Immigration policy of the Joe Biden administration

Citizenship Act of 2021 and reversed many of Trump's policies on immigration, such as halting the construction of the Mexico–United States border wall, travel ban, and signed an executive order to reaffirm protections for DACA recipients.

[8] Biden faced criticism from immigrant advocates for extending Title 42, a Trump administration border restriction that arose due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as restarting the use of "expedited removal" of certain Central American families.

[11] Biden also launched the CBP One app in January 2023 to allow migrants to schedule asylum appointments online, which has been used by 813,000 people as of August 2024.

[13][14] On June 23, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a Biden administration immigration policy which involves the deportation of people deemed public safety threats or who were picked up at the border could be enforced.

[16] On June 4, 2024, Biden passed an executive order to shut down the border if illegal crossings reached an average of 2,500 migrants a day in a given week.

[23] On January 20, 2021, soon after his inauguration, Biden halted construction on the Mexico–United States border wall,[2] ending the national emergency declared by the Trump administration in February 2019.

[9] In January 2022 the Biden administration deported Venezuelan migrants to Colombia without a chance to seek asylum after entering the United States from Mexico.

[35] The ruling required the United States government to process all asylum seekers under immigrant law as previous to Title 42's implementation.

[35][36] In response to the ruling, a group of states seeking to keep the policy in place appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, and on December 19, 2022, Chief Justice John Roberts temporarily maintained Title 42 and stayed the decision by Judge Emmet G.

[41][42] In 2020, Biden declared to reverse the actions by the former Trump administration and planned to create a task force designed to specifically reunite and keep separated families back together.

The new procedures will allow any undocumented spouse of good moral character, with some discretionary restrictions, who has been in the country for validated record of at least ten years to apply for parole in place, giving them the legal status needed to subsequently apply for a legal authorization to work, permanent residency and eventual American citizenship.

[45] On 13 November 2024, the USCIS formally issued a directive complying with the U.S. Federal Court Order and shall no longer adjudicate its pending cases.

Under a parole program started in 2022, as many as 30,000 migrants per month could legally fly to the United States from Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, or Haiti.

[55] On February 7, 2021, Biden began the implementation of new guidelines for Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, forbidding or restricting them from seeking out deportations on the basis of "drug based crimes (less serious offenses), simple assault, DUI, money laundering, property crimes, fraud, tax crimes, solicitation, or charges without convictions," as stated by Tae Johnson, the acting director of ICE, instead prioritizing "violent behavior, well-documented gang affiliations," and a record of child abuse, murder, rape, and major drug infractions.

[needs update] On February 27, 2021, the Biden administration moved to expand the government's capacity to house migrant children as it attempts to respond to an increase in border crossings of unaccompanied minors, notably by its re-opening of a temporary influx holding facility in Carrizo Springs, Texas.

[60] In early 2021, the Biden administration issued an executive order restoring an Obama-era policy repealed by Trump that grants asylum to apprehended migrants fleeing domestic or gang violence, allowing them to stay in the United States while their case is being reviewed.

[62] DHS and DOJ finalized a new rule effective after the end of Title 42 to further incentivize individuals to use lawful, safe, and orderly pathways.

[65][66] On June 4, 2024, Biden passed an executive order to shut down the border if illegal crossings reached an average of 2,500 migrants a day in a given week.

[69]After courts struck down Trump's 2019 tightening of the public charge rule, Biden adopted a narrower version in September 2022 that prevents immigrants from becoming citizens if they will be primarily dependent on the government for subsistence.

[71] On March 24, 2023, President Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced tougher immigration policies for people traveling through the Canada-U.S. border after revising the Safe Third Country agreement.

[80] It was negotiated in a bipartisan manner and initially looked like it had the votes to pass until Donald Trump opposed it, citing that it would boost Biden's reelection chances.

"[57] Cotton also argued in a Fox & Friends interview that "A lot of these migrants that are coming, we have no way to screen their backgrounds for either health or for security" in response to the Biden administration, a claim debunked by PolitiFact.

[83] On January 17, 2024, a Republican-led non-binding resolution denouncing the Biden-Harris administration's handling of the U.S. southern border passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 225–187, with 211 Republicans and 14 Democrats supporting it.

[87] On July 25, 2024, the United States House of Representatives voted 220–196 to pass another Republican-led resolution condemning the Biden-Harris administration for their handling of the U.S. southern border.

[88][89] In March 2021, the immigration policy of Joe Biden continued to draw criticism after a series of pictures emerged of a crowded detention facility housing migrant children.

Activists also referenced the Biden-Sanders Unity Task Forces, a group intended to bridge the divide between the moderate and progressive wings of the party, whose recommendations included the end of "mass prosecutions of individuals who cross the border without regards to the facts and circumstances of their cases...that deny individuals their right to a fair hearing and due process," as well as ending the criminalization of illegal immigration and prioritizing services to provide economic and humanitarian aid to undocumented immigrants.

"[4] A Morning Consult poll released in March 2021 found that 49% of American voters disapproved of Joe Biden's immigration policy with only 40% approving.

[97][needs update] As of the spring of 2024, immigration during the Biden administration has been credited as a major driver of economic growth, in part by helping to address the large labor shortage during the COVID-19 recovery as many workers retired or took different jobs.