Humanitarian Protection

The United States has long-been a beacon of hope for individuals around the world seeking protection and refuge. Our immigration policies must continue to protect those who need it. Learn more about how America can continue to provide humanitarian protection to those in times of crisis.

Recent Features

An Overview of U.S. Refugee Law and Policy

Before admission to the United States, each refugee must undergo an extensive interviewing, screening, and security clearance process. They go on to contribute to our communities and our economy.

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All Humanitarian Protection Content

  • Special Report

Detained, Deceived, and Deported: Experiences of Recently Deported Central American Families

Publication Date: 
May 18, 2016
First-hand accounts from Central American women and their family members reveal the dangerous and bleak circumstances of life these women and their children faced upon return to their home countries...
  • Special Report

Understanding the Central American Refugee Crisis

Publication Date: 
February 1, 2016
The unprecedented levels of crime and violence that have overwhelmed the Northern Triangle countries in recent years have produced a refugee situation for those directly in the line of fire, making...
  • Special Report

Giving the Facts a Fighting Chance: Addressing Common Questions on Immigration

Publication Date: 
December 14, 2015

Americans pride themselves on belonging to a nation of immigrants. In fact, many Americans celebrate not only the traditions of the United States, but the traditions of the countries from which...

  • Special Report

Learning from Our Past: The Refugee Experience in the United States

Publication Date: 
November 25, 2015
This report provides background on the refugee experience in the United States, including welcoming and exclusionary responses, the impacts of these disparate reactions, and lessons to consider in...
  • Special Report

A Humane Approach Can Work: The Effectiveness of Alternatives to Detention for Asylum Seekers

Publication Date: 
July 22, 2015

For decades, the U.S. refugee protection system has been a symbol of the nation’s generosity and openness to the world’s persecuted. Yet since Congress’ enactment of the Illegal Immigration Reform...

  • Special Report

A Guide to Children Arriving at the Border: Laws, Policies and Responses

Publication Date: 
June 26, 2015
This Guide provides information about the tens of thousands of children—some travelling with their parents and others alone—who have fled their homes in Central America and arrived at our southern...
  • Special Report

No Childhood Here: Why Central American Children are Fleeing Their Homes

Publication Date: 
July 1, 2014
U.S. and regional response must realize that the majority of these children have significant protection needs.
  • Special Report

Mexican and Central American Asylum and Credible Fear Claims: Background and Context

Publication Date: 
May 21, 2014
This paper addresses these issues, summarizes the concerns and experiences of numerous advocates in the field, and concludes that the credible fear and asylum process poses obstacles for applicants...
  • Special Report

Deportation in the Time of Cholera: DHS's Mixed Response to Haiti's Earthquake

Publication Date: 
May 26, 2011
The dramatic announcement on May 17, 2011 that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) would extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for another eighteen months to Haitians, including those who...
  • Special Report

An Assessment of DNA Testing for African Refugees

Publication Date: 
October 21, 2010

In March 2008, the Bureau of Population, Migration and Refugees (PRM)—the Department of State agency that processes refugees abroad—halted its family...

  • Advocacy

Letter Demands Greater Transparency For Cameroonian Immigrants Held in Immigration Detention

July 21, 2020

The American Immigration Council signed on to a letter calling on Congress to demand greater transparency from Immigration and Customs Enforcement regarding Cameroonian and other Black...

  • Advocacy

Letter Demands ICE Release Families Detained During COVID-19 Pandemic

July 17, 2020

The American Immigration Council joined a letter to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security calling on the release of all families held at all three Immigration and Customs...

  • Advocacy

Comments Opposing Proposed Rule That Would Impose Bars to Asylum and Rewrite Asylum Law

July 15, 2020
The American Immigration Council submitted these comments opposing bars to asylum proposed by the Trump administration.
  • FOIA Litigation

Council Sues Government to Compel Release of Records about ‘Remain in Mexico' Program

This Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit seeks to uncover information about the Migration Protection Protocols (MPP)—also known as the "Remain in Mexico" program.
  • Advocacy

Council and WilmerHale File Administrative Challenge to Burdensome Records Requirement for Employment Authorization

May 12, 2020

The Council and the law firm WilmerHale filed a petition with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) challenging the requirement that asylum seekers...

  • Amicus Briefs

Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center v. Wolf

Publication Date: 
January 31, 2020

The American Immigration Council and the American Immigration Lawyers Association submitted an amicus brief in Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center v. Wolf, a case filed by the American...

  • Advocacy

Comments on Proposed Restrictions to Asylum Procedures and Bars to Eligibility

January 23, 2020

The Trump administration has proposed amending regulations that affect asylum eligibility. If implemented, the regulations would shut America’s doors to many of those most in need of protection....

  • FOIA

Demanding Records About the Migrant Protection Protocols Program

The Migrant Protection Protocols—also known as Remain in Mexico—raises alarming safety and due process questions. However, the government has kept information on how the program is being implemented.
  • Legal Resources and Litigation

Statement for the House Committee on Homeland Security “Examining the Human Rights and Legal Implications of DHS’s ‘Remain in Mexico’ Policy.”

November 21, 2019
The American Immigration Council submitted a written statement to the House Committee on Homeland Security for a November 19, 2019 hearing on the “Examining the Human Rights and Legal Implications of DHS’s ‘Remain in Mexico’ Policy.”
  • FOIA Litigation

FOIA Lawsuit Demands Information About CBP Officers’ Role in Credible Fear Interview Process

This lawsuit seeks to uncover information about the government’s troubling new practice of employing U.S. Custom and Border Protection officers to screen asylum seekers.
  • Blog

Congress Introduces Sweeping Immigration Reform Bill ‘DIGNIDAD Act’ to Address Systematic Challenges

May 25, 2023

On May 23, members of Congress introduced what has sadly become an increasingly rare bit of legislation; a comprehensive immigration reform bill aimed at addressing large-scale systematic problems...

  • Blog

Border Patrol Custody Is Already Dangerous and This Florida Lawsuit Is Making It Worse

May 19, 2023

One of the biggest concerns after the end of the Title 42 policy of mass expulsion at the U.S.-Mexico border was that large numbers of people would cross in the hours and days afterward. When the...

  • Blog

Finding a Pro Bono Immigration Attorney Is Harder Than Ever

May 19, 2023

If you are an asylum seeker in the United States who cannot afford an attorney, your chance of finding pro bono assistance is now slimmer than ever. As the number of cases in immigration court has...

  • Blog

How To Seek Asylum (Under Biden’s Asylum Transit Ban), In 15 Not-At-All-Easy Steps

May 11, 2023

Back in February, when the Biden administration proposed a new regulation that would essentially restrict the vast majority of border crossers from qualifying for asylum, we broke it down with a...

  • Blog

GOP’s Extreme Border Bill Rejects Solutions and Embraces Ending Asylum

April 19, 2023

On Monday, April 17, the House GOP introduced its first comprehensive border bill of the 118th Congress. The bill comes after months of disagreement within the caucus surrounding legislative...

  • Blog

Biden’s Reviving Phone-Booth Asylum. Here’s Why It Was a Disaster

April 10, 2023

The Biden administration is yet again turning to the Trump playbook as it tries to slap together a border crackdown to succeed the end of the Title 42 “public health” order next month. The latest...

  • Blog

A Groundswell of Opposition to Biden’s Asylum Transit Ban

April 6, 2023

The public has spoken: an asylum transit ban was bad policy during the Trump era, and it’s bad policy now. On February 21, the Biden administration released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking laying...

  • Blog

Deadly Detention Center Fire Is a Reminder: Both the US and Mexico Are Failing Migrants

March 29, 2023

On Monday night, 39 migrants died, and another 27 were seriously injured, in a fire in a Mexican detention center in Ciudad Juarez. The migrants—most of them from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras...

  • Blog

US and Canada Expand Safe Third Country Agreement in Another Move to Limit Asylum

March 29, 2023

The United States and Canada announced the expansion of their Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA) last week during President Biden’s visit to Canada. Under U.S. law, a so-called “Safe Third...

  • Blog

Ukrainians Get a Temporary Reprieve Instead of a Permanent Fix

March 15, 2023

The Biden administration announced on Monday that it would grant another year of temporary legal status for some Ukrainians who fled the Russian invasion for the United States before April 25,...

  • Press Release

Tragic Loss of Life Is a Stark Reminder of the Need for a Humane Immigration System

June 28, 2022
At least 50 people were found dead yesterday in a tractor-trailer near Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio. This tragedy appears to be the deadliest migrant-smuggling operation in U.S. history, following the deadliest year on record for the border.
  • Press Release

The End of Title 42: A Long-Overdue Step Toward Rebuilding our Asylum System

April 1, 2022
The Biden administration announced today plans to end a border expulsions policy known as Title 42 by May 23. This policy allowed the U.S. government to turn people away at the U.S southern border over 1.7 million times in the past two years under the guise of protecting the country from COVID-19.
  • Press Release

Asylum Changes from the Biden Administration Will Not Ensure Due Process as Required by U.S. Asylum Law

March 24, 2022
The American Immigration Council and the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) responded to today’s release of an interim final rule related to asylum procedures with concern. The rule is being published in draft form and is slated to take effect in 60 days, however additional public comment is being accepted for 60 days.
  • Press Release

One Year In: The Biden Administration’s Promises on Immigration Remain Unfulfilled

January 19, 2022
President Biden announced a welcoming and inclusive vision for immigration in a legislative proposal and a series of executive actions signed on his first day in office. But one year into Biden’s presidency, his promises on immigration remain unfulfilled.
  • Press Release

Court Does Not Expedite Work Permit Renewals for Asylum Seekers, Leaving Thousands Without Work or at Risk of Losing Jobs

December 23, 2021
A federal court denied preliminary relief in a lawsuit challenging USCIS's extreme delays and failure to process work permit renewals for asylum seekers. The judge declined to order USCIS to process work permit renewal applications within the 180-day automatic extension of employment authorization.
  • Press Release

Lawsuit Seeks Answers to Privacy and Data Risks Associated with the CBP One App

December 21, 2021
The American Immigration Council filed a FOIA lawsuit against CBP requesting information about the agency’s implementation of CBP One— an app designed to help process individuals entering the United States including asylum seekers—that has raised concerns among immigration and privacy advocates.
  • Press Release

U.S. Workers Sue USCIS for Unlawful Delays in Renewal of Employment Authorizations

November 11, 2021
Five workers in the United States filed a nationwide class action lawsuit today challenging unlawful log-jam and extreme delays at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services that have resulted in the government’s failure to process the work authorization renewals for asylum seekers.
  • Press Release

Recission of MPP Is a Step Toward Ending a Humanitarian Catastrophe and Restoring Dignity to the Asylum Process

October 29, 2021
The Biden administration announced that DHS will issue a new memo to formally terminate the Migrant Protection Protocols. It is an important step towards ensuring that the MPP program never returns.
  • Press Release

The Reimplementation of MPP is Betrayal of President Biden’s Campaign Promises

October 15, 2021
The Biden administration announced today that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security plans to revive and reimplement the Migrant Protection Protocols by mid-November. The Council believes that plans to restart the program is a betrayal of the president’s campaign promises and a sign that this administration is failing to reenvision border management and the way that we treat asylum seekers.
  • Press Release

Citing Factual and Legal Flaws, Groups Urge DHS to Acknowledge Systematic Barriers in Second Memo Terminating MPP

October 14, 2021
The American Immigration Council and 29+ organizations urged DHS—in a letter offering factual and legal recommendations on how to end the Migrant Protection Protocols—to fully and forcefully acknowledge the humanitarian and legal catastrophe caused by MPP.
  • Press Release

Biden's Executive Action Will Not Make Border More Orderly or Secure

June 5, 2024
The U.S. government needs to be able to quickly and fairly sort out migrants who have a valid asylum claim, but instead of investing in U.S. ports of entry, immigration courts, or more options for legal migration, the order focuses on harsh and arbitrary turnbacks.
  • Blog

Government’s Move to Terminate Flores Agreement Could Leave Immigrant Children Unprotected

May 22, 2024

The Department of Justice asked a court to partially terminate the decades-old agreement that protects the rights of immigrant children earlier this month. The government argues that the Flores...

  • Blog

Biden Proposes Rule to Quickly Remove Certain Migrants During Initial Screening Process at the Border

May 13, 2024

On May 9, the Biden administration proposed a rule that would allow asylum officers to consider and impose certain restrictions or “bars” to the initial asylum screening process at the border....

  • Fact Sheet

The Biden Administration’s Proposed Regulation On Asylum Bars: An Analysis

Publication Date: 
May 10, 2024
On May 9, 2024, the Department of Homeland Security announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, published here, that would allow asylum officers to reject a subset of asylum seekers earlier in the...
  • Press Release

Civil Rights Groups File Lawsuit to Block Iowa's Unconstitutional SF 2340

May 9, 2024
Civil rights groups filed a federal lawsuit today to block SF 2340, one of the worst, most far-reaching immigration laws ever passed in the state of Iowa.
  • Blog

Volunteers Needed for Credible Fear Interview Preparation in CBP Hotline

May 3, 2024

When someone crosses the border to seek asylum in the United States, they often first go through a credible fear interview (CFI). An asylum officer evaluates a person’s fear of returning to their...

  • FOIA

Seeking Data from the Department of State on the Cities Where Refugees Have Resettled

The Department of State used to provide data on refugee resettlement at a city level until 2018. Unfortunately, the absence of such data has caused difficulties for local communities who want to help and welcome refugees. To address this issue, the Council requested the Department of State to share this information through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) on April 25.
  • Blog

The Federal Government Is Cutting Aid for Migrant Shelters and Services. What Will States Do Now?

April 9, 2024

After months of contentious debate and near government shutdowns, Congress approved appropriations for fiscal year 2024, which President Biden quickly signed into law. The spending package...

  • Fact Sheet

The Use of Parole Under Immigration Law

Publication Date: 
April 8, 2024
Parole under immigration law is very different than in the criminal justice context. In the immigration context, parole facilitates certain individuals’ entry into and permission to temporarily...
  • Practice Advisories

Practice Alert: Padilla v. ICE and Delays in Credible Fear Interviews

Publication Date: 
March 22, 2024
The practice alert explains the scope of a class settlement agreement in Padilla v. ICE that provides protections for detained asylum seekers who face prolonged delays before receiving their credible fear interviews.

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