Biden administration to give more asylum-seekers forced to wait in Mexico another shot to apply for asylum

WASHINGTON – The Biden administration on Wednesday will begin allowing asylum-seekers whose claims were denied or dismissed under a Trump administration policy that forced migrants to wait in Mexico for their court hearing another chance to seek humanitarian protection, the Department of Homeland Security announced Tuesday.

Asylum-seekers who were subject to the Migrant Protection Protocols, or “Remain in Mexico” policy, and had their cases dismissed or denied for failing to appear in court will be allowed to register to pursue asylum claims.

“As part of our continued effort to restore safe, orderly, and humane processing at the Southwest Border, DHS will expand the pool of MPP-enrolled individuals who are eligible for processing into the United States,” the department said in a statement.

Thousands of migrants were forced to wait in dangerous Mexican border towns for their court dates under the Trump-era policy, which began in 2019. Advocates and migrants have described violence, kidnappings and getting sick as reasons they either left or did not make it to their court hearings. In addition, many migrants lacked proper legal assistance to help with their claims.

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The Biden administration halted the program in February and began processing some open asylum cases for people who were subject to the Remain in Mexico policy. Earlier this month, the Biden administration officially terminated the MPP program.

According to Syracuse University’s Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, 27,842 migrants were issued removal orders after they were not present for their last court hearing. It was unclear how many migrants would qualify to seek asylum under the plan.

Reach Rebecca Morin at Twitter @RebeccaMorin_

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biden admin. to allow migrants denied asylum to reapply in US