A coalition of immigrant advocacy organisations and labour unions has filed a lawsuit challenging new United States Citizenship and Immigration Services policies that allegedly impose fresh barriers on asylum seekers and Temporary Protected Status holders, including a newly created annual asylum fee.
The lawsuit challenges four USCIS policies implementing portions of the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which the groups say could strip tens of thousands of immigrants of the ability to work, support their families and remain safely in the United States.
The plaintiffs include the Venezuelan Association of Massachusetts, the National TPS Alliance, the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project, the Service Employees International Union, and 32BJ SEIU. They are represented by Democracy Forward, the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, and ASAP.
At the centre of the case is USCIS’s decision to reject pending asylum applications and terminate work permits where applicants fail to pay the new annual asylum fee.
The plaintiffs argue that the policy is unlawful because applicants are not given sufficient notice that the fee is due, are not provided a grace period for late payment and have no meaningful way to appeal a rejection.
They warned that the policy could permanently prevent otherwise eligible asylum seekers from pursuing protection, immediately end their work authorisation and expose them to detention and deportation to countries where they fear persecution.
The lawsuit also challenges USCIS’s alleged elimination of a decades-old rule requiring the agency to process initial work permit applications for asylum seekers within 30 days. The plaintiffs say the change was made without giving the public notice or an opportunity to comment as required by law.
The coalition is also challenging new employment authorisation rules affecting TPS holders. According to the lawsuit, USCIS unlawfully applied recent changes to the duration of TPS work permits retroactively and in a way that cuts off work authorisation for people who remain lawfully protected under TPS.
The plaintiffs said the policy places healthcare workers, janitors, airport workers, engineers, property service workers and many others at risk of losing their jobs, health insurance and financial stability despite continuing to qualify for humanitarian protection.
Director of the Venezuelan Association of Massachusetts, Carlos Martin Medina, said the policies were coming at a particularly difficult time for Venezuelan families, especially after a recent earthquake in Venezuela left many families in crisis.
He said many members of the association were trying to support relatives displaced from their homes, but now faced the risk of losing the ability to work lawfully in the United States and send assistance to loved ones.
National TPS Alliance Coordinator, Jose Palma, said TPS holders depend on their jobs to support themselves and their families, adding that the lawsuit was filed to protect their legal right to work.
“TPS holders, like all working people, depend on our jobs to put food on the table for ourselves and our families. The Trump Administration is trying to make our lives impossible by preventing us from working. But the law guarantees TPS holders the right to work, and we are filing this litigation today to protect that right for TPS holders and other immigrants who are under attack by the Trump Administration,” Palma said.
An NTPSA member identified as Isaac, who is featured in the case, said he works to support himself and his four United States citizen children, warning that losing his employment authorisation would make it difficult to pay his mortgage and other bills.
Co-Executive Director of the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project, Swapna Reddy, said the government was using the annual asylum fee as a pretext to push people out of the asylum system and out of work.
According to her, asylum seekers could lose their applications and work permits over late payments even where they did not receive notice that the fee was due.
An ASAP member identified as Richard, who is also featured in the case, said immigrants trying to comply with the law could still lose their cases if they miss payment notices sent by mail.
He said his asylum application was filed several years ago and cannot be managed online, meaning he depends entirely on letters that may arrive late, get lost or never reach him.
SEIU Secretary-Treasurer, Rocío Sáenz, said the union joined the lawsuit because the policies would rob workers of permission to work and make it harder for immigrants to build a life in America.
President of 32BJ SEIU, Manny Pastreich, said the law allows TPS holders to work as long as they have valid status, arguing that the administration’s attempt to prematurely end work permits for Salvadoran TPS recipients disregards the rights and needs of affected workers.
He said many of the workers provide essential services for office workers, airport customers and other members of the public.
Legal Director at Democracy Forward, Brian Netter, said Congress has long recognised that people fleeing persecution and those unable to safely return to their home countries deserve humanitarian protections under US law.
He accused the administration of trying to dismantle those protections through unlawful agency action, saying the challenged policies would deprive people of their ability to work, support their families and pursue legal protection without basic due process.
The coalition said asylum seekers and TPS holders contribute billions of dollars to the US economy annually while filling essential roles in industries facing labour shortages.
They warned that the challenged policies would harm not only affected immigrants, but also employers, co-workers and local economies that depend on their contributions.
The case is Venezuelan Association of Massachusetts et al. v. USCIS et al. The Democracy Forward legal team includes Sean Ouellette, Jennie Kneedler, Steven Bressler and Brian Netter.
The post “Immigrant Groups Sue USCIS Over New Annual Asylum Fee” — Say Policy Could Terminate Work Permits, Block Asylum Claims Without Notice appeared first on TheNigeriaLawyer.
