McCULLOCH, Secretary to the united states, January 14, 1885

circular—chinese persons coming to the united states.

To Officers of the Customs and others:

The following regulations relating to the rights of Chinese laborers to enter the United States are deemed to be in accordance with the recent decision of the Supreme Court in the case of Chew Heong, plaintiff in error, vs. The United States, and the existing regulations relating to the admission of Chinese persons other than laborers into the United States are restated and modified for your information and government:

• Chinese laborers lawfully residing in the United States and who left the United States by sea after the passage of the act of July 5, 1884, are entitled to enter the United States only upon the production of the certificate prescribed in section 4 of that act, or of the certificate prescribed in section 5 of the act of May 6, 1882, in case they depart by land.
• The fourth section of the act of May 6, 1882, as amended by the act July 5, 1884, prescribing the certificate which shall be produced by a Chinese laborer as the only evidence permissible to establish his right of re-entry into the United States, is not applicable to Chinese laborers who, residing in this country at the date of the treaty of November 17, 1880, departed by sea before May 6, 1882, and remained out of the United States until after July 5, 1884, and such persons may be permitted to land without any certificate upon production of evidence satisfactory to the collector of such facts.
• Chinese laborers residing in this country at the date of the treaty of November 17, 1880, or who shall have come into the same before the expiration of ninety days next after the passage of the act of May 6, 1882, and who left the United States before the passage of the act of July 5, 1884, are entitled to re-enter the United States upon the production of the certificates prescribed by sections 4 and 5 of the act of May 6, 1882. Certificates issued under the act of May 6, 1862, and decision 6240, before the passage of said act of 1884, are to be regarded as having the same effect as if said act of 1884 had not been passed.
• Chinese persons other than laborers coming to the United States for the first time from China can be permitted to enter the United States only upon the production of the certificate prescribed by section 6 of the act of July 5, 1884, such certificate being the sole evidence permissible on the part of the person so producing the same to establish a right of entry into the United States.
• Chinese subjects, not laborers, desiring to come to the United States from countries other than China may do so on production of a certificate corresponding to that required by section 6 of the act of July 5, 1884, to be issued by a Chinese diplomatic or consular officer, if there be one at the port of departure, countersigned by a United States consular officer; or, if there be no such Chinese officer stationed at such port, on a like certificate to be issued by a United States consular officer.
• Section 6 of the act of 1884 does not apply to Chinese persons other than laborers lawfully in the United States. Such persons are, by treaty, entitled “to come and go of their own free will and accord,” and when they leave the United States are entitled to re-enter on any evidence satisfactory to the collector that they are not Chinese laborers.
• For the convenience of such persons and of the customs officers and others, such persons who may desire to depart from and return to the United States may enter the United States on production of a certificate corresponding to that required by section 6 of the act of July 5, 1884, to be issued by the collector of customs of the port of departure, which certificate may be prima facie evidence of a right to enter the United States.
• The regulations contained in decision 5544, and dated January 23, 1883, relative to the transit of Chinese laborers through the territory of the United States, will be applied to all Chinese persons intending to so go in transit through the United States.
• Chinese persons who may be compelled to touch at the ports of the United. States in transit to foreign countries, may be permitted to land under the regulations of January 23, 1883 (S., 5544), so far as the same may be applicable, such persons to take passage by the next vessel leaving for their destination or the voyage of which may form part of the route necessary to carry them to their destination.