Biden Admin Expands Remain-in-Mexico Program to San Diego

A bus leaves a closed border facility as migrants subject to a Trump-era asylum restriction program were expected to begin entry into the United States at the San Ysidro border crossing with Mexico, in San Diego, Calif., on Feb. 19, 2021. Mike Blake/Reuters

The Biden administration expanded the Trump-era “remain-in-Mexico” policy to San Diego, California, on Monday, complying with a federal court order even as it continues efforts to end the policy, administration officials told reporters on a call.

Implemented in 2019, the policy, officially called the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), requires asylum seekers to wait in Mexico until their case is heard, instead of being allowed to await their hearings in the United States.