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
AILA Files Amicus Brief in CA9 Defending Right to Counsel in Reasonable Fear Proceedings
AILA argued that meaningful access to counsel is essential in reasonable fear proceedings. Despite requesting counsel, the detained petitioner was forced to proceed pro se at the RF interview and IJ review, undermining statutory and due process protections. (Amador-Canacas v. Bondi, 4/9/26)
AILA and Public Counsel Urge Right to Counsel in Reasonable Fear Interview
The petitioner was forced to proceed in reasonable fear interview and immigration judge review without counsel, despite asking to contact his attorney. AILA and Public Counsel stress the critical role of counsel and the high stakes for pro se detainees. (Amador Canacas v. Bondi, 4/9/26)
CA9 Finds Petitioner Forfeited Merits Arguments and Failed to Exhaust Due Process Claims
The court denied the petition for review, holding that the petitioner had forfeited all exhausted bases to challenge the agency’s decision denying his asylum application and failed to exhaust the procedural due process claims he raised before the court. (Santana-Gonzalez v. Bondi, 4/8/26)
CA6 Upholds Asylum Denial Where Petitioner Forfeited and Failed to Exhaust PSG Claims
The court held that the petitioner forfeited his arguments regarding the four particular social groups (PSGs) he identified before the agency and that he failed to exhaust the three new groups he presented for the first time in his petition for review. (Gamas-Vicente v. Blanche, 4/7/26)
Asylum Cases on Relocation
This issue-specific page lists published asylum cases that relate to the applicant’s ability to relocate. The page includes published federal court and BIA cases from 2008 to the present. Special thanks to AILA member R. Mark Frey.
CA8 Holds It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review DHS Removal Discretion and Finds Petitioner Waived Due Process Claim
The court held that the petitioner waived her due process argument based on IJ bias by failing to meaningfully raise it before the BIA, and found that it lacked jurisdiction to review DHS’s exercise of removal discretion. (Quijano-Duran, et al. v. Bondi, 4/2/26)
Call for Class Members: Arriving Asylum Seekers Detained by ICE in Certain Jurisdictions
Human Rights First is asking for help identifying either (1) potential class members or (2) evidence that the government has enacted a no-release policy. Responses are requested to be submitted by Wednesday April 8.
AILA Congressional Briefing on 3/26: Administration Policies Weaken Asylum System and Immigration Courts
On 3/26, AILA briefed Congress on three policy briefs from the A Better Way on Immigration series focusing on the Administration’s policy changes made over the past year to pursue its mass deportation campaign, weaken the asylum system, and make the immigration courts less efficient and independent.
CA5 Upholds Denial of CAT Deferral as to Salvadoran Petitioner Based on Lack of Specific Intent and Speculative Torture Risk
The court held that substantial evidence supported the BIA’s denial of CAT deferral to petitioner, concluding that El Salvador’s harsh prison conditions were not specifically intended to inflict torture and that the risk of future torture was speculative. (Fuentes-Pineda v. Bondi, 3/24/26)
Take Action: Oppose DHS Rule Restricting Work Authorization for Asylum Seekers
DHS has proposed a rule restricting work permits for asylum seekers that would harm the economy, employers, and communities. Over 2.3 million asylum seekers support critical industries. Submit a comment opposing this rule by April 24, 2026.
Policy Brief: Modernizing America’s Asylum System
The changes the Administration has made to the U.S. asylum system have effectively closed all access to asylum abroad, at the border, and in the interior of the U.S. This brief explores these changes and gives possible reforms to improve the asylum system while also maintaining U.S. border security.
DOS Delegation of Authority Under EO 14163, PP 10998, and PP 10949 to PRM Assistant Secretary
On 3/6/26, DOS Secretary delegated authority to Assistant Secretary for Population, Refugees, and Migration to determine if allowing a foreign national admittance to the U.S. as a refugee would serve the national interest. (91 FR 12664, 3/16/26)
BIA Finds Respondent a Flight Risk Where Asylum Application Listed Residence Different from Location of Apprehension
The BIA held that the discrepancies in the record as to whether the respondent resided in Oklahoma, where he was apprehended, or California, as claimed in his application, showed that he was a flight risk and did not warrant release on bond. Matter of Z–N–L–, 29 I&N Dec. 511 (BIA 2026)
Template - Asylum Cases
Template for list of asylum cases.
CA1 Upholds Asylum Denial as to Bisexual Petitioner from Honduras Based on Lack of Persecution and Nexus
The court held that the respondent, a bisexual woman from Honduras, failed to establish past persecution, a nexus to a protected ground, or that the Honduran government was unable or unwilling to protect her from private actors. (Maldonado-Ruiz v. Bondi, 3/10/26)
BIA Holds Generalized Violence Cannot Rebut Past Persecution Presumption and Finds Access Device Fraud Conspiracy a Particularly Serious Crime
The BIA held that an IJ cannot rely on generalized violence to find the presumption of future persecution unrebutted after DHS shows a fundamental change in circumstances and that access device fraud conspiracy is a particularly serious crime. Matter of R-B-E-, 29 I&N Dec. 499 (BIA 2026)
SCOTUS Limits Federal Courts’ Review of BIA Findings on Persecution
The Supreme Court rejected asylum seekers' arguments that federal courts should review de novo the BIA's determination whether their past mistreatment constitutes persecution, holding that they must defer to the BIA's finding using the substantial-evidence standard. (Urias-Orellana v. Bondi, 3/4/26)
AILA and Partners File Amicus Brief in Case on Asylum for Victims of Domestic Violence
This brief filed in Da Silva-Queiroga v. Bondi argues that a domestic-violence victim can gain asylum by virtue of having been persecuted on account of her membership in the particular social group of “Brazilian women,” or “Brazilian women unable to leave a domestic partnership.”
CA6 Upholds Adverse Credibility Finding and Rejects Pattern or Practice Claim as to Mauritanian Asylum Seeker
The court held that substantial evidence supported the adverse credibility determination based on inconsistencies, implausible testimony, and failure to corroborate, and that petitioner failed to show a pattern or practice of persecution of black Fulanis in Mauritania. (Sy v. Bondi, 3/3/26)
Client Flyer: New USCIS Policies Impacting Asylum Applicants, Refugees, and People from “High-Risk” Countries
AILA provides a flyer to inform your clients of USCIS policies pausing processing for many benefits requests and ordering re-review of certain approved applications. The flyer is available as a generic PDF as well as a Word version you can customize with your firm's information. Please share.
AILA Congressional Briefing on 2/27: Administration Policies Undermine U.S. Legal Immigration System
On 2/27, AILA conducted a Congressional briefing covering three policy briefs from the A Better Way on Immigration series highlighting how the Administration’s policies have hindered the legal immigration system from supporting U.S. economic growth and national security.
BIA Reverses Asylum Grant to Bisexual Moroccan Applicant After Finding IJ Clearly Erred in Credibility Determination
The BIA reversed the grant of asylum and remanded, holding that, based on inconsistencies and omissions in the record, the IJ clearly erred in concluding the applicant presented a credible claim for asylum. Matter of R–A–U–, 29 I&N Dec. 582 (BIA 2026)
CA10 Upholds CAT Denial Where Mexican Petitioner with Mental Health Disabilities Failed to Show Specific Intent to Torture
The court held that substantial evidence supported the denial of CAT relief to the petitioner, who had cognitive and physical disabilities, finding that he failed to show it was more likely than not that he would be tortured with specific intent in Mexico. (Garcia-Botello v. Bondi, 2/25/26)
Asylum Cases on Frivolous Asylum Application
This issue-specific page lists published asylum cases that relate to frivolous asylum applications. The page includes published federal court and BIA cases from 2008 to the present. Special thanks to AILA member R. Mark Frey.
Asylum Cases on Serious Nonpolitical Crime
This issue-specific page lists published asylum cases that relate to serious nonpolitical crimes. The page includes published federal court and BIA cases from 2008 to the present. Special thanks to AILA member R. Mark Frey.