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The Trump Administration proposed a measure that will prevent asylum seekers from obtaining a work permit in the U.S.
The measure, announced this Friday in a statement from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), aims to reduce “the incentive to file frivolous, fraudulent, or unfounded asylum applications by modifying the filing and eligibility requirements for foreigners seeking employment authorization based on a pending asylum application.”
"For too long, a fraudulent asylum claim has been an easy way to work in the United States, saturating our immigration system with baseless applications," said a DHS spokesperson in the statement.
"We propose a comprehensive reform of the asylum system to enforce the rules and reduce the backlog inherited from the previous administration. Foreigners do not have the right to work while we process their asylum applications. The Trump administration is strengthening background checks for asylum applicants and restoring the integrity of asylum and work authorization processes," he adds.
Open for public consultation for the next 60 days, if approved, the measure would pause the acceptance of work permit applications when the average processing time at the agency exceeds 180 days.
The pause could extend for a prolonged period, possibly many years.
Similarly, it would extend to 365 days the time that asylum seekers must wait before they are eligible to apply for a work permit.
According to Efe, over 1.4 million affirmative asylum applications are pending evaluation by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
In this regard, immigration law specialist Willy Allen, told the independent media Café Fuerte, that this is “another cruel effort by this government to humiliate and create more anxiety within the immigrant community.”
"This new policy will only create suffering and will not alleviate the asylum review process at all."
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