Title 42 came to an end on Thursday, May 11, 2023 and the US authorities will resume the application of Title 8, which has governed immigration policy for decades. Although some believed that things would improve, the White House has already announced that “it will be more difficult” to enter the United States because there will be stricter measures, such as express expulsions.
In three years, under Title 42, which was created in March 2020 due to the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic, people who tried to cross the border from the Mexican side have been expelled more than 2.8 million times. some repeatedly, according to the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) office.
The World Health Organization WHO, in the first days of May, announced the end of the global health emergency. Therefore, Title 42, created for a public health issue, will no longer have a raison d’être or effect: COVID-19 is no longer a threat. From May 12, Title 8 will begin to be applied and here we will tell you what it is about.
WHAT IS TITLE 8?
Title 8 is decades old. It is an immigration provision that allows deportation of anyone who enters the United States without a visa or required documentation. In addition, migrants risk facing more serious penalties and consequences.
“Persons who cross the southwestern border of the United States without authorization or through a legal route, and without a scheduled arrival time at a port of entry, will be presumed ineligible for asylum, unless a waiver applies. exception. If removed, they will be barred from re-entering the country for at least five years and may be subject to criminal prosecution for repeated attempts to enter the country illegally.”, indicates a statement published on May 10 on the website of the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The transition back to Title 8 processing for all people found at the border will be effective immediately on May 12, when the Title 42 order is lifted. As part of the express removals, the number of weekly flights will be increased deportation, doubling or tripling the number of flights for some countries.
WHAT MEASURES WILL BE APPLIED WITH THE CANCELLATION OF TITLE 42?
According to information provided by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of StateThese are some measures that will be applied from May 12:
- Once Title 42 is finalized, the immigration authorities will implement Title 8the measure that in the past has regulated immigration in the US.
- USA too will expand the use of the CBP One app for migrants who are in central and northern Mexico, so that they have access to the appointment calendar and schedule an interview with a migration official. Currently, the platform is open for migrants at the border waiting to be processed. Under the new system, non-citizens will have more time to request appointments and, if assigned an appointment, they will have more time to confirm it.
- DHS and the Department of Justice (DOJ) will publish a final rule for encourage people to use those legal avenues instead of trying to enter the United States between ports of entry without prior authorization along the southwest border.
- From May 12 will be established processing centers on the mainland. Initially, they will be opened in Guatemala and Colombia, but they may be extended to other countries to establish additional facilities. Migrants will have an initial evaluation with specialists to be referred to refugee resettlement programs and other legal routes of arrival in the US.
- The program of humanitarian parolewhich establishes a two-year permit to arrive and remain in the US for Venezuelans, Cubans, Nicaraguans and Haitians, will continue once Title 42 ends. The limit of applications approved per month would remain at 30,000.
- Asylum eligibility will be conditioned for migrants, who are “will implement quickly” once Title 42 ends. This measure establishes that people who evade the established routes available for legal immigration, such as humanitarian parole, will be ineligible for asylum.
- The US government seeks to invest in countries in the region so that “people don’t have to leave their homes in the first place”, indicated the Secretary of State, Antony Blinken. Among the investments he pointed out 4,200 million dollars in funds to the private sector in the north of Central Americawith which they anticipate creating employment, access to financing, training and education for young people.
- Dispatch of Panamanian, Colombian and US authorities to the Darién to improve the security of this region and eradicate criminal smuggling networks.