The National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) submitted a comment to the Federal Register today calling for the recission of a sweeping new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) rule which requires millions of immigrants to register with the U.S. government and appear in person at DHS offices to submit fingerprints and other biometrics.
NIJC Director of Policy Azadeh Erfani responded to the new rule:
“The new registration requirement is not just a bureaucratic procedural rule but an alarming new surveillance and enforcement tool that could drastically alter the rights of our communities across the United States.
“There is no doubt that this rule will have an unprecedented impact on immigrant communities. By requiring millions of adults and children to provide potentially incriminating information and voluntarily register and submit fingerprints, we expect to see a dramatic spike in detention, deportation, and criminal prosecutions in our communities. This also will open the door for rampant racial profiling of Black, Brown, and Indigenous people this administration will choose to target and require to show proof of registration, regardless of their status.”
NIJC cautions that the registration requirement will likely result in a proliferation of notarios and other fraudulent immigration practitioners who provide misleading information about the new program and charge fees for unnecessary registrations. Individuals and families who believe they are impacted by the new rule should seek legal counsel from an authorized practitioner and review NIJC's guidance to avoid immigration fraud.
The rule applies to people who entered the United States without inspection and certain children who turn 14 years of age, who have been in the United States for 30 days or more. For more information about who may or may not be impacted, see the Immigrant Legal Resource Center’s community resource.