WASHINGTON (Diya TV) — The Department of Homeland Security issued a memo on Tuesday directing Immigration and Customs Enforcement attorneys to escalate administrative enforcement actions against immigration lawyers accused of filing fraudulent asylum claims.
The directive, dated May 26, was obtained by CBS News. DHS General Counsel James Percival instructed ICE attorneys within the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) to develop “anti-fraud policies” designed for “robust enforcement” of existing federal anti-fraud law. The memo states that enforcement “should include enforcement against immigration attorneys filing false asylum claims in immigration court.”
The directive does not establish new penalties. It signals that ICE attorneys will more frequently deploy existing administrative enforcement tools — tools Percival acknowledged have been underused. “Historically, ICE has depended on the discipline of immigration judges and the enforcement of criminal fraud laws to deter this conduct,” Percival wrote, “but ICE has its own tools.”
The memo also directs ICE attorneys to pursue document-fraud enforcement and anticipates conflict-of-interest concerns, instructing that any attorney pursuing a fraud violation must be appropriately separated from litigation of the underlying immigration case.
Under U.S. federal law, any noncitizen physically present in the United States or arriving at its borders — including outside designated ports of entry — may apply for asylum, regardless of immigration status. However, approval requires demonstrating a well-founded fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.
The memo asserts that asylum claims are intended for “unique and narrow circumstances,” and characterizes it as “standard practice” for immigration lawyers to argue that “virtually every illegal alien” faces persecution or torture in their home country. Immigration advocacy groups dispute that characterization.
The memo is one of several enforcement escalations under the current administration. DHS filed approximately 47,900 Notices to Appear (NTAs) in immigration court in March 2026, nearly double the 24,507 filed in March 2025, according to data from the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) at Syracuse University.
Earlier this year, the administration also proposed rules that would strip asylum seekers of the right to work while their cases are pending. DHS framed the proposal as a measure to discourage “frivolous” asylum filings and “restore integrity to the asylum and work authorization processes.” Opponents, including the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), argued less restrictive measures exist to address meritless claims.
In a separate development, a federal judge in Boston issued a preliminary injunction in May 2026 blocking the administration from halting the processing of immigration applications for nationals of countries included in a travel ban, ruling the policy likely unlawful.
The American Immigration Lawyers Association has previously stated there are less drastic policy options for addressing frivolous claims, pointing to proposals such as deploying asylum officers at borders trained to make faster initial determinations before cases enter immigration courts.
House Judiciary Committee Democrats, in a February 2026 letter, criticized DHS General Counsel Percival over a separate memo they said authorized warrantless home entries by ICE agents, calling his legal rationale “unsubstantiated.” DHS has defended its legal positions in court filings and public statements.
