Thousands of migrants planning to cross the U.S.-Mexico border as the U.S. prepares to lift its COVID-19 health restrictions are being asked to request asylum online instead of physically at the border.
The mobile app CBP One was launched by the Biden administration in October 2020 and allowed migrants to seek humanitarian exceptions to Title 42 — the COVID-era public health order that allowed federal health officials the authority to turn away asylum-seekers due to the pandemic.
The app also allowed people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela with sponsors in the U.S. to begin the process to get paroled into the country for two years.
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In February, the Biden administration announced that migrants seeking asylum would now be required to use the app to book appointments online with an immigration officer before they can make an asylum claim psychically at the border.
What is CBP One App?
According to CBP, the app was launched on October 28, 2020, and allowed users to book appointments to seek asylum in the U.S. Applications are available in English and Spanish.
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The app cannot be used within the U.S., but users must be near a U.S. border crossing to access its features.
Such GPS features have raised concerns among immigration rights activists, although the federal government has said it will not use the data for surveillance. The app also has facial recognition capabilities.
Since its launch, the app has been plagued with technical issues as thousands of migrants seeking appointments all at once quickly overloaded the system, causing many to be unable to log in, enter their information and select appointment dates.
What Changes Will the App Have Once Title 42 Expires
Beginning May 10, CBP will allow users to book appointments in the app anytime between 12 p.m. and 11 a.m. (EST) the next day, instead of only at 6 a.m. each day in the older version.
Once notified that the appointment has been booked, users will have 23 hours to confirm the appointment.
Beginning May 12, the app will also increase the total number of appointments available each day to around 1,000, CBP said. The agency will also gradually increase the number of appointments available as operations become more efficient.
