Biden Administration’s Proposed Rule Would Unjustly Deny Asylum

Washington, D.C.— On Thursday, the Biden administration proposed a new rule that would make it easier for the U.S. government to reject asylum-seekers early in the asylum process. If the rule goes into effect as is, it would increase the risk that refugees would be sent back to places where they face persecution.

The rule would allow U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services asylum officers to apply statutory bars at the initial screening stage. Currently, immigration judges evaluate bars to asylum eligibility based on serious crimes or national security grounds at a full hearing, after individuals can find counsel and prepare their case. These determinations are not simple—they are complex legal decisions that require thorough examination by a judge. The United Nations Refugee Agency recommends that bars to asylum are determined at the final merits stage—and not in expedited procedures—so that the legal assessment can be fairly made.

The regulation comes just days before the one-year anniversary of the Biden administration’s asylum ban. Families and individuals seeking asylum already endure major obstacles to reach their day in court.

Kimiko Hirota, policy advisor for the Women’s Refugee Commission’s Migrant Rights & Justice program, issued the following statement:

“People seeking asylum under the expedited procedures that are already in place have next to zero ability to obtain legal counsel and the evidence necessary to prove their claims days after they arrive at the border. These proposed changes would heighten these challenges and rush people to deportation without due process. We must ensure that we don’t send people back to places where they are in danger.”

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