Every non-immigrant convicted of any aggravated felony and lawfully removed "must remain outside of the United States for twenty consecutive years from the deportation date before he or she is eligible to re-enter the United States." That stringent rule, however, does not apply to legal immigrants (i.e., refugees and LPRs) who have been deported as aggravated felons. Many previously removed people are believed to be residing inside the United States, some of whom have been removed from the United States about a dozen of times.