrant” and “illegal alien.” The shared rationale is that it describes a person’s documentation status without converting the person into a crime: “a person is never illegal” (SumOfUs); it “does not dehumanize them in the manner that such terms as aliens and illegals do” (Diversity Style Guide); the “illegal” framing “unfairly replaces complex legal circumstances with an assumption of guilt” (Define American). The Immigrant Defense Project, in both its 2020 Journalist Style Guide and its later Comm/Unity revision (third edition, March 2022), lists it as the direct alternative on a chart of problematic terms to reconsider.
The sources also define the term tightly: “undocumented” describes a current lack of legal status, not a permanent identity. SumOfUs notes that an asylum seeker becomes undocumented only after failing to respond to a removal notice. Define American widens the menu slightly to “unauthorized immigrant” and “immigrant without legal status,” but “undocumented” is the common core every source returns to.
The term moved from movement language into institutional practice. It predates these guides — the AP Stylebook dropped “illegal immigrant” in 2013 — but the change the later sources cite is February 2021, when USCIS itself shifted to “noncitizen,” “undocumented noncitizen,” or “undocumented individual” (Diversity Style Guide). By 2023–2024, the preferred-term consensus ran from progressive style guides through the federal agency’s own register, rather than dividing along advocacy lines.
Audience notes
- Journalists and editors. “Undocumented immigrant” or “undocumented” is the standard; “noncitizen” and “undocumented individual” entered the federal register through the 2021 USCIS update (since reversed in 2025, when “alien” was reinstated). Never use “illegal” as a noun for a person.
- Advocates and internal comms. Pair the term with the person’s story. “Undocumented” is a status someone is in, not a label for who they are — and status can change.
- Precision. Undocumented is not interchangeable with asylum seeker or refugee. Use the accurate status, and confirm it before publishing given the disclosure risk.
Related terms