The Trump administration is moving to broadly raise the standards for individuals to receive asylum status in the U.S., a step that critics are calling the biggest crackdown of this presidency on those seeking a haven in this country.
A new, 419-page rule by the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice would create additional bars to asylum eligibility and limit the circumstances in which individuals can qualify for protection, changes that the administration says "are likely to result in fewer asylum grants annually."
"This is the most sweeping attack on asylum that we have seen under the Trump administration," said Aaron Reichlin-Melnick of the American Immigration Council, an immigration advocacy group. "Under this rule, asylum would be taken out of reach for a large percentage of people who in the past would have been able to qualify."
Immigration judges would be able to more easily claim that applications are "frivolous" under the new rules, a determination that bars individuals from any form of immigration relief, as well as deny asylum requests without a hearing if they believe they lack certain evidence.
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