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
Resources for New Members
If you are new to immigration practice, AILA’s New Member Division has benefits and services to help you build a successful and rewarding practice.
DHS Announces CBP One Has Facilitated Over 170,000 Appointments in Six Months
DHS issued a fact sheet on its CBP One app, stating that since its launch on January 18, 2023, through the end of June 2023, more than 170,000 individuals have successfully scheduled an appointment. The top nationalities who have scheduled appointments are Haitian, Mexican, and Venezuelan.
Quick Member Survey Aims to Highlight Some Key Issues Hampering Immigration Courts
AILA Policy and Practice Counsel ManoLasya Perepa urges AILA members to fill out a quick survey to help us better understand EOIR's specialized dockets; the information will help determine whether policies are helping address the backlog while upholding due process.
AILA Joins Letter Urging President Biden Halt Use and Defense of Asylum Ban Policy
AILA joined a letter with 202 organizations in the wake of the U.S. district court decision in the East Bay Sanctuary Covenant case regarding the “Circumvention of Lawful Pathways” rule to urge the White House to withdraw its appeal and stay motion and accept the court’s decision as final.
Comment Deadline Approaching: USCIS Issues Guidance on Requests to Reschedule Biometric Services Appointments
USCIS issued policy guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual to address procedures relating to requests to reschedule biometric services appointments at an Application Support Center (ASC) for good cause. Policy is effective as of 7/6/23 and comments are due by 8/7/23.
CA10 Finds IJ Erred by Misapplying “Under-Color-of-Law” Element in CAT Claim Analysis
The court held that the IJ misapplied the “under-color-of-law” element in analyzing petitioner’s Convention Against Torture (CAT) claim when it found that the Costa Rican police officers who beat and raped the petitioner did not act under color of law. (Arostegui-Maldonado v. Garland, 8/1/23)
Congressional Leaders Urge Immediate Halt to Practice of Subjecting Individuals to Fear Screenings by CBP
Sixty-six members of Congress sent a letter to the Biden Administration urging an end to the harmful practice of conducting truncated expedited fear screenings while people are in Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody.
Statement from National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Legal Pathways Initiative with Mexico
The White House announced support for an international multipurpose space in southern Mexico that will offer new refugee and labor options for migrants and its commitment to accepting refugee resettlement referrals from qualified Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans already in Mexico.
CA4 Holds That Prior Termination of Noncitizen’s Asylum Status Renders Them Ineligible for Adjustment to LPR status
Denying the petition for review, the court concluded that INA §209(b) unambiguously precludes a noncitizen whose asylum status has been terminated from adjusting to lawful permanent resident (LPR) status. (Cela v. Garland, 7/28/23)
CA7 Finds BIA’s Determinations That Petitioner Had Not Been Persecuted and Could Relocate Within Mexico Were Dispositive
The court denied the petition for review, finding that the petitioner had failed to meaningfully challenge the two dispositive issues in his case before the BIA or the court—namely, the findings of no past persecution and ability to relocate upon return to Mexico. (Mejia v. Garland, 7/27/23)
CA8 Finds Petitioners’ Motion for Reconsideration Automatically Terminated Voluntary Departure Granted in Previous Proceeding
The court held that BIA did not abuse its discretion in denying petitioners’ motion for reconsideration, because their filing of a motion to reconsider prior to the end of their voluntary departure period automatically terminated the grant of voluntary departure. (Bekhbat v. Garland, 7/27/23)
Advocacy Groups File Lawsuit Challenging Government’s Mandatory Use of CBP One for Asylum Seekers
Several advocacy groups filed a lawsuit in federal district court challenging the federal government’s policy and practice of turning back asylum seekers without a CBP One appointment at ports of entry (POEs) along the southern border. (Al Otro Lado, Inc., et al. v. Mayorkas, et al., 7/27/23)
USCIS 60-Day Notice and Request for Comment on Proposed Revisions to Form I-602
USCIS 60-day notice and request for comment on proposed revisions to Form I-602, Application by Refugee for Waiver of Inadmissibility Grounds. Comments are due 9/25/23. (88 FR 48487, 7/27/23)
Federal Judge Vacates the Asylum Transit Ban
Judge Jon Tigar of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California vacated the "Circumvention of Lawful Pathways" rule, finding that the rule violated the APA because it was both contrary to law and arbitrary and capricious. (East Bay Sanctuary Covenant v. Biden, 7/25/23)
CA2 Finds BIA and IJ Erred in Finding Chinese Petitioner Who Practiced Falun Gong Was Not Credible
The court concluded that the IJ misidentified part of the petitioner’s testimony as inconsistent, improperly relied on trivial inconsistencies, and misconstrued as an omission a part of the petitioner’s testimony that comported with his Form I-589 asylum statement. (Chen v. Garland, 7/25/23)
AILA Asylum and Refugee Committee Submits Comment on I-589 Instructions
AILA’s Asylum and Refugee Committee submitted a comment in response to USCIS’s request for comments on changes to the I-589 instructions.
How I Spent My Summer Vacation (or the Economic Impact of Immigrants)
AILA Media Advo Committee Member Anthony Pawelski shares some key insights into the economic benefits of immigrants in New England states, and how the data shows how our “nation immensely benefit from our immigrant population“ using data from the American Immigration Council's Map the Impact t
CRS Releases Legal Sidebar on DHS’s “Metering” Policy
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) provided a legal sidebar on DHS’s “metering” policy, which limited the number of noncitizens who were processed each day at designated ports of entry along the U.S. southwest border, and the litigation that challenged this practice.
CA1 Says Salvadoran Petitioners Failed to Bear Their Burden as to Two Claimed PSGs
The court held that the BIA did not err in concluding that petitioners did not meet their burden as to the two separate particular social groups (PSGs) they claimed, namely “Salvadoran business owners perceived as wealthy” and the “Sanchez-Rivas nuclear family.” (Sanchez v. Garland, 7/14/23)
CA4 Finds Petitioner Showed Nexus Between Persecution by MS-13 Gang and Her Religion
Granting in part the petition for review, the court held that the BIA erred in not recognizing the nexus that the petitioner established between the persecution she suffered at the hands of the MS-13 gang and her Evangelical Christian faith. (Chicas-Machado v. Garland, 7/13/23)
CA8 Finds Mexican Petitioner Did Not Show Requisite Prejudice in Due Process Claim
The court held that BIA did not abuse its discretion in denying petitioner’s motion for reconsideration based on his due process claim where he had not shown actual prejudice, and found that the BIA’s application of the wrong legal standard was immaterial. (Arroyo-Sosa v. Garland, 7/13/23)
One Step Forward, Two Steps Back: Digging into the Ombudsman’s Take on the USCIS Backlog
AILA's Paul Stern digs into the recently released USCIS Ombudsman's Report which highlights continued backlogs and processing delays, urging readers to take action to help “ensure the agency has the resources needed to chart a course forward where progress is not just a promise, but a reality.“
CA4 Says Petitioner’s PSG of “Young Male Family Members of His Cousin Emily” Was Legally Cognizable
The court held that BIA erred in concluding that petitioner’s proposed particular social group (PSG) of “young male family members of his cousin Emily” was not legally cognizable, and remanded for BIA to further consider his withholding of removal claim. (Santos Garcia v. Garland, 7/11/23)
CA4 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Salvadoran Petitioner After Finding IJ Adequately Developed the Record
The court upheld the BIA’s conclusion that the IJ had adequately developed the record and had properly determined that the basis for the petitioner’s claims for relief was a generalized fear of criminal gang members and violent conditions in El Salvador. (Tepas v. Garland, 7/10/23)
AILA President Welcomes Implementation of New Family Reunification Parole Processes for Colombians, Salvadorans, Guatemalans, and Hondurans
AILA President Farshad Owji applauded the Biden Administration’s announcement of new Family Reunification Parole (FRP) processes for nationals of Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, reinforcing family reunification as the cornerstone of U.S. immigration policy.