Number of Chinese migrants at US-Mexico border drops to lowest count of the year
Border crossings in September fell to 1,326 Chinese nationals, a 40 per cent decline from the 2,198 recorded in June
The number of Chinese migrants trying to cross the US southern border illegally has fallen to its lowest monthly count this year, three months after US President Joe Biden imposed significant restrictions on the processing of asylum claims.
According to the US Customs and Border Protection, authorities detained or found inadmissible 1,326 Chinese migrants along the border in September, a 40 per cent decline from the 2,198 recorded in June. The number of Chinese migrants attempting to enter the US without proper documentation had reached a three-year peak of 5,980 in December.
In June, Biden signed an executive order that prevents migrants from seeking asylum along the US-Mexico border once the seven-day average for daily illegal crossings reaches 2,500. The border would reopen only after the figure falls to 1,500 for seven consecutive days and remains that way for two weeks.
Overall migrant encounters with authorities have dropped since. “Encounters” refer to either when individuals seek admission at ports of entry but are found to be inadmissible, or when individuals are found between ports of entry and are detained.
In September, authorities encountered a total of 101,790 migrants, largely from Latin America, at the southern border – the lowest monthly figure recorded this year. Since the beginning of the year, there have been over 1.3 million such encounters.
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US-bound with risks and dreams, the 'border crossers' from China
The Biden administration has faced increasing pressure to handle the influx of migrants crossing illegally into the US in an election year where immigration is a key issue.
