President Joe Biden of the United States has introduced a comprehensive executive order that tightens restrictions on asylum claims, building on previous efforts to reduce the influx of people crossing the southern border.

This order took effect on Wednesday as Biden prepares for a potential showdown on immigration in the upcoming November presidential election, where he is set to challenge the Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump.

Biden, who initially vowed to overturn Trump’s rigid border policies, insists that the new order is crucial for revamping the US asylum system.

The directive allows his administration to suspend processing asylum requests if the volume of irregular border crossings exceeds an average of 2,500 per day over one week.

However, migrant advocacy groups have vehemently criticized the order, with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) arguing that it endangers thousands of lives by hindering the legal right to seek asylum.

Here’s an overview of the new restrictions.

What is asylum?

Asylum is a principle in international law that permits individuals to seek safety when fleeing war, persecution, or human rights abuses in their home countries.

According to US immigration law, non-citizens present on US soil must be given due process to apply for asylum if they fear for their lives or freedom due to race, religion, nationality, social group membership, or political opinion.

Why is Biden seeking to restrict asylum?

Given the high stakes, the law permits persecuted individuals to seek asylum in the US regardless of their mode of entry, including irregular border crossings.

However, critics, including Biden’s administration, argue that the existing system and its significant backlog encourage ineligible individuals to cross the border and file applications to gain the right to stay while their cases are reviewed—a process that can take months or even years.

Migrant rights groups contend that restricting asylum claims conflicts with the US government’s legal and moral duties and risks pushing applicants back into dangerous situations or exposing them to exploitation by criminal gangs at the border.

What does the new order do?

Biden’s executive order sets a limit on the number of asylum seekers allowed to enter the US through the southern border within a specific timeframe.

The ability to apply for asylum will be mainly suspended if detentions at and near the border surpass an average of 2,500 daily encounters over a week.

The suspension will last until the US Homeland Security Secretary confirms that the number of encounters has dropped to an average of 1,500 per day over a week, after which normal procedures will resume 14 days later.

Are there exceptions?

The executive order includes several exceptions to the suspension of asylum entries.

Individuals crossing the border who express fears of persecution in their home countries will still be screened, albeit under a faster process with stricter standards.

Additionally, the order allows those deemed "particularly vulnerable" to remain in the US to seek other humanitarian protections.

The exemptions also apply to unaccompanied minors, human trafficking victims, and those with appointments to seek asylum via the CBP One app.

When does the order go into effect?

The order became effective on June 5, though its actual impact will depend on the number of border crossings in the coming days and weeks.

The suspension would be triggered as soon as the Department of Homeland Security identifies seven consecutive days exceeding the 2,500-encounter threshold.

According to CBS News, daily encounters on the southern border averaged about 3,700 in May, with the last dip below 2,500 occurring in January 2021. Restrictions might begin as early as next week if this trend continues.

What does this mean for migrants and asylum seekers?

Rights groups warn that Biden’s executive order may deny asylum to those genuinely in need and push migrants to take more dangerous routes to avoid border authorities.

They also express concern that the order will extend waiting times for asylum appointments via the CBP One app, leaving individuals in precarious conditions on the Mexico side of the border.

How might removals happen?

Last May, Biden’s administration ceased using Title 42, a COVID-19 measure that allowed officials to expel — rather than deport — border detainees without offering asylum. These individuals could later seek asylum in the US.

Currently, authorities use Title 8, which formalizes deportation proceedings and can result in a five-year re-entry ban for deported individuals and other criminal penalties if they attempt re-entry.

Migrant advocates worry about harsh penalties for irregular border crossers under the new suspension. Homeland Security suggests that those failing to meet “credible fear” asylum standards will be actively deported.

Why are restrictions being compared to those imposed under Trump?

Biden’s executive order uses the same legal framework that former President Trump employed in some of his most controversial immigration policies: Section 212(f) of the 1952 Immigration and Nationality Act.

This law permits the president to “suspend the entry of all aliens or any class of aliens” if their entry is deemed harmful to US interests, and to impose necessary entry restrictions.

Trump invoked this law to justify a policy in 2018 that prohibited asylum claims by individuals crossing the border irregularly, later blocked by a federal judge.

In 2017, Trump used the law to enforce a “Muslim ban,” barring travelers and refugees from seven predominantly Muslim countries.

What questions remain?

It remains uncertain how migrants and asylum seekers entering the US irregularly under the new policy will be managed.

Administration officials informed the Associated Press that current funds are insufficient for increased deportations.

The US has an agreement with Mexico to accept up to 30,000 citizens monthly from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela denied US entry.

However, expulsions and deportations could exceed this limit, and the approach for nationals from other countries is unclear.

Will the new restrictions stand?

ACLU lawyers have pledged to contest Biden’s policy in court, as they did with Trump-era policies.

In a social media post, the ACLU stated that Biden’s action “mirrors the Trump administration’s asylum ban,” hinting at a legal battle.

What has the reaction in Washington been?

Due to the policy’s legal uncertainties, even proponents of stricter border controls, like Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, have criticized Biden’s move as a superficial political gesture before the 2024 election.

Johnson remarked, “It’s window dressing. If he really cared about the border, he’d have acted sooner.”

Biden attributes the situation to Congressional Republicans’ failure to enact “meaningful policy reforms,” compelling him to act unilaterally.

Legislation aimed at reforming the asylum system stalled in February and May as it faced staunch opposition in the Republican-controlled House.