President Joe Biden's administration plans to speed up the processing of asylum seekers at the US-Canada border in response to a significant increase in migrant crossings.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson confirmed in an email to VOA that there will be two changes to the asylum process at the northern border. They also stressed that the department continues to enforce U.S. immigration laws and impose tough consequences on noncitizens who have no legal basis to remain in the U.S.
“The Department of Homeland Security carefully reviewed the implementation of the Safe Third Country Agreement with Canada and concluded that it could streamline the process at the border without impacting the ability of non-citizen individuals to have access to full and fair procedures for determining claims for asylum or equivalent temporary protection,” the spokesperson said.
CBS News reported the plan before the department confirmed details with VOA. The policy change is scheduled to take effect Wednesday (8/14).
The first change would require migrants to show documents, testimony and other credible evidence when U.S. asylum officers screen them to determine whether they are in compliance with the agreement.
Previously, migrants could delay screening while they gathered the information needed to prove they qualified for an exemption.
“Asylum officers will only consider documentary evidence available at the time of the TSI (Threshold Screening Interview),” wrote a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson.
The second change is to reduce the amount of time migrants have to consult with lawyers. Starting Wednesday, migrants will have a minimum of four hours to get legal help before their first asylum interview. The department made similar changes at the U.S.-Mexico border in June in a move aimed at curbing asylum claims there.
The Safe Third Country Asylum Agreement between the US and Canada was first signed in 2002 and expanded in 2023. The agreement assigns responsibility for processing asylum claims to the country where the asylum seeker first arrives.
Those affected by the Safe Third Country Agreement must show that they first sought asylum in Canada when entering the U.S. from that country. Otherwise, they can be sent back to Canada unless they qualify for an exception. Unaccompanied children and migrants with relatives in the U.S. are exempt from the agreement.
Similarly, those who cross into Canada from the U.S., and fall under the agreement, can be returned to the U.S. by Canadian authorities. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said the change is expected to help U.S. immigration officials process and remove migrants more quickly along the 8,890-kilometer northern border, where the number of migrants has increased this year.
In fiscal 2024, U.S. Border Patrol agents encountered 16,469 migrants crossing the U.S.-Canada border illegally. That number is up from 10,021 in fiscal 2023 and 2,238 in 2022. (ab/lt)
