Exploring the Impact of Ending Title 42 on Immigration: What Happens Next?

The United States’ COVID-19 restrictions known as Title 42, which blocked migrants caught at the U.S.-Mexico border from seeking asylum since 2020, will be lifted on Thursday, May 12, 2022. This policy shift has significant humanitarian and political implications, mainly for border cities like San Diego. Migrants caught crossing the border will again be able to request asylum, which includes a process that could take years to resolve. To deter would-be migrants, the Biden administration has plans to issue a new regulation denying asylum to most migrants caught crossing if they passed through another country en route to the U.S. without seeking protection or failing to use other legal pathways. Although this new Biden regulation is designed to toughen access to asylum and quickly deport migrants, it is expected to face legal challenges and may require additional funds from the Congress.

The COVID-19 restrictions, known as Title 42, first implemented in March 2020, allowed border agents to expel many migrants to Mexico. Since then, migrants have been expelled more than 2.7 million times, including multiple crossings; certain nationalities are generally only accepted by Mexico. Although President Joe Biden took office in 2021 and promised to reverse Trump’s restrictive approach, the Biden administration expanded Title 42 as it grappled with record migrant arrests at the U.S.-Mexico border.

U.S. authorities are preparing for a possible increase in crossings as migrants are expected to perceive that they will be allowed in once Title 42 is lifted. Preliminary data provided by Brandon Judd, president of the National Border Patrol Council, indicates that the number of migrants increased by 13% in April with 183,000 migrants apprehended, and over 19,000 migrants are being held in U.S. Customs and Border Protection facilities, which have exceeded capacity by 200 percent.

San Diego and other U.S. border cities are bracing for a possible surge in migrants when Title 42 ends. Increased migrant apprehensions at crossings in San Diego County have been reported, and Joe Anderson, San Diego County Supervisor, wrote a letter requesting rapid federal help before Title 42 ends. Texas Governor, Greg Abbott, resumed busing migrants to Democratic-led cities, blaming President Biden for the rise in crossings, and he seeks to lessen the burden on border cities. New York City Mayor Eric Adams, whose city has received thousands of migrants on buses from Texas, called on the federal government to provide more funding for cities welcoming migrants and to expedite migrant work permits.

The Biden administration’s new regulation will undoubtedly face legal challenges and could require additional funds to hold migrants at the border and quickly deport them. The lifting of the Title 42 restrictions will enable the international community to witness how the U.S. changes its immigration policy. As the world continues to fight an enormous crisis on various levels, responding effectively to individuals in desperate need is a moral responsibility that every government has to shoulder.

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