In a major 6-3 decision handed down on July 3, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Mullin v. Al Otro Lado that asylum seekers who present themselves on the Mexican side of a U.S. land border have not legally “arrived” in the United States. Because physical entry is now the bright-line test, Customs and Border Protection officers may continue the long-controversial practice of “metering”—admitting only a limited number of asylum seekers per day and turning the remainder back to wait in Mexico. The ruling reverses the Ninth Circuit and revives a policy first piloted during the Obama administration, later expanded under former President Trump, and frozen by lower-court injunctions in 2021. Writing for the majority, Justice Samuel Alito reasoned that “in ordinary speech, one has not arrived until one has entered,” leaving Congress free—but not compelled—to broaden statutory language. In a blistering dissent, Justice Sonia Sotomayor warned that the decision “will cost lives” by forcing vulnerable people to remain in dangerous border encampments where assaults, kidnappings, and cartel violence are rife.
For global mobility managers, the decision reshapes how multinational companies move humanitarian transferees, trainees, and accompanying family members who might have relied on the U.S. asylum system.
![Supreme Court Green-Lights Border “Turnback” Policy, Restricting Port-of-Entry Asylum Access]()
During this period of flux, organizations and individual travelers can turn to VisaHQ for practical support. The firm’s online platform consolidates up-to-date U.S. visa requirements, appointment availability, and document checklists, while its expert advisers help clients explore alternatives such as humanitarian parole, short-term business visas, or transit permits—streamlining an otherwise complex, multi-jurisdictional process.
Corporations that relocate high-risk employees out of Latin America must now plan for longer third-country wait times, engage Mexican counsel, and budget for humanitarian parole petitions or private-sponsorship pathways instead of direct port-of-entry filings. Travel risk programs should also revisit duty-of-care assessments for U.S. assignments that require cross-border commuting. Operationally, the ruling grants CBP wide discretion to cap daily admissions at all land ports, meaning that even visa-holders may face longer queues as officers redirect resources. Companies that rely on frequent B-1 or TN border crossings should expect sporadic slow-downs and instruct travelers to carry evidence of time-sensitive business needs. Finally, advocacy groups predict fresh litigation over whether the Department of Homeland Security will codify a formal regulation—an action that could trigger notice-and-comment requirements and further uncertainty for employers.
For global mobility managers, the decision reshapes how multinational companies move humanitarian transferees, trainees, and accompanying family members who might have relied on the U.S. asylum system.
During this period of flux, organizations and individual travelers can turn to VisaHQ for practical support. The firm’s online platform consolidates up-to-date U.S. visa requirements, appointment availability, and document checklists, while its expert advisers help clients explore alternatives such as humanitarian parole, short-term business visas, or transit permits—streamlining an otherwise complex, multi-jurisdictional process.
Corporations that relocate high-risk employees out of Latin America must now plan for longer third-country wait times, engage Mexican counsel, and budget for humanitarian parole petitions or private-sponsorship pathways instead of direct port-of-entry filings. Travel risk programs should also revisit duty-of-care assessments for U.S. assignments that require cross-border commuting. Operationally, the ruling grants CBP wide discretion to cap daily admissions at all land ports, meaning that even visa-holders may face longer queues as officers redirect resources. Companies that rely on frequent B-1 or TN border crossings should expect sporadic slow-downs and instruct travelers to carry evidence of time-sensitive business needs. Finally, advocacy groups predict fresh litigation over whether the Department of Homeland Security will codify a formal regulation—an action that could trigger notice-and-comment requirements and further uncertainty for employers.
