US President Donald Trump’s hawkish stance against illegal immigrants is something that is well known. During his first presidential term, he had spoken of building a ‘physical wall’ on US-Mexico border, something that did not happen. But after his inauguration on January 20, Trump has been on a streak of making significant decisions. Now, CBP One, a Biden-era app that enabled migrants to file applications legally as asylum seekers, stopped taking applications on January 20. This was the day Donald Trump officially became US president for the second time.
The app was initially designed to facilitate truck inspections and border checkpoints. In 2023, Biden enhanced the ambit of the app to handle requests from asylum seekers and illegal immigrants.
Reuters reported that number of illegal immigrants arrested on US-Mexico border reduced after introduction of the app.
US government’s Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said in a media release that the app had stopped accepting applications from those seeking asylum in the US from January 20, the day Trump officially became US president.
“Previously, aliens were able to submit advanced information and schedule appointments at eight southwest border ports of entry. All appointments have been cancelled. Aliens were notified of the cancellations. CBP remains dedicated to efficiently processing applicants for admission at U.S. ports of entry while upholding U.S. immigration laws,” said CBP in its media release.
There are fears that sudden closure of the app will unfairly inconvenience those genuinely in need of asylum in the US or those coming to US for medical reasons.
The closure has also left hundreds of thousands of migrants in limbo as it is not fully clear what will happen to appointments that were previously booked.
