Supreme Court to hear Trump's border asylum shutdown
Justices took up the challenge to the order that bars people who cross illegally from seeking asylum. A ruling is likely by June 2027.
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Friday to review Proclamation 10888, the order in which President Donald Trump declared an "invasion" at the southern border to stop people from crossing without permission and close off asylum. The justices limited the case, Mullin v. RAICES, to two of the questions the administration raised.
Trump signed the proclamation Jan. 20, 2025. A federal judge in Washington struck it down. On April 24, a divided D.C. Circuit panel upheld that decision, finding the president had overstepped his authority. The plaintiffs are civil rights and legal aid groups, including RAICES, Las Americas and the Florence Project.
At issue is whether a president can use his power to suspend the entry of certain foreigners to cancel a right Congress created by law: the right to ask for asylum.
"The Supreme Court faces a stark choice," said Nicolas Palazzo, interim executive director of the Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center. Lee Gelernt, an attorney with the ACLU, argued that Trump cannot unilaterally strip away protections Congress gave to people fleeing danger.
The outcome matters in Mexico. People seeking U.S. asylum who wait in Mexican cities depend on what the court decides. If it backs the proclamation, the nation's highest court will have validated the shutdown, and Mexico will keep housing people who cannot file a claim on the other side. The plaintiffs say the administration has kept blocking access to asylum despite the rulings.
It is not the first time in a year the court has taken up the issue. Noem v. Al Otro Lado, accepted in November 2025, concerns a cap on how many people can present themselves each day at a port of entry.
Oral arguments are expected in spring 2027. A ruling would come before the court's term ends in late June.
