Biden administration proposes major asylum system remodel

Migrants at border.
(Image credit: Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

The Biden administration on Wednesday proposed a major, long-awaited overhaul to the U.S. asylum system, a decision that comes as migrant apprehensions at the southern border reach a 21-year high, Politico reports.

The policy, a draft of which was reported by Buzzfeed News in May, targets the years-long backlog in immigration cases and aims to expedite new claims by shifting decision-making power for certain migrants away from immigration judges and toward asylum officers, per Buzzfeed. In the case of a denied claim, the asylum seeker would be able to appeal the decision.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

The proposed policy will likely not be implemented for months, as it awaits 60 days-worth of comments from the public. When finalized, it could "represent [President Biden's] largest change to immigration policy thus far," as well as "fundamentally change dynamics at the southern border" in that it dramatically cuts down on the time needed to adjudicate cases, write Politico and Buzzfeed.

"This rule will both reduce the caseload in our immigration courts and protect the rights of those fleeing persecution and violence," said Attorney General Merrick Garland. Read more at Buzzfeed News.

Explore More
Brigid Kennedy

Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.