US to limit asylum at Mexico border as COVID-19 restrictions end
Published:Wednesday | May 10, 2023 | 3:50 PM
CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico (AP) — The Biden administration on Thursday will begin denying asylum to migrants who arrive at the US-Mexico border without first applying online or seeking protection in a country they passed through, marking a fundamental shift in immigration policy as the US readies for the end of a key pandemic restriction.
The new rule represents a significant shift in the way the US deals with asylum seekers who have been showing up at the border in huge numbers in anticipation of this week's end of the use of a restriction known as Title 42 that allows the government to quickly expel migrants to Mexico.
US officials warned of difficult days ahead as the program tied to the COVID-19 pandemic expires this week.
The rule announced Wednesday is part of new measures meant to crack down on illegal border crossings while creating new legal pathways, including a plan to open 100 regional migration hubs across the Western Hemisphere, administration officials said.
US officials have detailed steps they've taken to prepare for what many are expecting to be a substantial increase in migrants attempting to enter the US.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas warned that the days and weeks ahead have the “potential to be very difficult.”
“Our plan will deliver results but it will take time for those results to be fully realised,” he said.
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