Posted on June 11, 2023

Migrants Exploit Loophole in Border App to Enter US Without Asylum Appointments

Mary Ann Martinez, New York Post, June 7, 2023

Migrants have already found a loophole allowing them to hand themseleves over at the border and claim asylum without making an appointment through the CBP One app — which could effectively open the floodgates for thousands more to turn up at the southern border.

The mobile immigration app was trumpeted by the Biden Administration as the only legal pathway for asylum-seekers after Title 42 ended in May. It allows 1,000 people a day to cross into the US and claim asylum.

After failing to secure an appointment on his own, Cesar Segura read the application’s fine print — which states if “language barriers, illiteracy or technical issues,” stop a person from completing the process online, they can just show up to a US port of entry in person and request an interview according to Border Report..

Since he was waved through last week, 400 more migrants have amassed near the San Diego border, according to the report.

{snip}

Segura was interviewed by immigration officials, who said he met the asylum-threshold and allowed him to be released into the country legally to wait and hear if he will ultimately be granted asylum in the US — a process that can take years.

This is not what President Biden promised when he introduced use of the app in January.

In January the administration announced citizens of Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti and Nicaragua would have to “request to come to the United States in a safe and orderly way” by applying from another country, obtaining entry documents and then flying into the US.

President Biden said at the time: “If your application is denied or you attempt to cross into the United States unlawfully, you will not be allowed to enter.”

{snip}

Now, asylum seekers can skip the virtual process and simply present themselves at a port of entry and could be cutting in front of other asylum-seekers who have waiting weeks or months to have an appointment scheduled {snip}

The loophole had been anticipated by leaders in Republican states, who have already sued the Biden over this very issue.

{snip}

As many as 40,000 migrants a month are using the app to schedule appointment and gain access legal entry into the country, Fox News reported.