{"id":14923,"date":"2024-03-14T03:35:21","date_gmt":"2024-03-14T02:35:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ceoinfluencers.com\/?p=14923"},"modified":"2024-03-14T03:35:21","modified_gmt":"2024-03-14T02:35:21","slug":"was-elon-musk-an-illegal-alien","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ceoinfluencers.com\/was-elon-musk-an-illegal-alien\/","title":{"rendered":"Was Elon Musk An Illegal Alien"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Background Information<\/h2>\n

Elon Musk is an American entrepreneur, investor, and inventor of South African descent. He is the founder, CEO, and CTO of SpaceX, founder of The Boring Company, co-founder of Neuralink, and co-founder and co-chairman of OpenAI. Musk was born in South Africa in 1971, but his family moved to Canada in 1989 while he was a teenager. In 1995, he received a student visa and moved to the United States to attend college. Once Musk had established his various startup enterprises and began to become successful, concerns were raised about his immigration status. <\/p>\n

Relevant Data<\/h2>\n

In November 2002, Musk filed for a green card under the category of “Alien with extraordinary ability”. This allowed him to remain in the United States. Musk’s application for permanent residency was approved on August 28, 2002. In 2006, Musk applied for and was granted U.S. citizenship. Musk was therefore not an illegal alien as it is commonly defined—a non-citizen within a country with no legal documentation.<\/p>\n

Experts Perspectives<\/h2>\n

As immigration attorney Judith Divine-Mazombe explains, “The term ‘illegal alien’ means a non-citizen who is present in a country without administrative or judicially granted permission to be there. Since Elon Musk moved to the United States with a student visa and was granted permanent residency and citizenship, he was certainly not an illegal alien.”<\/p>\n

Immigration lawyer Isaac Hodson adds, “Elon Musk is a perfect example of how immigration in the United States can benefit citizens, businesses, entrepreneurs and the economy. Without access to the talent of immigrants like him, it would be much harder for the United States to maintain its standing as a global superpower and leader in innovation.”<\/p>\n

Insight and Analysis<\/h2>\n