US moves to restrict work permits for asylum seekers amid 1.4 million case backlog

The Trump administration in the US has introduced a proposal to curtail access to work permits for individuals seeking asylum there. If enacted, this rule would represent a marked shift in how and when asylum applicants become eligible for employment authorisation, with officials citing a need to discourage meritless claims and relieve the burden on an immigration system facing over 1.4 million pending cases. The US administration estimates highlight that the current backlog rivals the population of an entire US state, prompting the push for stricter measures likely to affect thousands of new arrivals.

Under the new framework, asylum seekers would be unable to obtain work permits until specific processing benchmarks are met. The draft rule specifies that new applicants would not receive employment authorisation unless average case processing times fall below 180 days. However, internal projections provided by the administration suggest that achieving this standard could take between 14 and 173 years, effectively suspending work permission for most future applicants for the foreseeable future.

Officials emphasise that the surge in applications for employment authorisation has reached unprecedented levels and is straining United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) resources. "Applications for employment authorisation based on a pending asylum application have reached a historic high, straining U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' (USCIS) resources. Nearly every illegal alien attempts to exploit the system by applying for asylum. USCIS currently has more than 1.4 million pending affirmative asylum claims, which is equal to the entire population of the state of New Hampshire," an official statement explained.

The proposal would also impact migrants who cross into the United States unlawfully. According to the draft rule, individuals in this category would only be eligible for new work permits if they notify authorities of their fear of persecution within 48 hours of entering the country. Officials argue that this requirement will help ensure the integrity of the asylum system by discouraging those without legitimate claims from seeking employment authorisation as a means to remain in the country.

Currently, asylum seekers may apply for work authorisation after a waiting period of approximately 150 days. The proposed rule represents a significant tightening of these conditions, a move the administration contends is necessary to address what it characterises as widespread abuse of the current process. "For too long, a fraudulent asylum claim has been an easy path to working in the United States, overwhelming our immigration system with meritless applications," said a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security.

The Department of Homeland Security maintains that the overhaul is intended to restore order and accountability to the handling of asylum cases. "We are proposing an overhaul of the asylum system to enforce the rules and reduce the backlog we inherited from the prior administration. Aliens are not entitled to work while we process their asylum applications. The Trump administration is strengthening the vetting of asylum applicants and restoring integrity to the asylum and work authorisation processes," the spokesperson added.

The timing and practical implementation of the rule remain uncertain, as the proposal must undergo a finalisation process that may include a period for public comment. The administration has not indicated how, or if, the backlog of more than 1.4 million cases could be addressed under the existing resource constraints, nor has it provided details on mechanisms for monitoring and enforcement of the new eligibility standards.