US Cuts Refugee Appeal Window to 10 Days

The Department of Homeland Security cut from 30 days to 10 the period refugees have to contest proposed termination of their status. The interim final rule publishes in the Federal Register on October 14, 2026, takes effect immediately, and was issued without advance notice-and-comment while open for 30 days of public comment. Mail service adds three days. The change follows a November-ordered review of refugees admitted during the Biden administration. DHS said the rule will "restore integrity to the immigration system, mitigate public and national security risks, and prevent fraud," citing Operation PARRIS and asserting prior screening may have failed to establish some applicants' eligibility—a claim refugee advocates dispute. By law, refugee status may be revoked only if the person did not meet requirements at admission. Krish O'Mara Vignarajah of Global Refuge said 10 days is not enough to find a lawyer, translate documents, or obtain records from a country fled because of conflict or persecution. Naomi Steinberg of HIAS said the policy undermines permanent protection from refugee resettlement. Laurie Ball Cooper of IRAP called the deadline a "mere formality" to "strip refugees who were lawfully admitted and are lawfully living in the country of their status and deport them to places where they would face persecution or worse." IRAP has sued over detention and deportation attempts to Rwanda, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Shawn VanDiver of AfghanEvac cited about 30,000 Afghan arrivals from 2022 to 2025.