Here is a number worth thinking about.
In January 2025, the Department of Homeland Security filed about 60 motions to pretermit asylum cases nationwide.
In January 2026, it filed more than 17,000.
That is not a typo. In one year, the use of this single legal tactic jumped nearly 300-fold. And most of the people it affects have no idea what it is until it is filed against them.
If you or a loved one has a case in immigration court, you need to understand this. Here is what a motion to pretermit is, why ICE is using so many of them, and what you can do if one shows up in your case.
What is a motion to pretermit?
A motion to pretermit is a request from the government asking an immigration judge to deny your application for relief without ever holding a full hearing on the merits.
Let that sink in.
Normally, in an asylum case, you get your day in court. You testify. You bring witnesses. You submit evidence. The judge hears your story of persecution and decides whether you qualify. A hearing is one of the most important due process protections you have under the Executive Office for Immigration Review.
A successful motion to pretermit takes that hearing away.
If the judge grants the motion, your application will be denied, and you will be ordered removed. No testimony. No cross-examination. No day in court.
Why ICE is using this tactic now
In April 2025, the Executive Office for Immigration Review, or EOIR, issued a policy memo encouraging immigration judges to deny legally deficient asylum applications without a hearing. Later that year, the Board of Immigration Appeals reinforced that authority in *Matter of H-A-A-V-* and expanded it further in *Matter of C-I-G-M- & L-S-V-G-*.
Put together, these rulings opened the door for ICE attorneys to file pretermit motions on a massive scale. And they did.
There are several grounds on which ICE has been acting.
Asylum Cooperative Agreements (ACAs). This has been the biggest driver of the surge. The United States has signed agreements with countries including Guatemala, Honduras, Ecuador, and Uganda, saying those countries are “safe” for asylum seekers. ICE attorneys then argue that you should be sent to one of those countries instead of having your asylum case here. That means a Nicaraguan political dissident may be ordered deported to Honduras. An Iranian applicant may be ordered to Uganda. A Venezuelan family may be sent to Ecuador. None of these people has ties to those countries. That is the point. The government is using the ACAs as an escape hatch to avoid hearing cases at all.
Incomplete [Form I-589] (https://www.uscis.gov/i-589). If a judge determines that your asylum application contains unanswered questions or blank fields, your case can be pretermitted on that ground alone. A missing line can end a case.
Failure to state a prima facie claim. ICE can argue that even if everything in your application is believed, you do not legally qualify for asylum. The judge can then deny you without hearing testimony.
Third country safety. When ICE files an ACA-based motion, the fight becomes about whether you would be safe in that third country, not whether you would be persecuted in your home country. Most people have no evidence ready about a country they have never been to.
The timing problem
Here is where it gets worse.
ICE attorneys have been filing these motions days, sometimes hours, before a hearing. In some cases, the motion is made orally the morning of the merits hearing, with no advance notice.
Immigration attorneys have reported going from zero to dozens of hearings on their calendars overnight. Some attorneys have been scheduled for conflicting hearings in multiple states on the same day.
And the courts have been moving fast. Roughly nine out of ten pretermit motions are being decided within 30 days of filing. One in ten is being decided the same day the motion is filed.
This is not how immigration court is supposed to work. But that is how it works right now.
What you can do
If you are in removal proceedings, or if a loved one is, do not wait to act. Here is what matters.
Get a lawyer now, not later. This is not the kind of case you can fight alone. The law is complex. The timing is brutal. The stakes could not be higher.
Make sure your Form I-589 is complete. Go through every question. Do not leave blank spaces, even for sections you think do not apply. If a question does not apply, write “N/A” or “none.” Blank fields are some of the most common grounds for pretermission.
Build a third-country fear record early. If there is any chance ICE could try to send you to a country under an ACA, your lawyer should be gathering country conditions evidence now, before a motion is filed. Waiting until a motion is filed usually means trying to assemble a case in a matter of days.
Challenge untimely motions. EOIR rules set minimum filing deadlines for motions. An ICE motion filed too late may be challenged on that ground. An experienced attorney will know the rules and how to use them.
Know that pretermission is not always final. A pretermission ruling can sometimes be appealed or reopened, especially when the law was misapplied. Many recent pretermissions are vulnerable to challenge.
The bottom line
Motions to pretermit have become one of the most dangerous tools in immigration court today. They are quick. They are blunt. And they are being used against people with strong, sympathetic cases.
If you or a family member has a pending case in immigration court, assume this could happen to you. Do not wait for the motion to be filed. Prepare now.
At Vital Legal Group, we take removal defense seriously. We know what these motions look like, how to respond to them, and how to build a record strong enough to survive them. If you are facing deportation, schedule your free case evaluation today. Time is the one thing no one can get back.
