DHS Strengthens Integrity in Nation’s Immigration System, Returns to Commonsense Legal Immigration Levels

WASHINGTON — Under the leadership of President Donald J. Trump, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, and Director Joseph Edlow, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has taken critical steps to restore sanity and integrity to our immigration system. Since Jan. 20, 2025, USCIS has closed loopholes and implemented critically needed changes to better protect American communities and workers.

"The distinction between legal and illegal immigration becomes meaningless when both can destroy a country at its foundation, "said USCIS Spokesman Matthew Tragesser. "Unchecked mass migration floods the American labor market, depressing wages and taking jobs away from hardworking Americans, while straining healthcare, education, and housing systems. The Trump administration continues to execute policies to ensure legal immigration advances American interest

Court Order on Annual Asylum Fee Notices

On Oct. 30, 2025, the United States District Court for the District of Maryland issued an order in Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project v. United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, et al., SAG-25-03299 (D. Md.), temporarily staying the Annual Asylum Fee (AAF) implementation provisions by USCIS as provided in the notice titled "USCIS Immigration Fees Required by HR-1 Reconciliation Bill" and published in the Federal Register (90 FR 34511 (FRN)) on July 22, 2025. USCIS strongly disagrees with the Court's order but will follow its terms pending possible further judicial review.

The FRN provided information about how DHS would effectuate the mandatory AAF for fiscal year 2025 and subsequent years. It specified that an

USCIS Received 35,000 Applications for Homeland Defenders, Most for Any Job in Agency History

USCIS has made hundreds of job offers and is recruiting even more Homeland Defenders

WASHINGTON – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services today announced that since starting its hiring campaign for Homeland Defenders on Sept. 30, the agency has received an overwhelming 35,000-plus applications—the most for any position in agency history. The agency says its aggressive social media campaign is attracting Americans to join USCIS and restore integrity to the nation's immigration system after four years of Biden's border chaos.

USCIS is cutting bureaucratic red tape to hire fiercely dedicated, America-first patriots to serve on the frontlines and hold the line against terrorists, criminal aliens, and bad actors intent on infiltrating our