Asylum Process Reform: US Expands Officials’ Powers to Early Reject Migrants

The Biden administration is expected to unveil a new rule as early as Thursday that would allow immigration officials to deport people who do not qualify for asylum in the United States at an earlier stage in the process, according to three people with knowledge of the internal plans. .

The people, who spoke about the rule before it was formally announced and asked to remain anonymous, said the Department of Homeland Security would apply the rule to migrants seeking asylum after breaking the law and crossing the border into Mexico.

In so-called credible fear interviews, government asylum staff would instruct specific asylum-related restrictions already enshrined in U.S. law.

The asylum procedure takes years and this is the first step. Those who survive these interviews can seek asylum before an immigration judge; those who do not can expect expedited deportation.

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The relatively limited policy is one of several steps the Biden administration has explored to limit access to the U.S. asylum system in response to a surge in applications in recent years, most of which came from migrants entering the country entered illegally through the southern part of the country. border.

The 212(f) order has been pending for months, but the president has not yet made an announcement about a final decision.

Even though the new rule will not have a significant impact on immigration, it does support Mr. Biden’s policy shift, as he had promised earlier in his administration to “fix” the asylum system in the United States.

In response to the unprecedented number of migrants apprehended at the southern border – more than two million in the past two years alone – and the political fallout that followed, the Biden administration has introduced and proposed stricter asylum rules.

In addition to this restriction, the government has opened previously unheard of opportunities for potential immigrants to enter the country legally.

These include a scheme that allows certain migrants to fly to the United States if they have American sponsors, and a phone app that allows migrants in Mexico to book times to be processed at authorized border crossings.

This year, the number of migrants crossing the southern border has fallen by more than 40% after reaching a record high in December. According to Internal Border Police figures, the number of illegal border crossings fell to around 129,000 in April – the second straight month of declines.

U.S. officials say Mexico’s stricter measures to prevent migrants from reaching the U.S. border and an increase in deportations are responsible for the sharp decline in migration.

State officials in Texas have also linked their efforts, such as the miles of razor wire they have installed along parts of the border, to a decline in border crossings.

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