Thousands of immigrants seeking protection in the United States of America (U.S.) have spent months in detention waiting for the government to determine whether they may have legitimate cases, even though regulations state that they should receive a determination in as less time as possible. Government regulations mention that within 10 days, claimants must receive a determination of whether they can proceed to have their case heard by a judge.

The Obama administration has put a priority on expelling repeat immigration offenders, who are ineligible for hearings before an immigration judge because of the outcome of their prior cases. But those illegal detainees who claim they have a fear of persecution or torture if they return to their home countries are guaranteed a hearing with an asylum officer.

As asserted by the Department of Homeland Security officials, migrant families in detention will now have more frequent case reviews to determine if they can be released. Women with their children being held in three family detention centres will have a first review after 90 days and then every two months after that. The immigration authorities will no longer point to a general goal of deterring illegal border crossing as the reason for detaining women and children. 

However, the authorities will continue to place a high priority on deporting or detaining migrants caught crossing the border illegally. Central American women presently seeking asylum and their children have faced many months in detention while their cases moved through the immigration courts. The new policy under the Obama administration is designed to continually re-evaluate whether detention is necessary or not for these illegal migrants.

Immigration officials have been overwhelmed in recent years by a surge of asylum seekers along the U.S.-Mexico border. Over the last five years, the number of people detained at the border that claim they cannot return to their home country because they fear for their safety has increased sevenfold, from just fewer than 5,000 to more than 36,000. Each such case is granted what is known as a "credible fear" interview with an asylum officer who determines whether the immigrant is eligible to stay in the country and a full asylum hearing is provided. Majority of these claims turn out to be credible as informed by federal figures.

Asylum officers are now being urged to be stricter in their rulings by the internal U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and are required to approve only those cases that demonstrate a "significant possibility" of winning asylum from a judge. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is aiming at implementing a more restrictive immigration system, along with a stricter interview process. Tightening up the "credible fear" determination is become essential as everybody who just utters the word 'asylum' cannot be adjudicated.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.