Statement on the Termination of the CBP One App and the Future of U.S. Asylum Policy
This past Monday, January 20, 2025, immediately following his inauguration, President Donald Trump signed executive orders to “enhance security” at the southern border, including the termination of the CBP One app.
This app had previously allowed nearly one million migrants to schedule appointments at designated ports of entry, providing a legal pathway to seek asylum in the United States.
Respond Crisis Translation has, from the launch of the CBP One App, consistently criticized the app for creating significant barriers to asylum and violating international law. The app forced asylum seekers to navigate a complex and flawed digital system riddled with unintelligible machine mistranslations while being stranded in dangerous conditions at the border, often without access to phones, chargers, wifi, phone service or electricity required to make appointments on the app. The app was the only legal pathway to asylum, which violates the principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits returning individuals to places where they face persecution, violence, or harm. It also violated the principle of non-penalization, where states are barred from penalizing asylum-seekers and refugees solely because they have entered a country irregularly under certain conditions. CBP One also violated the fundamental right to qualified, trauma-informed translation and interpretation.
While the CBP One app was ineffective to the point of cruelty, its sudden termination without an alternative will exacerbate the suffering of migrants. Tens of thousands of people are now left in limbo or are being deported as we speak, and are forced to endure exploitation, violence, and uncertain futures as they languish at the border or are sent home. Trump’s broader anti-immigrant policies, including the reinstatement of the "Remain in Mexico" program and expanded deportations, are in violation of international law.
We call for asylum processes that respect international obligations, provide timely access to protection, uphold the dignity of all migrants, and provide compassionate, trauma-informed, translation and interpretation performed by qualified practitioners. We stand aside all who fight for the abolition of borders and prisons. We urge policymakers to implement compassionate and rights-based immigration policies.
Respond Crisis Translation rejects borders and all barriers to asylum, safety and dignity. We will continue to defend and support asylum seekers and to continue to struggle for the abolition of borders.
Our team mobilizes around the clock to facilitate the work of over 600+ partner nonprofits supporting asylum seekers and refugees, as well as directly supporting tens of thousands of individual asylum seekers each year. We are working around the clock to scale up massively in anticipation of the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant policies which will target millions.
We are here to support all asylum seekers, refugees and migrants in need of language access support – if you are in need of translation or interpretation, reach out to us
Leila Lorenzo
Policy Director
