Biden administration considers banning asylum seekers for 5 months, says report 

The Biden administration is reportedly considering banning asylum seekers from entering the United States for five months over fears that border crossings will increase after Title 42 is lifted next week, reported The New York Post.  

The draft of the new rule, which is being circulated within the White House, would apply to asylum seekers who enter the U.S. illegally or arrive at ports of entry without prior authorization, Axios reported. 

Asylum seekers would be deemed ineligible for asylum unless they applied for a legal pathway into the U.S., sought protection in another country on their way to the U.S., or face extreme circumstances, The Post continued. 

However, the Biden administration has not decided whether to implement the rule that would limit migrant’s ability to seek asylum in the U.S., according to a December 2 statement from press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. 

The new rule comes as the Biden administration expects a surge in migration that couldn't bring between 12,000 to 14,000 migrants to the border a day after the immigration policy known as Title 42 expires next week. According to the administration, such an influx could lead to overcrowding at detention facilities and could overwhelm border patrol agents. 

Under the Trump-era policy Title 42, border officials could quickly expel migrants without hearing their asylum cases to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus within the U.S. More than two million migrants have been expelled under the policy. 

The policy originally applied to migrants coming from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, but was later expanded to Venezuelan migrants after an influx of asylum seekers from the South American country. 

In November, U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan struck down the policy, claiming that it was “arbitrary and capricious” and it violated federal regulatory law.  

The U.S.-Mexico border has been seeing a record number of border crossings in the past few years. In the Fiscal Year 2023, which began in October, more than 485,000 undocumented migrants have been intercepted, breaking the records set in 2022.