Confusion, resolve at US-Mexico border as Title 42 formally ends

Asylum seekers in Matamoros, Mexico, try to climb a fence on May 10 after crossing the Rio Bravo River, in the hope of turning themselves in to US Border Patrol agents before Title 42 ends [Daniel Becerril/Reuters]

A contentious United States policy that has allowed authorities to turn away most asylum seekers at the border with Mexico has officially ended, as President Joe Biden’s administration readies for an expected influx of arrivals.

The public health order known as Title 42, which formally expired at 11:59pm on Thursday (03:59 GMT on Friday), had been used to turn asylum seekers away more than 2.8 million times since it was first invoked in March 2020.