By Juliana Morello, Journalism Intern
President Joe Biden has signed an executive action temporarily shutting down asylum requests at the United States border with Mexico.
According to NPR, the asylum requests will be restricted once the average number of encounters reaches 2,500 daily between official entry ports. As encounters at the southern border are averaging over 4,000 per day, this action will go into effect immediately.
The executive action is not permanent, however; the restrictions will be discontinued and the border will reopen once the number of encounters falls to 1,500 per day. It will go back into effect when the number reaches 2,500.
A fact sheet published by the White House states that this proclamation was issued under Immigration and Nationality Act sections 212(f) and 215(a), and will suspend “entry of noncitizens who cross the Southern border into the United States unlawfully.” It is the same law former President Donald Trump used to ban immigration from various predominantly Muslim countries in 2017.
According to administration officials, migrants arriving at the border who do not express a “credible fear” of returning to their original countries will be removed from the United States within “a matter of days, if not hours.” These migrants could face punishments including a five-year ban from reentering the U.S. or criminal prosecution.
This is very different from the southern border asylum restrictions passed during the pandemic in order to slow the spread of COVID-19. Known as Title 42, these restrictions carried zero legal consequences, and therefore allowed for multiple attempts to enter.
Several groups of migrants will be exempted from the current restrictions, including victims of human trafficking, migrants with severe medical emergencies, and unaccompanied minors.
