Chae Chan Ping v. United States 1889

Could Congress bar the return of Chinese laborers who had left the country with certificates permitting reentry?

130 U.S. 581 (1889)Citizenship and immigration

The question: Could Congress bar the return of Chinese laborers who had left the country with certificates permitting reentry?
What the Court held: Yes. The power to exclude non-citizens is an incident of sovereignty that Congress may exercise, even contrary to earlier treaties.
The vote: 9–0
Era: The Gilded Age
Read the opinion: 130 U.S. 581 (1889), full text

This page summarizes the Court’s judgment in neutral terms. The opinion, concurrences and dissents are the authority; read them for the reasoning.

Where the question came from. The events behind it.

1882

Chinese Exclusion Act

May 6, 1882 · Restriction of rights

Suspends immigration of Chinese laborers and bars Chinese immigrants from naturalization. Extended in 1892 and made permanent in 1902; repealed in 1943.

Source: National Archives