Tens of Thousands of Migrants Stranded at Southern Border After Donald Trump Shut Down US Migrant Entry App Shortly After He Took Oath of Office

Israel Adeleke 

OPEN TELEVISION NAIJA (OTN) News reports as gathered that tens of thousands of migrants are stranded at the southern border after the new administration, on Monday, shut down CBP One, an app-based programme that allowed migrants to schedule legal entry into the United States through official ports.

OTN further reports as gathered that shortly after Trump took the oath of office as the 47th President of the United States (POTUS), the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) website posted a notice confirming that the app was no longer functional and that all existing appointments had been cancelled.

OTN News reports that the CBP One app, introduced by the Joe Biden administration in early 2023, was designed to offer migrants a regulated pathway to seek asylum in the US. 

The programme allowed 1,450 migrants per day to schedule an appointment for processing, and since its launch, more than 900,000 people have entered the US using the system.

However, the Trump administration’s decision has left tens of thousands of migrants stranded at the southern border, many of whom had already made their way to designated entry points in anticipation of their scheduled appointments.

OTN News gathered that at the El Chaparral border crossing in Tijuana, Mexico, confusion and frustration gripped migrants who checked their phones only to find that their appointments had vanished.

A migrant from Michoacán, Mexico, Maura Hernandez, who had arrived in Tijuana with her four children for an appointment scheduled on Tuesday, said “I am in shock, I don’t know what is going to happen to us.”

Like many others, Hernandez, fled violence in her home state, hoping to seek asylum through legal channels.

Also a Venezuelan migrant, Gustavo Selva, described his devastation upon learning that the program had been terminated.

He said after reading the update on his phone “We are so disappointed,”. He explained that he had waited seven months for his appointment, which was initially scheduled for late January but had been delayed until February 9. 

He said he had already traveled from Chiapas to Tijuana, believing he would soon enter the U.S. legally, “We thought we could enter today without a problem,” he said. “Now we will be stranded here indefinitely.”

A former Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official, speaking on condition of anonymity, estimated that around 30,000 migrants had active appointments through the app as of Monday morning. 

Additionally, nearly 300,000 migrants were reportedly waiting in Mexico with hopes of securing entry through CBP One.

The Biden administration had touted the CBP One app as a critical tool in managing migration at the southern border. 

The programme was part of a broader strategy that combined asylum restrictions for illegal crossings with legal pathways for those seeking protection.

“I would say that the model that we have built—of restricting asylum at our southern border and building accessible, lawful, safe, and orderly pathways for individuals to seek relief under our laws—is the model that should be sustained,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in an interview with NPR earlier this month.

“We have delivered the border and those accessible pathways to the incoming administration,” he added.