WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way Thursday for the Trump administration to potentially revive a restrictive asylum policy that limited the number of migrants who could apply for protection at the southern border.
In a 6-3 decision, the justices overturned a lower court ruling that had blocked the practice known as “metering.” The policy, used under both the Obama and first Trump administrations, allowed border officials to turn away asylum seekers at ports of entry when officials determined capacity was insufficient to process additional claims.
The ruling came one day before the publication date of this article. It marks a legal victory for the administration’s broader efforts to tighten immigration controls at the U.S.-Mexico border.
The metering policy originated amid a migrant surge in 2016 under President Barack Obama and was formalized during President Donald Trump’s first term. It permitted officials to cap daily asylum applications at ports of entry. President Joe Biden rescinded it in 2021.
The Trump administration has indicated it may resume the practice if border conditions warrant, though it has not announced immediate implementation details. The policy is separate from broader asylum restrictions enacted early in Trump’s second term.
Justice Samuel Alito, writing for the majority, held that asylum seekers stopped on the Mexican side of the border have not yet “arrived in the United States” under the relevant immigration statutes. “In ordinary speech, no one would say that a person ‘arrives in’ a place … before the person enters that place,” Alito wrote.
The three liberal justices dissented. Justice Sonia Sotomayor warned that the decision would lead to more dangerous irregular crossings and expose migrants to violence. “More people will die,” she wrote in a dissent read from the bench.
Immigrant rights advocates criticized the ruling. Melissa Crow, a lawyer for the plaintiffs in the long-running case brought by the binational organization Al Otro Lado, said it “should sound the alarm for anyone who cares about human rights and the rule of law.”
A Department of Homeland Security official welcomed the decision, calling metering “an important tool to continue securing our southern border.”
The case stemmed from a 2017 lawsuit challenging the practice. Lower courts, including the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, had ruled that federal law requires inspection of asylum seekers who arrive at designated border crossings.
Details on when or how the administration might implement metering remain unclear. Border encounters have declined significantly since Trump took office in January 2025, according to prior administration statements and reports.
The Supreme Court issued the ruling alongside another immigration decision on the same day. The court has backed the administration in several emergency immigration appeals since Trump returned to office.
As of Thursday, no immediate policy announcement had been made by the Department of Homeland Security regarding resumption of the practice.
