Nearly eight in ten asylum seekers are now being denied by immigration judges, marking a dramatic reversal from policies in place during the Biden administration.
President Donald Trump’s administration is now rejecting the vast majority of asylum claims, signaling one of the most consequential shifts in U.S. immigration enforcement in years.
Recent data show asylum grant rates falling to roughly 20% in the last quarter, down from about 50% in May 2022, when illegal crossings at the southern border were surging to record highs.
Deportations have exceeded 30,000 per month since Trump returned to office, including 38,215 removals in December, nearly double the 19,265 deported in December 2023.
Border encounters have also dropped sharply.
Daily apprehensions now average about 245, a roughly 95% decline from the Biden-era average of more than 5,000 per day.
Immigration Courts Overhauled
The administration has paired stricter enforcement with a sweeping overhaul of immigration courts.
More than 100 immigration judges were removed over the past year, while dozens of new judges have been hired, including temporary assignments of military Judge Advocate General lawyers to help reduce the massive case backlog.
Immigration courts are now completing around 12,000 cases per month, nearly double the 6,000 to 7,000 monthly pace seen previously.
The Department of Justice framed the shift as a restoration of credibility to the system:
“After four years of Biden administration hiring practices that undermined the credibility and impartiality of the immigration courts, this Department of Justice continues to restore integrity to our immigration system.”
Despite the acceleration, a backlog of roughly 3.38 million cases remains, meaning full resolution could still take more than a decade.
Reasserting the Legal Standard for Asylum
Former Immigration and Naturalization Service agent Michael Cutler emphasized that asylum law was always intended to apply narrowly.
“If you look at what asylum is supposed to be, it’s a very narrow definition…
“You have to be able to demonstrate a credible fear and be able to articulate that credible fear of persecution.
“It’s not because there’s a gang that’s doing business down the block or you can’t stand your mother-in-law or you can’t find a job.”
Former immigration judge Andrew Arthur said the administration’s policies are clearly reducing approval rates:
“It’s having a real impact.
“The Trump Administration is doing all kinds of things to drive down the asylum grant rate.”
The declining approval rate reflects a system returning to the statutory definition of persecution rather than functioning as a broad admissions pathway.
Public Safety and Political Fallout
High-profile crimes committed by illegal aliens, including the killings of Laken Riley, Rachel Morin, and Matthew Denice, have intensified national scrutiny of border enforcement and asylum policies.
Rachel Morin’s mother, Patricia Morin, said voters prioritized safety in the 2024 election:
“That’s what Americans voted for, they voted for safety… this is the top issue that got him elected, and he’s keeping his word.”
She added:
“Democrats keep talking about how bad all this is, and it’s not compassionate, but it’s not virtue when you only give compassion to the criminal and don’t give a second thought to the victim who has died.”
Advocates for stricter enforcement argue the scale of illegal immigration during the Biden years created long-term consequences that will take years to resolve, even with accelerated deportations and court processing.
A System Still Recovering
Customs and Border Protection reported record crossings in 2022 and continued surges in 2023, contributing to today’s multiyear backlog.
Even with courts operating at increased capacity and removals exceeding 30,000 per month, clearing existing cases could take more than a decade.
Patricia Morin summarized the continuing concern:
“We have all these unvetted people that are here in America, and we don’t know if they really are who they say they are.”
While the backlog remains daunting, enforcement trends now point in the opposite direction, toward faster adjudication, lower asylum approval rates, and a renewed focus on applying immigration law as written.
READ MORE – Democrat Rep Steve Cohen: American Citizens Are ‘Worst of the Worst,’ Not Illegal Aliens
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