Title 8 — Aliens and NationalityRelease 119-73
§1557 Prevention of transportation in foreign commerce of alien women and girls under international agreement; Commissioner designated as authority to receive and preserve information
Title 8 › Chapter CHAPTER 13— - IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION SERVICE › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— - ORGANIZATION › § 1557
Summary
Names the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization as the U.S. official to carry out an international agreement adopted July 25, 1902, signed May 18, 1904. The United States joined that agreement on June 6, 1908, and the President issued a proclamation on June 15, 1908. The Commissioner must collect and keep centralized information about bringing women and girls from other countries for prostitution or debauchery, supervise them, take and file their statements, verify their identities, ask who induced them to leave their home countries, and give receipts to those who file statements.
Full Legal Text
Title 8, §1557
Aliens and Nationality — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
For the purpose of regulating and preventing the transportation in foreign commerce of alien women and girls for purposes of prostitution and debauchery, and in pursuance of and for the purpose of carrying out the terms of the agreement or project of arrangement for the suppression of the white-slave traffic, adopted July 25, 1902, for submission to their respective governments by the delegates of various powers represented at the Paris Conference and confirmed by a formal agreement signed at Paris on May 18, 1904, and adhered to by the United States on June 6, 1908, as shown by the proclamation of the President of the United States dated June 15, 1908, the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization is designated as the authority of the United States to receive and centralize information concerning the procuration of alien women and girls with a view to their debauchery, and to exercise supervision over such alien women and girls, receive their declarations, establish their identity, and ascertain from them who induced them to leave their native countries, respectively; and it shall be the duty of said Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization to receive and keep on file in his office the statements and declarations which may be made by such alien women and girls, and those which are hereinafter required pertaining to such alien women and girls engaged in prostitution or debauchery in this country, and to furnish receipts for such statements and declarations provided for in this Act to the persons, respectively, making and filing them.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
References in Text
This Act, referred to in text, is act
June 25, 1910, ch. 395, 36 Stat. 825, known as the White Slave Traffic Act, which was classified to this section and to sections 397 to 404 of former Title 18, Criminal Code and Criminal Procedure. The act, except for the provision set out as this section, was repealed by act
June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 683, section 1 of which enacted Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure. See section 2421 et seq. of Title 18. Codification Section was originally classified to section 402(1) of Title 18 prior to the general revision and enactment of Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure, by act
June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 683. Thereafter, it was classified to section 342l of Title 5 prior to enactment of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees, by Pub. L. 89–554, § 1, Sept. 6, 1966, 80 Stat. 378, and was subsequently classified to section 238 of this title prior to transfer to this section.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Abolition of Immigration and Naturalization Service and
Transfer of Functions
For abolition of Immigration and Naturalization Service,
Transfer of Functions
, and treatment of related references, see note set out under section 1551 of this title.
Executive Documents
Transfer of Functions
Functions vested by law in Attorney General, Department of Justice, or any other officer or any agency of that Department, with respect to inspection at regular inspection locations at ports of entry of persons, and documents of persons, entering or leaving United States, were to have been transferred to Secretary of the Treasury by 1973 Reorg. Plan No. 2, § 2, eff.
July 1, 1973, 38 F.R. 15932, 87 Stat. 1091, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees. The transfer was negated by section 1(a)(1), (b) of Pub. L. 93–253, Mar. 16, 1974, 88 Stat. 50, which repealed section 2 of 1973 Reorg. Plan No. 2, eff.
July 1, 1973. Functions of all other officers of Department of Justice and functions of all agencies and employees of such Department, with a few exceptions, transferred to Attorney General, with power vested in him to authorize their performance or performance of any of his functions by any of such officers, agencies, and employees, by 1950 Reorg. Plan No. 2, §§ 1, 2, eff.
May 24, 1950, 15 F.R. 3173, 64 Stat. 1261, set out in the Appendix to Title 5. See section 509 and 510 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure. History of Immigration and Naturalization Agencies Ex. Ord. No. 6166, § 14,
June 10, 1933, set out as a note under section 901 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees, consolidated the two formerly separate bureaus known as the Bureau of Immigration and the Bureau of Naturalization to form the Immigration and Naturalization Service under a Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization. See note set out under section 1551 of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
8 U.S.C. § 1557
Title 8 — Aliens and Nationality
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73