The administration of US President Donald Trump on Tuesday introduced a rule that could send hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers directly to immigration court for deportation proceedings.
The rule, titled "Affirmative Asylum Referrals Without Interview," took effect immediately without undergoing a public notice-and-comment period.
Issued by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the measure aims to reduce the agency's backlog of 1.4 million pending asylum cases by nearly one-third.
Previously, many asylum seekers were interviewed by a USCIS asylum officer before their claims were referred to immigration court if denied.
Under the new rule, up to 444,724 pending cases could instead be transferred directly to immigration judges, who now have expanded authority to dismiss some applications without a hearing.
The Trump administration said the changes are intended to address what it described as an asylum system in "unprecedented crisis," arguing it has been used to delay removals and obtain work authorisation rather than seek protection.
The measure is the latest in Trump's broader effort to overhaul US asylum policy. Since returning to office, he has tightened access to asylum at the US-Mexico border and expanded immigration enforcement against migrants already in the country, including some who entered legally and later applied for asylum.
