Exceptions to Circumvention of Lawful Pathways Rule

Exceptions to the Circumvention of Lawful Pathways Rules

The rule makes the right to seek asylum conditioned upon being denied asylum in a country the individual traveled through on his or her way to the United States, assuming the country is a signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention  or the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees. This presumption of ineligibility is rebuttable if a noncitizen:

• Received prior authorization to present at the border pursuant to a DHS-approved parole process;
• Presented at a port of entry at the scheduled time or is able to demonstrate that it was not possible to use the CBP One application;
• Received a final denial decision for asylum in a transit country (or a member of the noncitizen’s family did);
• Suffered an “acute medical emergency; faced an imminent and extreme threat to life or safety, such as an imminent threat of rape, kidnapping, torture, or murder; or satisfied the definition of ‘victim of a severe form of trafficking in persons’ provided in 8 CFR 214.11” (or a member of the noncitizen’s family did);
• Reports other exceptional circumstances; or
• Is an unaccompanied child.

To rebut the presumption of asylum ineligibility on the basis of a technical CBP One application failure or because of an imminent threat, the asylum seeker must demonstrate a preponderance of evidence. This places a significant

burden on asylum seekers who in many cases will not have access to counsel.