Asylum
Asylum grants legal protection to foreign nationals already in the U.S. or arriving at the border who can’t go back to their home country because of persecution. Learn more about the asylum system in the United States, including how asylum is defined, eligibility requirements, and the difficult and complex application process.
Challenging the Shutdown of Asylum Access at Ports of Entry
On June 11, 2025, asylum seekers, Al Otro Lado, and Haitian Bridge Alliance filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California to challenge the asylum shutdown policy and the cancellation of CBP One appointments. Read More
Asylum Seekers Challenge Trump’s Asylum Shutdown Policy
People fleeing persecution and torture in their home countries have joined immigrant rights organizations to challenge the Trump administration’s unlawful shutdown of asylum along the U.S.-Mexico border. Read More
Impugnación de la Desaparición bajo la Ley de Enemigos Extranjeros sin el Debido Proceso
El Consejo Americano de Inmigración y la ACLU presentaron una petición de hábeas corpus para impedir el traslado de Y.A.P.A. al CECOT sin darle una oportunidad significativa de comparecer ante un juez para revisar las acusaciones del gobierno en su contra. Read More
Challenging Disappearance under the Alien Enemies Act Without Due Process
The American Immigration Council and the ACLU filed a habeas petition to prevent our petitioner's transfer to CECOT without affording him a meaningful opportunity to appear before a judge to review the government’s allegations against him. Read More
Council and AILA Submit FOIA Request Seeking Information on Trump Administration Suspension of Green Card Applications
On March 25, 2025, media reports surfaced indicating U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)—the agency in charge of approving green card applications—stopped processing green card applications filed by asylees and refugees. The suspension would affect refugees, which the U.S. government has already… Read More
Expedited Removal Explainer
Expedited removal is a process by which low-level immigration officers can quickly deport certain noncitizens who are undocumented or have committed fraud or misrepresentation. Read More
Trump’s Day 1 Orders Use Fearmongering to Expand His Immigration Authority
On January 20, 2025, the day President Trump took office for his second term, he issued a series of immigration-related executive orders and proclamations that will quickly re-shape the U.S. immigration system. These executive orders affect nearly every facet of a complex and demanding system. Most of the policy… Read More
Statement of the American Immigration Council Submitted to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Hearing on Remain in Mexico
The American Immigration Council submitted a statement for the record for the January 16, 2025, hearing in the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on the Remain in Mexico program. Read More
Federal Appeals Court Rules in Favor of Asylum Seekers’ Rights to Present at POEs
Ports of entry along our borders are supposed to be where people in need of protection can come to seek humanitarian relief. But since 2016, every presidential administration has used different tactics to turn people away from ports of entry (POEs) along the U.S.-Mexico border before they even get there. Read More
What Is the ‘Bipartisan Border Bill’ and How Would It Change the US Immigration System?
The “bipartisan border bill” has been front and center in the presidential election, but it is often presented to the public without clarity on what the bill would actually do. In May, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) introduced S. 4361, the Border Act of 2024. This bill includes nearly identical… Read More
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