Proposed Asylum Rules An Attack on the Most Vulnerable Asylum Seekers

Proposed Asylum Rules An Attack on the Most Vulnerable Asylum Seekers

New Colossus poem: August 15, 2019

A recent proposed change to our asylum rules threatens to undo protections to some of our most vulnerable migrants: asylum seekers.

Asylum has been a major part of our country’s humanitarian immigration mission since World War II. The modern asylum system emerged out of the horror of World War II, to help refugees and other people with a, “well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion,” escape harm. The primary goal of the asylum system is to stop people from being sent back to somewhere where they would be in danger. Asylum has given relief to people who have escaped serious danger to live a better life. However, this administration has been making changes that undercut the very purpose of asylum law, and are making it clear that under President Trump, Asylum Seekers are not welcome. A recently release proposed rule is continuing that troubling trend.

On November 13, 2019 U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services released a proposed rule that would make the immigration process even more difficult for Asylum seekers. The Trump administration has been committed to making seeking asylum in the United States as seen in moves by this administration to make it more difficult for survivors of domestic violence and migrants from Central Americans to seek asylum. The new rules, while more technical than some of the previous rule changes, does the same work of making life more difficult for asylum seekers.

Per the proposed rule here are some of the major changes:

  1. Bars Asylum Seekers who entered without inspection from applying for work permits.
  2. Bars Asylum Seekers who submitted their application outside of the one year deadline.
  3. Adds convictions for any felony, misdemeanor domestic assault, misdemeanor driving under the influence, and misdemeanor control substance to the list of crimes that would bar an Asylum Seeker from applying for employment authorization.
  4. Terminating work authorization for Asylum Seekers whose claims are denied.
  5. Increasing the amount of time an Asylum Seeker must wait before applying for work authorization from 180 days to 365 days.
  6. Removes the requirement that USCIS must return an incomplete application within 30 days.
  7. Makes making changing the application stop the clock for the Asylum Seeker to be able apply for employment authorization.
  8. Decreases the amount of time Affirmative Asylum Seekers are allowed to submit additional evidence to 14 days.

The rule changes around employment authorization have a clear goal: to make life in the United States more difficult for Asylum Seekers. Working and support one’s self if a major part of feeling welcome in America and the proposed rules close that door for the most vulnerable migrants. The new rules also make the act of filing an asylum petition more difficult. A study by the National Immigration Justice Center found one year filing deadline has resulted in “arbitrary denial of protection to refugees”. It also found that it was often the most vulnerable Asylum Seekers with little knowledge of the intricacies of asylum law were the ones most affected by the one year deadline. This means it is the people who need our protection most who are most affected by the rule changes.

We must voice our concerns to the government and make sure this unfair and arbitrary rule does not go into effect. Written comments can be sent online at this link or you can write them at the following address:

Samantha Deshommes, Chief, Regulatory Coordination Division, Office of Policy and Strategy, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of Homeland Security, 20 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20529. To ensure proper handling, please reference DHS Docket No. USCIS-2019-0011 in your correspondence.

You can also contact your representative and urge that they support legislation that offers the protection our Asylum Seekers need.