WASHINGTON, DC – Yesterday, Congressman Tom Tiffany (WI-07) introduced the Stopping Asylum Fraudsters Enforcement and Removal Act, also known as the SAFER Act. This legislation restores integrity to the asylum system by reserving it for those with legitimate claims of persecution.
Under this legislation, the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Attorney General are prohibited from granting asylum to any individual who has returned to the country they claim to be fleeing. In addition, any individual granted asylum who voluntarily returns to that country will face termination of status, denaturalization, and be subject to inadmissibility or removal.
“If someone claims they are fleeing danger and seeking asylum in the U.S., they should not be turning around and vacationing in the very country they said they had to escape. Those who are truly fleeing danger don’t book round-trip tickets back to it. The SAFER Act stops asylum fraudsters from exploiting the system and ensures they are removed from the United States,” said Congressman Tiffany.
BACKGROUND:
The SAFER Act addresses growing concerns that the asylum system is being exploited by individuals making fraudulent claims to gain entry into the United States. This legislation follows reports that Hamideh Soleimani Afshar, the niece of the late Iranian General Qasem Soleimani, was granted asylum in 2019 and later received a green card under the Biden administration, despite returning to Iran at least four times.
Under the SAFER Act, individuals who claim asylum in the U.S. cannot return to the country they said they were fleeing without facing serious immigration consequences. The bill includes limited, case-by-case exceptions. The President may authorize travel for national security purposes, or the Secretary of State may certify that a legitimate transfer of power has occurred in the applicant’s home country, eliminating the original threat and permitting lawful return.
You can read the full text of the SAFER Act here, and the Fox News exclusive here.
