Kristi Noem says asylum claims stay paused until full vetting is complete

WASHINGTON, DC: Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced Sunday, November 30, that the administration will not restart asylum claims until every applicant is fully vetted under the new standards set by President Donald Trump. 

The announcement follows the administration’s confirmation on Friday, November 28, that it has paused all asylum rulings. That came just one day after president said he would halt migration from developing nations.

What Kristi Noem reported on the asylum pause

During her appearance on Meet the Press, Noem said the administration has halted all asylum cases to protect national security and to address what she described as “chaos” left by previous asylum policies. She said, “The president is absolutely determined to stop all processes at this point in time from third world countries.” She emphasized that immigration officials need enough time to “go through these individuals, know they are here for the right intentions, and should even be in our country to begin with.”

Noem called the pause an important step to protect Americans. She argued that many of the countries asylum seekers come from cannot provide reliable information about their citizens. “These third world countries don’t have stable governments. They can’t tell us who these people are. That’s really the consequence of what we are seeing unfold with the violence on our streets,” she added

Two major steps Kristi Noem said must be completed before asylum resumes

Noem said that years of weak enforcement under the previous administration allowed people to enter the asylum system without proper screening. She argued that poor vetting, combined with foreign governments unable to provide reliable records, posed a national security risk and encouraged abuse of the asylum program. Under the new policy, she said, stronger background checks and stricter reviews of origins would be required for every applicant.

She explained that the administration will not restart asylum claims until two major steps are completed: clearing the existing backlog and ensuring every applicant currently in the system is vetted under the new standards. “It will start when we know we have dealt with the backlog that we have,” Noem said. She added that people with legitimate claims now wait years because the previous administration let too many applicants enter the system without even completing proper paperwork.

Anyone who does not meet the new standards “should be removed immediately,” Noem said. Only after the backlog is cleared and the vetting system is strengthened will asylum claims resume—and only for those deemed truly eligible.