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
The Arab American Struggle for an Inclusive Immigration System
AILA member and Executive Director of NIPNLG Sirine Shebaya writes for Think Immigration about how we must ensure administrations “understand the complexity and diversity of our Arab American community and uphold our values of compassion and respect for everyone's rights in both word and policy.R
AILA, ASISTA, and Tahirih Justice Center Submit Comments on Form I-290B, Notice of Appeal or Motion
AILA, ASISTA, and the Tahirih Justice Center submitted comments on Form I-290B, expressing concerns regarding limits on appellate review after a motion and appeals that must address all grounds of ineligibility. The groups also requested clarification regarding derivative applicants and denials.
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief Arguing That the BIA’s Narrow Reading of the Nexus Requirement Restricts Meritorious Claims Brought by Transgend
AILA and partners submitted an amicus brief urging the Ninth Circuit to vacate the BIA’s decision to deny a transgender Mexican woman asylum and withholding, arguing that the BIA’s too-narrow nexus requirement, left-standing, will drastically restrict meritorious claims brought by transgender women.
AILA and Partners Urge the Attorney General and DHS Secretary to Create a Welcoming, Effective, and Timely Asylum System
AILA and partners sent a letter to DHS Secretary Mayorkas and AG Garland with recommendations on how to receive and screen migrants seeking safety in the United States in a humane and orderly fashion, including expanding legal counsel programs and using initial asylum interviews at the border.
CA8 Says “Serious Reasons for Believing” Standard Under INA §208(b)(2)(A)(iii) Requires a Finding of Probable Cause
Where BIA had denied asylum to petitioner based on a finding that serious reasons exist to believe he committed a serious nonpolitical crime, the court held that the “serious reasons for believing” standard requires a finding of probable cause. (Barahona v. Garland, 2/3/21, amended 4/15/21)
CA9 Concludes IJ’s Adverse Reasonable Fear of Torture Determination Was Not Supported by Substantial Evidence
Granting the petition for review and remanding, the court held that the IJ’s decision to affirm the asylum officer’s adverse reasonable fear of torture determination as to the Honduran petitioner was not supported by substantial evidence. (Alvarado-Herrera v. Garland, 4/13/21)
CRS Releases Report on the Law of Asylum Procedure at the Border
CRS released a report on the law of asylum procedure at the border, including on the expedited removal and credible fear process; DHS implementation of the statutory framework; Trump administration policies pre- and post-pandemic; regulatory outlook under the Biden administration; and more.
AILA Submits Amicus Brief on Materiality of Evidence of Changed Country Conditions
AILA submitted an amicus brief in the first circuit arguing that the court should adopt a “logical connection” test as the proper analysis for materiality of evidence of changed country conditions in the context of a motion to reopen. The brief also discusses the prima facie eligibility requirement.
CA8 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Somali Petitioner Who Was a Member of a Minority Islamic Sect
The court held that the petitioner was removable because his Minnesota conviction for possession of khat related to a federal controlled substance pursuant to INA §237(a)(2)(B)(i), and found that the petitioner had failed to prove that he was entitled to asylum. (Ahmed v. Garland, 4/8/21)
Practice Alert: USCIS Policy Manual Updates Related to Asylees and Refugees
AILA’s Asylum and Refugee Committee provides an alert on changes related to termination of USCIS-granted asylum status for principals and/or derivatives, and on changes to when USCIS will require in-person interviews of asylee or refugee adjustment applicants for applications filed after 12/15/20.
CA9 Affirms District Court’s Grant of a Preliminary Injunction Against Third Country Transit Ban
The court upheld the district court’s grant of a preliminary injunction against the implementation of a DHS/DOJ joint interim final rule that categorically denies asylum to individuals arriving at the U.S./Mexico border. (East Bay Sanctuary Covenant v. Garland, 7/6/20, amended 4/8/21)
CA1 Upholds Denial of Withholding of Removal to Petitioner Who Claimed He Was Persecuted on Account of Religious Affiliation
The court upheld the BIA’s determination that the central reason for the Salvadoran petitioner’s claimed harm was his unwillingness to join the MS-13 gang—not his Christian faith or his faith-related activities. (Sánchez-Vásquez v. Garland, 4/7/21)
CA11 Says BIA Failed to Provide Reasoned Consideration of Petitioner’s Evidence of His Fear of Future Persecution in Cuba
The court held that the IJ and the BIA failed to provide reasoned consideration of the petitioner’s evidence of his well-founded fear of future persecution based on a pattern or practice of persecution toward dissident journalists in Cuba. (Martinez v. Att’y Gen., 4/7/21)
CA9 Reverses BIA’s Denial of Asylum to Petitioner Who Was Targeted on Account of Her Feminist Political Opinion
Granting the petition for review of the BIA’s decision reversing an IJ’s grant of asylum, the court held that evidence compelled the conclusion that petitioner had established a nexus between her mistreatment in Mexico and her feminist political opinion. (Rodriguez Tornes v. Garland, 4/5/21)
CA10 Finds That Mother and Son Targeted by MS-13 Gang Were Not Persecuted on Account of Membership in Son’s Immediate Family
Denying the petition for review, the court held that the BIA properly found that petitioners, a mother and her son, were not persecuted “on account of” their alleged membership in a particular social group (PSG) consisting of the son’s immediate family. (Orellana-Recinos v. Garland, 4/5/21)
Justice Campaign Practice Advisory: Employment Authorization for People Formerly in MPP
The Immigration Justice Campaign provides a guide on assisting asylum seekers, who were subjected to the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) and who are now in the United States, with seeking employment authorization.
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief Arguing BIA Erred in Rejecting Proposed Social Group of “Salvadoran Women”
AILA and partners submitted an amicus brief in the Fourth Circuit arguing that the BIA erred when it categorically rejected the social group of Salvadoran women, and that the court should correct the Board’s error and vacate its decision.
Climbing the Virtual Hill
AILA Policy Counsel Jen Whitlock describes why and how AILA members can use opportunities like the upcoming virtual National Day of Action to urge Congress toward curbing and eventually ending inhumane and wasteful immigration detention in favor of proven community-based systems.
USCIS Releases RAIO Training Course on Affirmative Asylum Process and Procedures
USCIS’s Refugee, Asylum, and International Operations Directorate released the Officer Training Course for the affirmative asylum process and procedures.
CA8 Finds BIA Reasonably Concluded That Christian Petitioner Could Safely Relocate to Another Part of El Salvador
The court held that substantial evidence supported the BIA’s determination that the petitioner—a 22-year-old Christian woman who claimed she had been targeted by gangs in El Salvador—could relocate to another part of El Salvador if forced to return. (Guatemala-Pineda v. Garland, 3/26/21)
EOIR Releases Comprehensive Policy Manual
EOIR announced that it has added a search function to its online Policy Manual, which provides access to all of EOIR's policies including the immigration court and BIA practice manuals, the OCAHO practice manual, and all current policy memos.
CA9 Remands Asylum Claim of Salvadoran Petitioner with an Intellectual Disability
The court held that the BIA and IJ erred in misunderstanding the petitioner’s proposed social group comprised of “El Salvadoran men with intellectual disabilities who exhibit erratic behavior” for purposes of asylum and withholding relief. (Acevedo Granados v. Garland, 3/24/21)
Further Delay of Effective Date of Final Rule on Pandemic-Related Security Bars to Asylum and Withholding of Removal
USCIS and EOIR interim final rule further delaying until 12/31/21 the effective date of the final rule “Security Bars and Processing” (85 FR 84160, 12/23/20). Public comment is also sought on whether the rule should be revised or revoked; comments are due 4/21/21. (86 FR 15069, 3/22/21)
USCIS Extends Effective Date of Temporary Final Rule on Interpreters at Asylum Interviews
USCIS final rule extending the expiration date of the temporary final rule on interpreters at asylum interviews published at 85 FR 59655, which was originally scheduled to expire on 3/22/21, for 180 days, until 9/20/21. (86 FR 15072, 3/22/21)
What if I Told You Immigration Detention Was Unnecessary?
Deputy Director of the Immigration Justice Campaign Jennie Guilfoyle highlights a recent factsheet affirming the effectiveness and efficiency of alternatives to detention and why we need to phase out immigration detention.