Refugees and Asylum Seekers
The United States has a longstanding tradition of welcoming individuals from around the world who are seeking protection and refuge. But recent U.S. policy has grown increasingly hostile toward asylum seekers and refugees. Instead of turning vulnerable individuals away, the United States should maintain its global reputation as a leader in refugee resettlement and humanitarian protection. Doing so not only upholds American values but sustains and strengthens our communities. Data from the Council shows that refugees and asylees make tremendous contributions to our economy as earners, taxpayers, and consumers. Learn more about the contributions and challenges of asylum seekers and refugees below.
Coalition Letter Calling for Implementation of the Emergency Stopgap USCIS Stabilization Act provisions
The American Immigration Council and 13 other organizations urged USCIS to expand premium processing to ensure the agency remains solvent while efficiently and effectively adjudicating all immigration benefit applications and petitions. Read More
Building an Efficient and Humane Processing of Unaccompanied Children
The American Immigration Council appeared before Congress to address the treatment of Unaccompanied Children at the Border and provide recommendation to ensure the creation of a unified humanitarian approach for all groups. Read More
Coalition Letter Calling on the Biden Administration to End MPP and Title 42
The Council condemned the Biden administration's expansion of MPP and continued use of Title 42 to turn away asylum seekers at the border. Read More
Biden’s Border Ambitions Fall Short in a Year of Setbacks and Continued Focus on Deterrence
President Biden took office committing to unwind Trump’s border policies and go in a new direction—to reunite families, restore access to asylum, and reverse “policies enacted over the last 4 years that contravened our values and caused needless human suffering.” Despite a strong start in early 2021, the border is… Read More
Coalition Effort Calls for Fair and Efficient Work Permit Process for Asylum Seekers
The Council joined 74 other organizations in a letter calling for DHS to eliminate restrictions on work authorization for asylum seekers. Read More
Failure to Reauthorize Employment Harms Asylum Seekers and the U.S. Economy
U.S. workers are losing their jobs due to bureaucratic delays at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), despite an economy desperate for workers. Asylum seekers wanting to renew their employment authorization documents are often waiting for upwards of a year for renewal, resulting in job loss and associated benefits. On… Read More
U.S. Workers Sue USCIS for Unlawful Delays in Renewal of Employment Authorizations
Five workers in the United States filed a nationwide class action lawsuit today challenging unlawful log-jam and extreme delays at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services that have resulted in the government’s failure to process the work authorization renewals for asylum seekers. Read More
Challenging USCIS for Delays in Renewal of Employment Authorizations
The Council and partners filed a nationwide class action lawsuit to ensure timely renewal of work authorizations documents for asylum seekers. Read More
ICE Begins Mass Mailing Court Notices to Asylum Seekers Released at the Border
Since President Biden took office, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers have released over 250,000 people seeking asylum directly at the border. In nearly half of these cases, people were not released with a formal “Notice to Appear” in immigration court. Instead, officers gave them a “Notice to Report”… Read More
Recission of MPP Is a Step Toward Ending a Humanitarian Catastrophe and Restoring Dignity to the Asylum Process
The Biden administration announced that DHS will issue a new memo to formally terminate the Migrant Protection Protocols. It is an important step towards ensuring that the MPP program never returns. Read More
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