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Trump admin identifies gang immigration "loophole"

Story by Dan Gooding
• 7h • 4 min read

A new report from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has raised concerns over the Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) program, citing instances of identity fraud and gang affiliations among applicants approved for lawful permanent residency.
"The scale of criminality, gang involvement, and fraud described in this report is more extensive than in earlier public discussions of the Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) program," Morgan Bailey, a partner at Mayer Brown and a former senior official at the Department of Homeland Security, told Newsweek.

One expert told Newsweek that Project 2025 had called for USCIS to bolster its fraud detection unit, with this latest report a sign of that effort.
"It also reflects the Trump administration's terminations of the temporary, discretionary statuses granted under the Biden administration—humanitarian parole, deferred action, and temporary protected status (DACA being a notable exception)," Kathleen Bush-Joseph, a policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute, told Newsweek.
Why It Matters

SIJ status is a form of humanitarian immigration relief available to undocumented minors in the United States who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected by one or both parents.
It was created by Congress in 1990 to protect vulnerable youth from being returned to unsafe environments and to provide them a pathway to lawful permanent residency. Once SIJ status is granted, the individual becomes eligible to apply for lawful permanent residency.

President Donald Trump has ordered his administration to carry out widespread removals as part of his pledge to conduct what Republicans describe as the largest mass deportation operation in U.S. history.
What To Know

USCIS said in a report that 853 known or suspected gang members filed SIJ petitions during the review period, including more than 600 affiliated with the MS-13 gang.
Of those, over 500 applications belonging to suspected MS-13 gang members were approved, per the report. Many petitioners submitted their SIJ I-360 petitions after turning 18 and qualified based on determinations that one of their parents had abandoned or neglected them.
The report also identifies approved petitions from individuals linked to other gangs, such as over 100 members of the 18th Street gang, at least three from Tren de Aragua (TdA), and several associated with the Sureños and Norteños.

Bailey told Newsweek that there were various weaknesses in the program, particularly in how agencies communicate with one another, which can lead to opportunities for fraud or exploitation.
The report, titled "Criminality, Gangs, and Program Integrity Concerns in Special Immigrant Juvenile Petitions," examines more than 300,000 SIJ petitions filed between fiscal year (FY) 2013 and February 2025.
Over half the SIJ applicants in FY 2024 were between 18 and 20 years old, according to USCIS. Many applicants reportedly entered the United States without legal inspection, and some were found to have submitted petitions using false information about their age, identity, or nationality, the report claims.
On June 6, USCIS rescinded a policy, in place since 2022, that automatically considered deferred action—temporary protection from deportation—for approved SIJ petitioners.

"Criminal aliens are infiltrating the U.S. through a program meant to protect abused, neglected, or abandoned alien children," USCIS spokesman Matthew J. Tragesser said in a press release.
To qualify for SIJ, a state juvenile court must issue an order establishing dependency or custody or placement with a state‐appointed guardian, find that reunification with a parent is not viable due to abuse, neglect, or abandonment, and determine that returning to the child's home country would not be in the child's best interests.
After USCIS approves the SIJ petition and a visa number becomes available, beneficiaries can apply to adjust their status to lawful permanent resident, thereby gaining the stability to build a safer future in the U.S.

San Diego California, USA - May 17, 2022: United States Citizenship and Immigration Services field office in downtown San Diego California. This image is for illustration purposes only. Getty Images© Getty Images

What People Are Saying

Morgan Bailey, a partner at Mayer Brown and a former senior official at the Department of Homeland Security, told Newsweek: "While these exceptions are well-intentioned, the program's relatively low statutory barriers to eligibility have also introduced vulnerabilities. Individuals who would otherwise be barred from obtaining lawful status may see the SIJ program as one of the few viable paths to remain in the United States and normalize their status.

"While previous reports and policy analyses have noted some concerns about fraud and the need for better oversight, this USCIS July 2025 report is distinguished by its comprehensive data analysis, explicit documentation of criminal and national security risks, and detailed critique."
Kathleen Bush-Joseph, a policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute, told Newsweek: "Moving forward, I expect to see the Trump administration trying to deport some of the youth granted Special Immigrant Juvenile status, as happened before the Biden administration's deferred action program, since they remain vulnerable to deportation while they wait for visas to become available, if they do not have deferred action."
USCIS spokesman Matthew J. Tragesser said in a statement: "This report exposes how the open border lobby and activist judges are exploiting loopholes in the name of aiding helpless children."

What Happens Next

USCIS said it was looking at other ways to mitigate vulnerabilities in the SIJ program.

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Trump admin identifies gang immigration "loophole"