Recently United States immigration authorities have started to interview asylum-seekers at two Texas detention centers, as part of a new Biden administration policy. It is part of a process that aims to speed up the processing of migrants that ask for humanitarian protection. The program has begun on a small scale as of early June, with only a few hundred cases per month during the first phase of implementation.
To start it seems that only those asylum-seekers that tell border officials that they have plans to live in cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Miami, New York, Newark, or Boston will be enrolled in this program. This is in order to shorten the adjudication time frame from years to several months.
As you can see this plan will be implemented on a small scale at first but it is in an attempt to overhaul the backlogged US asylum system and it is one of the pillars of the plan of the Biden administration in their hopes to manage the overwhelming levels of migrant arrivals. The plan is designed to allow the DHS officers to be able to fully adjudicate asylum cases of recent border crossers instead of transferring requests to the Justice Department which has over 1.7 million cases unresolved.
It is the hope of the presidential administration that this program will speed up the process for those actually fleeing persecution in their home countries and expedite the deportation of those who do not meet the requirements.
There are approximately 100 asylum offers who have been trained in this first phase of implementation. They are to interview migrant adults via telephone at two Texas Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers who have been placed in an expedited removal process. The program will only be available for single adults and families traveling with children, since unaccompanied minors cannot be placed into expedited removal. DHS is also working to provide migrants with pro-bono attorneys prior to these screenings.
Like all asylum seekers, migrants in this program will need to establish credible fear of persecution in their home country during the telephone interview. If they pass they will be released with a tracking device, if they fail they could be deported quickly. Those that pass will then be required to attend an in person interview in one of the cities listed earlier at the USCIS office, no more than 45 days after the initial phone screen. Failure to attend this interview will lead to a swift deportation. After this in person interview the USCIS officers will have 60 days to either deny or grant asylum. Those granted asylum will be eligible for permanent residency after 1 year.
To learn more about this program and whether you or a loved one may qualify to participate please contact the Gambacorta Law Office today at 1-847-786-2599. We will be happy to assist you with your asylum needs.