SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — Migrants looking to set up interviews to start their asylum cases at the border can do so via the CBP One mobile app even if they’re not physically in northern Mexico.
Before Friday, asylum-seekers who are not Mexican had to be in Mexican states along the border or in Mexico City to get an online appointment.
As of Aug. 23, 2024, they can also get those while in the southern Mexican states of Chiapas and Tabasco close to the Guatemala border.
This is expected to keep migrants from having to travel to schedule appointments in northern Mexican border cities, where most asylum-seekers end up in shelters until their date comes up, migrant advocates say.
As for Mexican nationals, they can set up appointments from anywhere in their country.
There are eight border crossings along the U.S.-Mexico border where migrants with a scheduled CBP One session are given access to the U.S.
One of those points is through Ped West, a pedestrian crossing at the San Ysidro Port of Entry in San Diego.
Christopher Teal, U.S. Consul General in Tijuana, said 400 people daily are crossing the border every day through Ped West with CBP One appointments.
“We have a limit in terms of capacity, there’s a lot of demand, but it’s working well,” Teal said. “It’s important to those waiting for appointments to keep waiting patiently, it’s better to wait for an appointment and then cross lawfully.”
According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, about 1,450 appointments are available every day.
“Unlawful crossings have diminished a lot, we’re talking about the lowest numbers in the last four years,” Teal said. “We’re seeing that people are listening and following the rules not falling into a trap, crossing the border with smugglers who will mislead them.”
CBP also said the updated CBP One app will start allocating appointments to those who have waited the longest.
Until now, securing an appointment was considered a “luck of the draw,” something many migrants and advocates have complained about since the mobile application was launched last year.
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