The United States facilitates the work permit process for asylum seekers

By Red Latina

The United States Government today announced a measure that makes it easier for some asylum seekers to obtain a work permit after the unprecedented number of more than 300,000 arrests of undocumented immigrants was completed in December.

Starting today, applicants for work permits in the asylum pending, deferred removal, and other categories can submit their requests with Form I-765 online.

In this process, applicants must first create a free account with the Immigration and Citizenship Service (USCIS), which offers various aids, including the ability to communicate directly with that agency.

For its part, the Customs and Border Protection Office (CBP) has reported that last month it made a total of 301,625 arrests of undocumented migrants, of which 251,487 occurred on the southern border from Texas to California.

Since fiscal 2023 began last October and through December 31, CBP has made 863,929 arrests, compared to 205,691 in the same fiscal 2022.

Of all the arrests in December, 250,091 were made under Title 8, by which border authorities consider a foreigner “unacceptable,” and another 51,534 responded to the use of the Title 42 sanitary measure.

Last December, CBP made 4,846 arrests of Venezuelans, compared to 5,834 the previous month, while the number of Cuban arrests dropped from 129 in November to 89 in December.

To apply for an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) based on your pending asylum application under the (c)(8) category, you may file a Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, 150 days after you file your asylum application. You are not eligible to receive an EAD until your asylum application has been pending for at least another 30 days, for a total of 180 days, commonly referred to as the 180-Day Asylum EAD Clock.