By Maribel Velazquez
The Trump administration is considering a new measure that could significantly transform the asylum process. According to internal documents obtained by CBS Recordsdata, Federal officials consider allowing certain applications to be rejected expeditiously without applicants having access to an interview with immigration authorities.
According to the information revealed by the aforementioned media, the proposal would empower officials of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to dismiss asylum applications when they determine that they were submitted more than one year after the immigrant entered the country.
Currently, although immigration law establishes this time limit, authorities usually interview applicants before issuing a decision. The new regulations would modify that procedure by allowing rejections based mainly on the documentation presented.
Dismissed cases would later be sent to immigration courts, where applicants would have to defend their permanence in the country within a deportation process.
Concern among immigration lawyers
A USCIS spokesperson confirmed to the aforementioned media that the administration is considering different alternatives to reduce the accumulated backlog of more than one million asylum applications.
“This would allow USCIS to avoid wasting time on asylum applications which would otherwise refer to immigration proceedings,” the spokesperson said.
However, immigrant advocacy organizations warn that the measure could affect people with legitimate reasons for submitting their application outside the established deadline.
Conchita Cruz, co-executive director of the Asylum Seekers Defense Projectexpressed concern about the possibility that some immigrants may be wrongly placed in deportation proceedings without having the opportunity to explain exceptional circumstances.
“There are many reasons” why a person can request asylum more than a year after entering the country, Cruz explained, including cases of people who remained legally in the United States on temporary visas before seeking protection.
Pressure on a saturated system
The debate occurs amid a historical accumulation of immigration cases. According to federal figures cited by CBS Recordsdata, USCIS recorded around 1.5 million pending asylum applicationswhile the immigration courts accumulated more than 3.3 million cases until March of this year.
The possible reform is part of a broader strategy by the Trump administration to tighten immigration policies and accelerate deportation processes, especially for those who entered or remained in the country during the Joe Biden administration.
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