Featured Issue: U.S. Immigration Courts under Trump 2.0
The U.S. immigration court system plays a critical role in upholding due process and ensuring fair hearings for individuals facing deportation. However, since January 20, 2025, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has implemented significant changes that challenge the structural integrity of these courts. This page aims to provide up-to-date information on the policy and legal shifts affecting the U.S. immigration court system.
Latest Updates
Updates from EOIR
Browse the Featured Issue: U.S. Immigration Courts under Trump 2.0 collection
AILA Joins Sign-On Letter Urging Members of Congress to Oppose Increased DHS Funding and Demand Accountability in FY2026 DHS Appropriations
AILA joined an organizational sign-on letter led by the ACLU and other organizations calling on Members of Congress to oppose any increased funding to ICE and CBP through FY2026 appropriations and to demand increased accountability and oversight measures.
AILA Sends Letter to President Trump Urging Action to Protect Individuals Affected by the Iranian Crisis
AILA sent a letter to President Trump urging all government action be taken to protect individuals currently affected by the ongoing unrest in Iran. The letter offers multiple actions that government agencies should undertake to protect as many individuals as possible.
BIA Holds That Serious Nonpolitical Crime Bar Does Not Include Duress Exception
The BIA held that the serious nonpolitical crime bar to asylum and withholding of removal does not include a duress exception. Matter of D–G–B–L–, 29 I&N Dec. 392 (BIA 2026)
EOIR Announces New Deputy Chief Appellate Immigration Judges and Appellate Immigration Judge
EOIR announced the investiture of two Deputy Chief Appellate Immigration Judges, Stephanie E. Gorman and Gregory Radics, and Appellate Immigration Judge Renae M. Hansell on 1/15/26.
DHS Announces New Deputy Director of ICE
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem issued a statement announcing Charles Wall as the new Deputy Director of ICE. Previously, Mr. Wall served as ICE's Principal Legal Advisor and has been at ICE since 2012.
ABC News: DHS Announces Termination of Protected Status for Somalis After Group Targeted by Trump
DHS claims improved conditions in Somalia justify termination of TPS. AILA Senior Director of Government Relations Greg Chen responds, “That statement is really belied and contradicted by the facts on the ground ... the country continues to see terrorism, violent crime, and civil unrest.”
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, 1/14/26)
CA5 Holds That Denial of Affirmative Asylum to TPS Holders Is Not Final Agency Action
The court held that USCIS’s denial of affirmative asylum applications as to Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders does not constitute final agency action under the APA, and affirmed the district courts’ dismissals of the plaintiffs’ APA lawsuits. (Sayegh de Kewayfati v. Bondi, 1/14/26)
AILA's Enforcement Tracker
AILA’s Enforcement Tracker gathers reports of immigration enforcement actions across the United States in one location.
Enforcement Tracker - Form
Use this form to report enforcement actions, including both arrests and worksite enforcement. Information will immediately be made available to AILA members on AILA’s Enforcement Tracker.
AILA and Council File Amicus Brief Opposing Trump Administration’s Mandatory Detention Policies
AILA and American Immigration Council’s amicus brief in Lopez-Campos v. Reycraft argues that unlawful mandatory detention policies subject long-term residents, abuse survivors, and others to abusive, coercive detention without a legitimate purpose. They are filing similar briefs in related cases.
BIA Holds That Death Threats Alone Rarely Constitute Persecution and Require Objective Credibility and Immediate Ability to Carry Out
The BIA held that death threats alone rarely rise to the level of persecution and only do so if they are objectively credible and issued by a person or persons with the immediate ability to carry them out. Matter of E–M–F–S–, et al., 29 I&N Dec. 379 (BIA 2026)
CA8 Upholds Asylum Denial as to Guatemalan Domestic Violence Survivor Based on Lack of Nexus
The court held that the Guatemalan petitioner, who alleged domestic abuse by her former partner, failed to establish a nexus between the abuse and a protected ground, and did not show a likelihood of torture with government acquiescence. (Aguilar-Hernandez, et al. v. Bondi, 1/6/26)
CA11 Upholds Denial of CAT Relief to Colombian Petitioner Alleging Harm by FARC
The court held that substantial evidence supported the denial of Convention Against Torture (CAT) relief and that the BIA did not err in rejecting the petitioner’s ineffective assistance of counsel claim pursuant to Matter of Lozada. (Gutierrez-Mikan, et al. v. Att’y Gen., 1/5/26)
EOIR Policy Memorandum (PM 26-01) on the Annual Asylum Fee
EOIR Director issued Policy Memorandum 26-01 on the annual asylum fee. EOIR will waive the fee for asylum applications that were pending for one year or more 4/5/25-9/30/25 and administratively final as of 9/30/25. EOIR will apply the fee to applications pending for one year or more as of 10/1/25.
Enforcement Tracker - Feedback Form
Use this form to update an item that was previously submitted to AILA’s Enforcement Tracker or to provide feedback, report inaccurate information, or request further information as a member of AILA chapter leadership in relation to the Enforcement Tracker.
BIA Finds IJ Erred in Continuing Proceedings Where Respondent Failed to Appear After Proper Notice and Where DHS Established Removability
The BIA held that where the respondent did not appear at a hearing, was properly served with notice, and DHS provided evidence of their removability, the IJ erred in continuing proceedings rather than entering an in absentia removal order. Matter of Laurent Castro, 29 I&N Dec. 419 (BIA 2026)
CA1 Upholds Asylum Denial as to Guatemalan Petitioners Who Were Targeted for Extortion
The court held that substantial evidence supported the denial of asylum and related relief, finding that the Guatemalan petitioners were targeted for criminal extortion rather than a protected ground and could reasonably relocate within Guatemala. (Ramos-Hernandez, et al. v. Bondi, 12/22/25)
CA5 Holds Texas Indecency with a Child Conviction Was Categorically a Crime of Child Abuse
The court held that the petitioner’s Texas conviction for indecency with a child by sexual contact was categorically a “crime of child abuse” under INA §237(a)(2)(E)(i), and found that statutory authentication methods for conviction records are not exclusive. (Campuzano v. Bondi, 12/22/25)
CA9 Upholds Asylum Denial After Finding Nicaraguan Petitioner’s Childhood Trauma Did Not Excuse Untimely Filing
The court held that it had jurisdiction to review the BIA’s extraordinary circumstances determination, but found that substantial evidence supported the BIA’s conclusion that childhood trauma did not excuse the petitioner’s 13-year delay in filing for asylum. (Ruiz v. Bondi, 12/22/25)
CA4 Finds BIA Abused Its Discretion by Ignoring Evidence That Honduras Was Unable or Unwilling to Control MS-13
The court held that the BIA abused its discretion when it ignored credible, unrebutted, and legally significant evidence in the record and concluded that petitioner failed to demonstrate that the Honduran government was unable or unwilling to control MS-13. (Ramos Marquez v. Bondi, 11/19/25)
BIA Finds IJ Did Not Err in Terminating Proceedings Without Prejudice Where DHS Did Not Appear or Present Evidence of Removability
The BIA held that where neither the respondent nor DHS appears at the hearing and DHS does not present evidence of removability in advance of the hearing, the IJ does not err in terminating proceedings without prejudice. Matter of Tepec-Garcia, et al., 29 I&N Dec. 371 (BIA 2025)
EOIR Announces New Appellate Immigration Judge
EOIR announced the investiture of Appellate Immigration Judge Roman Marian Chaban who was sworn in on 12/19/25. Judge Chaban previously served as EOIR Acting Deputy Director.
BIA Finds Firm Resettlement Bar Applied Where Nepalese Respondent Had Indefinite Rights to Live and Work in India
The BIA held that evidence that a respondent had a legal right to enter, live, work, and own property indefinitely in the country of proposed resettlement demonstrates that the respondent was offered “some other type of permanent resettlement.” Matter of L–T–A–, 29 I&N Dec. 362 (BIA 2025)
CA5 Grants Government’s Motion to Summarily Deny Petition for Review as Untimely under INA §242(b)(1)
The court held that the petition was untimely under INA §242(b)(1), that the 30-day filing deadline is a mandatory claim-processing rule, that the government did not waive its timeliness objection, and that the prison mailbox rule did not render the petition timely. (Liao v. Bondi, 12/17/25)