Asylum Claims Under the Trump Administration
Data indicates that President Donald Trump’s administration denied over 440,000 asylum claims, as reported by the Washington Post. Many of these claims appear to stem from economic migrants rather than individuals fleeing violence or persecution.
A recent analysis conducted by the Post revealed that immigration judges, operating under the Justice Department, ordered the removal of over 440,000 asylum seekers during Trump’s first 19 months in office. This figure surpasses the total denials from the previous eight years combined.
These removal orders enable ICE to promptly deport migrants back to their countries. Moreover, a report from TRACReports.org highlights that Trump’s immigration judges approved only 5 percent of asylum requests in 2026, a significant drop from the 50 percent approval rate in September 2023. This low approval rate translates to roughly 800 approvals and 15,000 denials each month.
Additionally, officials have been addressing the considerable backlog of asylum claims, which was exacerbated by President Joe Biden’s more welcoming policies. The backlog reached 3.7 million in 2024 but has since decreased to below 3.1 million, consequently reducing the duration that claimants can legally stay and work in the U.S.
The swift removals of migrants potentially help American workers by increasing their wages and lowering housing costs. This aligns with evidence suggesting that many migrants who arrived during the Biden administration weren’t necessarily fleeing political threats. Instead, many seemed to be taking advantage of the asylum loopholes created under Biden’s leadership, specifically through the actions of Alejandro Mayorkas, the border chief.
Biden’s administration had released migrants proclaiming their intention to seek asylum while also providing them with work permits, enabling them to start jobs and pay back debts owed to smugglers who facilitated their entry into the U.S.
A 2026 survey conducted by pro-migration groups revealed that only about one in 27 migrants claimed they met the essential criteria for U.S. political asylum. Surprisingly, just 3.7 percent of those surveyed indicated they were fleeing due to their political opinions, while 54 percent cited economic reasons as their main motivation for seeking work in the U.S.
The Washington Post article included a story of Grace Calero, a college graduate from Ecuador, who arrived in the U.S. on a tourist visa in 2023. Despite being among the higher earners in her country, Calero reported receiving death threats due to her consulting work with local politicians. After changing her contact information and social media presence, she still continued to receive threatening letters. In 2024, she applied for asylum, with her daughter joining the claim the following year. It’s worth noting that asylum seekers without a visa or who overstay their visas are classified as unauthorized immigrants.
In Florida, Calero found work with a marketing firm but ended up detained during a police investigation related to an incident where her car was damaged by another undocumented migrant. Both she and her daughter were released from ICE custody after a surge of media attention in Ecuador.
However, the Washington Post article appeared to downplay the larger economic and human toll of Biden’s asylum policies. For instance, in 2023, it was reported by Breitbart News that the U.N. Missing Migrants Project estimated almost 349 people went missing or died while attempting to cross Caribbean waters that year, nearly double the figure from the prior year.
This tragic tally marks the highest since the agency began its tracking in 2014, and it may not fully capture the total losses of lives. Reports indicate that countless remains of unidentified migrants may lie at the bottom of the Caribbean Sea.
Furthermore, some individuals seeking asylum under Biden have faced serious legal issues, including charges for serious crimes, including homicide, or involvement in fatal accidents.
According to Stephen Miller, a Trump administration official, the lives saved through stricter border control measures are significant, with claims of thousands of lives being protected.
