The MPP or “Remain in Mexico” policy

The Trump administration disagreed with allowing asylum seekers to reside in the US while they awaited responses to their immigration cases, which could take several months or even more than a year.

Former President Trump stated on multiple occasions that immigrants take advantage of the immigration system to apply for international protection through the political asylum program, but that most applications are rejected because they do not meet the mandatory requirements. However, they previously had the opportunity to reside in the country and obtain an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) while their applications were resolved.

To prevent asylum seekers from working and residing in the US during their immigration processes, the Trump administration, with the approval of the Mexican government, implemented the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) in the 2019, also known as “Remain in Mexico.”

Broadly speaking, this policy states that asylum seekers must remain in Mexico while they receive a response to their immigration cases in the US. This rule sparked a huge controversy among activist and advocacy groups as asylum seekers currently live in temporary shelters and survive on donations and support from humanitarian organizations and surrounding communities.

The Biden government promised to remove this policy

When President Joe Biden launched his political campaign, he emphasized the need to reform and restructure the current immigration system and remove policies like the MPP that, in his opinion, contradict the values of the US as a multicultural and immigrant nation.

During his first day in office, President Biden issued several executive actions necessary to fulfill the promise to reverse Trump’s restrictions on the local immigration system.

Regarding the “Remain in Mexico” policy, the Biden administration suspended new enrollment in this program and stated that it would create a strategy to resettle asylum seekers within the US.

Thousands of asylum seekers are still in limbo

Uncertainty and impatience is growing among asylum seekers currently residing in Mexico under the MPP policy, who state that the Biden government has not clarified what is the next step to take in order to permanently rescind this policy and allow them to enter the US.

However, there are several key points to keep in mind regarding the MPP policy. Let’s see some of them:

• If the Biden administration abruptly lifts this policy, it could unleash an immigration and social crisis within the US.
• There are thousands of pending immigration processes and the local immigration system has substantial delays due to the number of applications that have not been processed after the arrival of the global Coronavirus pandemic.

Therefore, some of the changes to the immigration system may take a considerable period of time to be harmonious and to have a lasting impact. In fact, President Biden recently stated that his government will need at least six months to rescind policies like the MPP.

Adding to that, the immigration system needs more trained personnel, such as asylum officers and immigration judges, in order to expedite processes and decrease the current backlog in immigration cases.

Do you need help with an immigration case?

Although some changes to the immigration system will take time, you can start your immigration process, always following the advice of experienced attorneys. By following expert guidance, you can start to organize the necessary documentation for your particular case and choose the process that best suits your current immigration needs.

If you have any questions about an immigration issue or relating to a case you may have currently in progress, then please don’t hesitate to contact us for a FREE Phone Consultation with one of our expert immigration attorneys.

Simply call Motion Law today at: (202) 918-1799.