“Real Housewives” star Joe Giudice could soon face deportation after serving his prison sentence for mail, wire, and bankruptcy fraud. The reality show star has been a U.S. permanent resident since he was a child, but he never applied for American citizenship. Because of this, he could be subject to removal from the U.S. because of his criminal convictions.
As Navid Dayzad pointed out in an article on Yahoo Entertainment, “unlike what most people think, a foreign-national does not automatically get a green card or full protection from deportation just because they have a U.S. citizen spouse or child.” This is a common misconception, and certain criminal actions could still put Green Card holders in danger of deportation. The best way to protect yourself (aside from avoiding committing a crime) is to obtain U.S. citizenship once you are eligible. This way if you are a reality star who has committed fraud, you only have to worry about your prison term and ratings—rather than having to uproot your life from the United States.