Research Reports and Papers

Opening Doors, Hardening Borders: Inside Biden’s U.S. Migration Policy and Lessons for Europe

A critical analysis of the Biden administration’s approach to mixed migration.

This report critically examines the evolution of U.S. migration and asylum policy under the Biden administration, taking stock of the many policy changes that occurred between January 2021 and December 2024.

Drawing on secondary sources, data, and interviews with more than 30 experts, the report assesses the short- and long-term impact of these policies and their domestic political implications, offering lessons for Europe as it faces similar challenges in balancing control, protection, and public trust.

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At its core, the Biden administration’s approach was two-fold: creating and encouraging the use of alternative legal pathways while also disincentivizing and physically preventing border crossings. The report argues that former President Biden’s approach resulted in a set of highly bifurcated policies that failed to garner favour from either pro-immigrant factions or more hardline conservatives that deemed the situation at the border a “crisis”. Furthermore, the Biden administration’s willingness to resort to policies that severely undermined the right to territorial asylum in the U.S. paved the way for many of the restrictionist measures implemented during the initial months of the second Trump administration.

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Inside Biden’s strategy on mixed migration and lessons for Europe