Featured Issue: Asylum Under Trump 2.0
On the first day of his second term, President Trump suspended all entries at the U.S. Southern Border for asylum seekers. Since then, the Administration has implemented sweeping restrictions that shut America’s doors to people fleeing persecution. These policies violate federal law, erode constitutionally protected due process, exacerbate the asylum backlog, and give those seeking safety an increasingly narrow path to protection.
Left unchecked by Congress, these policies will have dire consequences for both asylum seekers and the integrity of our legal system. Asylum seekers—especially those without access to counsel—are at grave risk of being returned to harm.
It doesn’t have to be this way. The Administration can maintain order at U.S. borders and effectively manage migration without sacrificing fairness and adherence to the law. With more trained asylum officers, a streamlined legal process, legal representation for asylum seekers, and more effective coordination between relevant agencies, the U.S. can establish a safe, orderly, and humane asylum system.
Browse the Featured Issue: Asylum Under Trump 2.0 collection
USCIS Asylum Office Workload for October 2015
USCIS asylum offices’ workload, broken down by office, stage of the asylum case and nationality to applicants, for October 2015.
USCIS Asylum Office Workload for November 2015
USCIS asylum offices’ workload, broken down by office, stage of the asylum case and nationality to applicants, for November 2015.
USCIS Asylum Office Workload for December 2015
USCIS asylum offices’ workload, broken down by office, stage of the asylum case and nationality to applicants, for December 2015.
U Visa: A Sliver of a Silver Lining for Victims of Violent Crimes
Congress created the U nonimmigrant visa with the passage of the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act in October 2000. As the USCIS website explains, this legislation was intended to strengthen the ability of law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute cases of domestic viole
House Democrats Tell the President to End the Immigration Raids
A 1/12/16 letter from 146 House members to President Obama demanding an end to immigration home raids that have targeted Central American families with children.
CA7 Upholds CAT Denial to HIV-Positive, Homosexual Mexican Petitioner
The court held that the HIV-positive, homosexual Mexican petitioner did not satisfy his burden of showing that it was more likely than not that he would be tortured by the government or with the government’s acquiescence if he was removed to Mexico. (Lopez v. Lynch, 1/12/16)
Affirmative Asylum Scheduling Bulletin (1/11/16)
USCIS’s Affirmative Asylum Scheduling Bulletin as of 1/11/16. This Bulletin explains how the Asylum Division has prioritized the adjudication of affirmative applications for asylum.
CA7 Upholds Denial of Asylum and Withholding of Removal to Chinese Farmer
The court upheld the IJ and the BIA, holding that the petitioner did not provide, or adequately explain the absence of, reasonably available evidence to corroborate his testimony regarding the appropriation of his farmland by the Chinese government. (Chen v. Lynch, 1/8/16)
CA11 Denies Withholding of Removal to Homosexual/Transgender Haitian Petitioner
The court held that petitioner had failed to exhaust his past persecution claim, and that petitioner failed to show that the BIA erred in its assessment of his future persecution claim by not considering his transgender status separately from his homosexuality. (Jeune v. Att'y Gen., 1/8/16)
CA6 Reverses Adverse Credibility Determination of Christian Petitioners from the West Bank
The court held that the IJ and BIA's adverse credibility determination was not supported by substantial evidence, and that the petitioners credibly testified to being attacked and persecuted in the West Bank by Muslims on the basis of their Christian religion. (Marouf v. Lynch, 1/6/16)
AILA and the Council Letter to DHS Secretary Johnson on Raids Targeting Central American Families
On 1/6/16, AILA and the Council requested a meeting with Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Jeh Johnson to discuss the agency’s current aggressive tactics to apprehend and deport Central American families.
After Successfully Delaying the Deportations of Four Central American Families, Groups Demand Meeting with DHS Secretary Johnson
AILA and the American Immigration Council sent a letter to DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson criticizing raids to remove asylum-seeking Central American families and calling for a meeting to discuss how to guarantee due process and the necessary humanitarian protections for those families.
CARA Family Detention Pro Bono Project Succeeds in Winning Stays of Deportation of Four Mothers and Their Children Recently Rounded-Up by ICE
Last night, the CARA Family Detention Pro Bono Project succeeded in halting the deportation of four Central American families apprehended by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over the weekend, who had been scheduled for deportation this morning.
CA8 Upholds Finding That Petitioner's Fear of Future Persecution Was Not Objectively Reasonable
The court upheld the IJ and the BIA's denial of asylum to the Nicaraguan petitioner, finding that the petitioner failed to establish that his fear of future persecution was objectively reasonable. (Castillo-Gutierrez v. Lynch, 1/5/16)
Defend, Don’t Target, the Vulnerable
On Christmas Eve, news leaked that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was going to begin raids to round up and deport Central American families. Over the holiday week, stakeholders, legislators, community leaders, and advocates pushed back hard on these planned raids and begged the Obama Admi
AILA Condemns Raids on Vulnerable Central American Families
AILA President Victor Nieblas Pradis condemned reports of ICE raids targeting Central American families saying, “Rounding up mothers and children who have fled the most violent region in the western hemisphere and are trying to find refuge abrogates our legal obligations.”
DOJ OIL January 2016 Litigation Bulletin
The DOJ OIL Immigration Litigation Bulletin for January 2016, with articles on Gonzalez Cano v. Lynch and Bernardo v. Johnson, as well as summaries of circuit court decisions for January 2016.
USCIS Performance Data on I-485 Applications for First Quarter of FY2016
USCIS statistics on I-485 applications, broken down by status (received, approved, denied, or pending), category of admission, and location (field office or service center) for the first quarter of FY2016.
Sign-on Letter to the President Opposing DHS Reported Plans to Conduct Nationwide Raids
On 12/31/15, over 150 organizations joined AILA in expressing opposition to the DHS reported plans to conduct nationwide raids to round up and deport Central American children and their parents. The letter urges the President to offer greater protection to Central American families fleeing violence.
Preserving the One-Year Filing Deadline for Asylum Cases Stuck in the Immigration Court Backlog
The Council and AILA provide a practice advisory on steps attorneys can take to preserve clients’ asylum claims where the master calendar hearing is scheduled beyond the one-year filing deadline. Steps include filing affirmatively with the Asylum Office, lodging, and filing a motion to advance.
CA7 Says BIA Used Wrong Standard in Reviewing IJ's Factual Finding
In determining petitioner’s eligibility for deferral of removal under CAT, the court held that BIA was required to review IJ's factual finding that petitioner would more likely than not be tortured if removed to Honduras only for clear error, not de novo. (Estrada-Martinez v. Lynch, 12/31/15)
USCIS Provides TRIG Statistics from 2/23/16 Meeting
Statistics current as of 12/31/15, provided by USCIS at a TRIG stakeholder meeting held on 2/23/16, including statistics on exemptions granted by category, exemptions denied by type of application, and cases on hold by type of application.
USCIS Transfers Workload from VSC to the CSC and NSC
USCIS began transferring certain casework from the VSC to the CSC and NSC to balance workloads. CSC will now process Forms I-539, and NSC will process Forms I-765 filed by an asylum applicant with a pending asylum application filed on or after 1/4/95. Filing location for these forms will not change.
USCIS Invitation to Asylum Division Quarterly Stakeholder Meeting
USCIS invites stakeholders to the 2/5/16 quarterly meeting with the Asylum Division. RSVPs are due by 1/29/16 and questions/agenda items are due by 1/11/16. Participation for this meeting is in-person only.
Letter to USCIS and ICE Concerning Due Process Violations at Detention Facilities
Joint letter from AILA, the American Immigration Council, CLINIC, RAICES, and Human Rights First to USCIS and ICE concerning glaring due process violations which have led to the deportation of families with valid claims for asylum or other protection under U.S. law.