In an attempt to block the dismissal of asylum applications, the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project (ASAP) asked a federal judge on Tuesday, October 7, 2025, to intervene against the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). ASAP is challenging the agencies’ enforcement of a new annual asylum fee as grounds for denying or dismissing existing asylum claims.
ASAP filed a lawsuit on Friday, October 3, 2025, challenging the new annual asylum fee established under HR-1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) , alleging its unlawful and retroactive implementation by USCIS and EOIR. The lawsuit, titled ASAP v. USCIS, was filed in the District of Maryland. The Act creates a $100 annual asylum fee for “each calendar year” an application remains pending.
The core of the challenge is the agencies’ position that all asylum applicants, including those who applied prior to the passage of HR-1 on July 4, 2025, are subject to the annual fee. ASAP argues this application is impermissibly retroactive because the statute does not explicitly authorize it.
Furthermore, the agencies are allegedly counting time the applications were pending prior to the July 4, 2025, enactment date to determine if a full year has passed and the fee is due. ASAP contends that under a prospective application of the law, the first annual fees should not be due until July 2026, at the earliest.
ASAP alleges that while USCIS finally established a payment portal on or about October 2 , the EOIR still has not made available any mechanism through which applicants can pay fees that the agency claims are already due.
“Asylum seekers deserve clear laws and an opportunity to follow them; in this case, asylum seekers have neither,” said Swapna Reddy, Co-Executive Director of ASAP. She stated that the government has “incorrectly charged the fee” to thousands of long-term asylum applicants and that the lack of a payment method from the immigration court is “worse.”
A plaintiff in the case, identified as Jeff, an asylum seeker from Kenya and an ASAP member, expressed concern over the lack of clarity. “I’ve been waiting for a decision on my asylum case for over a decade, and now I’m being told I have to pay a new asylum fee,” he said. Jeff also noted his fear that his asylum application could be dismissed due to an inability to pay the unexpected fee, given the lack of governmental instruction.
ASAP reported that some immigration judges at EOIR are already requiring applicants to have paid the annual asylum fee, and in at least one reported case, an immigration judge rejected an asylum application and ordered an asylum seeker removed for non-payment, despite the agency providing no way to pay this fee.
ASAP’s Memorandum in Support of the Motion for a Preliminary Injunction, which was filed on Tuesday, seeks emergency relief to prevent the dismissal or denial of asylum claims based on the non-payment of the fee. Specifically, the motion asks the court to grant preliminary relief barring USCIS and EOIR from requiring asylum seekers who filed their applications on or before July 4, 2025, to pay the annual asylum fee while the litigation is pending.
The motion further asks the court to order EOIR to immediately provide a mechanism and clear instructions for payment to any applicants who are required to pay the fee. The plaintiff requested a decision on the motion by October 27, 2025.
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Kishor Panthi
View More PostsKishor Panthi is the founder and editor-in-chief of Khasokhas and NepYork. He is the author of three books, “Kampan,” "UNTRANSLATABLE" and “Zero Mile.” He writes about social issues, immigration, and politics.
