<P> The INS (Immigration and Naturalization Service) administered federal immigration laws and regulations including the Immigration and Nationality Act (Title 8, United States Code). Its officers inspected foreigners arriving at an official Port of Entry (POE), detecting and deterring illegal entry between the ports (with assistance of the Border Patrol, a component of the INS) and by sea, and conducting investigations of criminal and administrative violations of the Act . The INS also adjudicated applications for permanent residency ("green cards"), change of status, naturalization (the process by which an alien (foreign - born person) becomes a citizen), and similar matters . </P> <P> At the head of the INS was a commissioner appointed by the President who reported to the Attorney General in the Department of Justice . The INS worked closely with the United Nations, the Department of State, and the Department of Health and Human Services . The INS was a very large and complex organization that had four main divisions--Programs, Field Operations, Policy and Planning, and Management--that were responsible for operations and management . </P> <P> The operational functions of the INS included the Programs and Field Operations divisions . The Programs division was responsible for handling all the functions involved with enforcement and examinations, including the arrest, detaining, and deportation of illegal immigrants as well as controlling illegal and legal entry . </P> <P> The Field Operations division was responsible for overseeing INS' many offices operating throughout the country and the world . The Field Operations division implemented policies and handled tasks for its three regional offices, which in turn oversaw 33 districts and 21 border areas throughout the country . Internationally, the Field Operations division oversaw the Headquarters Office of International Affairs which in turn oversaw 16 offices outside the country . </P>

United states of america ministry of interior naturalization & immigration department