Trump Administration Plan Could Restrict Work Permits For Asylum Seekers For Years

WASHINGTON — Immigrant advocates fearfulness a Trump management connection released Friday amounts to an indefinite region connected caller activity permits for asylum seekers.

The draught regulation from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services would halt nan acceptance of activity licence applications erstwhile mean processing times astatine nan agency transcend 180 days.

The regularisation besides would widen nan clip asylum seekers must hold earlier becoming eligible to use for a activity permit, lengthening nan play from 150 days to 365 days.

The connection says USCIS expects that caller activity licence applications for asylum seekers “would beryllium paused for an extended period, perchance galore years.”

Conchita Cruz, co-executive head of nan Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project, said nan regularisation would beryllium catastrophic for asylum seekers, their families and U.S. communities.

“Forcing individuals who are moving and surviving successful nan United States legally retired of their jobs is not only cruel, but it is bad policy,” she said. “If this regularisation goes into effect, it will wounded U.S. families, businesses and nan U.S. economy.”

The projected regularisation alteration comes amid wide efforts by nan Trump management to extremity humanitarian benefits and restrict ineligible immigration.

For example, Homeland Security has sought to terminate Temporary Protected Status benefits that provided activity permits and deportation protection to hundreds of thousands of immigrants. And successful a memo released this week, nan agency said agents are authorized to detain refugees who person not yet revenge applications for lawful imperishable residence aft their first twelvemonth successful nan U.S.

Under nan first Trump administration, agency officials successful 2020 likewise projected expanding nan employment eligibility waiting play to 1 year.