Proposed U.S. asylum rule limits access to protection and fuels increase in vulnerability

Additional limitations on asylum eligibility and reduction on safeguards in asylum processing will hinder access to protection. This is the clear message from the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) in its Submission of Comments on the impacts of the proposed Interim Final Rule (IFR) on “Securing the Border” from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice.

Based on solid experience with humanitarian response to mixed migration flows in Mexico as well as data collected from protection monitoring activities, DRC recommends the Agencies to rescind the IFR or take necessary precautions to mitigate negative impacts.

DRC finds it particularly concerning how the rule significantly limits asylum eligibility for Mexican nationals. Another serious concern raised in DRC’s comment is the limited access for persons of concern to official information on access to U.S. territory which is key to their informed decision-making. If the rule is maintained, it will ultimately put persons of concern at even higher risk when pushed back into Mexico or summarily returned to countries of origin.