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Immigration Debrief: May 2026

NIJC flyer with text "Act Now! Tell Congress to Stop ICE and Border Patrol's cruelty and invest in our communities instead"

On Tuesday, May 12th, the Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights hosted a virtual Immigration Briefing with our community partners to cover the most recent updates in immigration.

As always, none of the below should be considered legal advice! The federal policy and legal landscape around immigration is changing rapidly, so any of the information below may soon be out of date. If you’re concerned that any of these updates may impact you, we recommend getting an immigration screening from an attorney. Visit illinoisimmigrationinfo.org/legal to get connected with legal support.

Changes at Immigration Court

Lawful immigration depends on fair and efficient adjudication. But changes under the Trump administration have resulted in delays and the erosion of due process, turning what was once a predictable process into a scene of chaos. 

Immigration Courts are under the purview of the Executive Branch, unlike other federal courts, who operate independently. The Trump administration has manipulated this fact to derail the court from its purpose of impartial adjudication, and is instead denying people a fair trial, and prioritizing rapid detention and deportation.

Over 100 immigration judges have been fired since January 2025, for seemingly political purposes. New judges have been hired that are significantly less qualified: most of them have no immigration experience at all, and many of them are new to the law in general, even though immigration is one of the most complex areas of the law.

All of these changes have created immense challenges to the already challenging role of immigration attorneys. Delays in adjudications have resulted in attorneys having to file federal lawsuits to ensure their clients’ cases are heard, or file habeas petitions to force bond hearings. Effective this month, attorneys are also no longer able to appear remotely in support of their clients at field offices and asylum interviews. 

The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) has also been issuing an unprecedented amount of decisions directing immigration judges to rule against immigrant respondents (see more on that below), which means that we can no longer depend on these judges to be a neutral arbiter of the law.

It’s important to note that these delays are impacting those who are following legal immigration pathways. The administration’s travel ban has resulted in an indefinite pause on adjudication of any cases for people from any of the countries listed (which includes 36 countries that are banned, and 75 countries on indefinite pause). This has resulted in immigrants who are married to U.S. citizens being separated from their families, and people on the brink of citizenship being detained.

In April, the administration also changed their vetting process to require the resubmission of biometric data for pending cases. While this change currently does not require additional action from applicants—who have already submitted their biometric data—the requirement that USCIS resubmit biometric data will result in major backlogs that will further delay applications for adjustment of status, asylum, and naturalization. 

All of this is intentional: the administration is blocking legal immigration pathways—all while massively expanding detention and deportation. 

ICE Enforcement Updates

Over the past month, we have seen an increased presence of ICE agents at courthouses, in violation of Illinois state law. Last week, there were four confirmed detentions at the Domestic Violence Courthouse at 555 W. Harrison, and three other Cook County Courthouses at Maywood, 111th Street, and Grand & Central.

Federal immigration enforcement undermines due process, and prevents people from accessing courts, hospitals, and schools out of fear of being targeted. Federal agents are also prohibited under Illinois law from operating outside courthouses. This is yet another example of ICE and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) defying the law and the right to due process.

If you would like to get involved in providing accompaniment and support to immigrant families appearing at court, you can submit a volunteer interest form with the Sanctuary Working Group.

There is a massive need for increased legal representation for those undergoing immigration cases. Nonprofits and immigration attorneys cannot keep up with the current need, and as a result, people in need of affordable legal service are left without options.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) Recognition and Accreditation program has long been one avenue of addressing this shortage, by allowing people who are not attorneys to go through significant training to gain credentials to practice immigration law, in order to represent people in front of USCIS or the Immigration Court. 

The program was established in the 1950s, and has since allowed thousands of people to practice immigration law. However, in March, the department at the DOJ who approves applications for this program was decimated. All of the staff with power to approve applications were moved out of the office, in effect halting the program.

This seemingly bureaucratic change has a huge impact on immigrants’ ability to access legal representation, as well as the organizations that provide these services. 

Board of Immigration Appeals

The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) is the highest administrative body in the U.S. that provides interpretation and application of immigration law. While their role is to review decisions made by immigration judges as an impartial tribunal, recent decisions from the BIA have brought up concerns about their impartiality. Recent Trump appointees have made decisions that overwhelmingly limit immigrant rights, including the right to due process. 

Here are some of the recent decisions from the BIA: 

  • In 2025, they ruled that immigration judges can deny or dismiss asylum claims without a full evidentiary hearing, if they decide that they have not provided sufficient written evidence to show they meet the basic legal requirements for asylum. Previously, applicants were able to provide testimony and evidence to support their claim to a judge, so this change represents an attack on the right to due process.
  • Under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), asylum seekers must prove that their fear is based on belonging to a social group, race, religion, or political opinion that is being persecuted by the government. In 2026, the BIA ruled that political opinion must be related to the government, and therefore does not include opposition to gangs. This has a huge impact on asylum seekers, as opposition to gangs is one of the primary reasons many people find it necessary to flee their countries to seek asylum. 
  • In 2025 and 2026, the BIA made it harder for gender-based violence survivors to qualify for asylum, claiming that gender or sex itself does not qualify as belonging to a social group. This builds a precedent where no gender-based social group can exist, and denies protection to those who are in danger from their partners or family members.
  • In 2025, a federal judge terminated an order of a removal for a DACA recipient because of their DACA status. Federal attorneys appealed, and the BIA decided in their favor, claiming that DACA status alone was not sufficient to terminate an order of removal. While this decision does not take away protections for DACA recipients, it may make it more difficult for DACA recipients to terminate their cases in immigration court solely on the grounds of having DACA. 
  • In 2026, the BIA ruled that an immigration judge can no longer terminate a case due to improper notice. Previously, if the government did not meet the due process requirement of providing sufficient notice to appear in court, that case could then be terminated by an immigration judge. The BIA reversed this provision, stating that it is not the immigration judge’s job to decide whether the notice was sufficient. 
  • In 2026, the BIA ruled that immigration judges must proceed with adjudication, even if a respondent fails to appear due to improper notice. In this case, a minor was unable to appear at their court appointment, due to a lack of notice. An immigration judge administratively closed the case, but the BIA overruled that decision. Now, children will no longer be able to have their cases administratively closed if they are unable to appear in court—instead, they will have to proceed with orders of removal, if the child is not there to defend themselves.

The horrifying and politically motivated precedents that are being set by the BIA are just one reason that many advocates are continuing to call for an independent immigration court system. 

DHS Funding

On April 30th, the Department of Homeland Security shutdown ended with no additional funding for immigration enforcement—a historic first! Thank you to all of you who called your Congressional representatives. 

In the meantime, however, the U.S. Senate started a budget reconciliation process—circumventing the appropriate Congressional funding process—which would provide an additional $72 billion for ICE and CBP for the remainder of Trump’s term. There are no guard rails for these funds.

The House will mark up the bill next week, and then it will be sent back to the Senate, with the goal of passing it before Memorial Day. We encourage you to contact your Congressional representatives and ask them to vote to withhold additional funds to the agencies that have ignored our laws and terrorized our neighbors—see the Calls to Action section below for resources to contact your reps!

Good News!

Last month, a federal appeals court ruled that President Trump’s proclamation attempting to shut down asylum claims at the border is unlawful.

The Trump administration made a proclamation on their first day in office that allowed the president to deport asylum seekers who cross the border without allowing them to seek protection as required by Congress. The proclamation claimed an “invasion” of asylum seekers as justification for denying asylum protections for people who are at risk of persecution.

This decision reaffirms that a president cannot unilaterally eliminate the Constitutionally-protected right to seek asylum. The fight to protect asylum continues, but this win is a necessary step in ensuring access to asylum continues past this administration!

In other good news, a federal appeals court rejected the Trump administration’s mandatory detention policy, ruling that ICE does not have the right to detain people without chance of bond. We are grateful for the federal appeals court for standing up for the right to due process.

Calls to Action

There are several opportunities this month to make your voice heard by your city and federal representatives, and to support immigrants and refugees in our city!

For more on how you can support immigrants and refugees in our communities, visit the CIRR Protecting Immigrant Rights page and Illinois Immigration Info to find out how you can get more involved.

We also have a number of trainings and workshops coming up for both immigrants and members of the community who want to learn how to support immigrants in their community:

  • Virtual Train the Trainer: Family Emergency Planning
    • Wednesday, June 10th, 12–1PM (English) 
    • Wednesday, June 10th, 12–1PM (Spanish)
    • Register: bit.ly/CIRRTrainer
  • Virtual Immigration Workshop: Understanding Your Status

Learn more about these and other upcoming events at 40thward.org/CIRREvents!

The next immigration briefing will be on Tuesday, June 9th at 1pm! Register at bit.ly/CIRRBriefing.

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