Melania Trump violated her work visa in 1996 by accepting paid modeling gigs before she had legal permission to do so, according to an Associated Press report published late Friday.
The Slovenian-turned-American citizen first arrived in the U.S. on Aug. 27, 1996. She used a B1/B2 visitors visa to enter the country and obtained a H-1B visa on Oct. 18, 1996, which would allow her to work in the U.S.
But the new report found Trump was paid for 10 modeling jobs worth more than $20,000 in the seven weeks between her initial entry to New York and her receiving the work visa.
Mrs. Trump became an American citizen in 2006. Although the new charges are unlikely to affect her citizenship status, it may impact her husband’s bid for president. Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, has taken a hard line on immigration policy and even touted his wife’s adherence to U.S. immigration laws.
The Trump campaign has not responded to the report.
