Asylum Reform and Loophole Closure Act

This bill significantly modifies eligibility for asylum under the Immigration and Nationality Act. It introduces a new condition for asylum ineligibility, barring individuals who have transited through at least one country outside their nationality en route to the United States unless they first sought and were denied protection in each of those transit countries. Furthermore, the bill establishes permanent ineligibility for asylum if an alien has committed or attempted unlawful entry, or obtained entry through willfully false representations or visa fraud. The legislation also raises the standard for establishing a credible fear of persecution , changing it from "a significant possibility" to "it is more likely than not" that the alien could establish asylum eligibility. Finally, it permits the detention of children with their parents for a period of up to 180 days during expedited removal or asylum proceedings.