Rep. Tom Tiffany Proposes SAFER Act to Strip Asylum From Returnees

Rep. Tom Tiffany, R-Wis., has introduced the 'Stopping Asylum Fraudsters Enforcement and Removal (SAFER) Act,' a bill that would bar asylum for any foreign national who voluntarily returns to the country they said they fled and would empower the Department of Homeland Security and the attorney general to terminate asylum status and even denaturalize asylees who do so. The proposal, rolled out Thursday and first reported by Fox News, was triggered by the case of Hamideh Soleimani Afshar, the niece of slain Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani, whose 2019 asylum grant is now described by DHS as fraudulent after she reportedly traveled back to Iran at least four times while living in Los Angeles. Under the bill, an asylee could legally revisit their home country without losing status only if the State Department formally certifies that there has been a legitimate transfer of power and that the original basis for fearing persecution has been resolved, with stateless people judged by their last 'habitual residence.' The measure would harden an already politicized asylum system by turning any voluntary return trip into potential grounds for asylum revocation and loss of citizenship, a step immigration advocates online warn could ensnare people who travel back under coercion or for family emergencies, while enforcement hawks are touting it as a necessary response to what they call 'vacation asylum' fraud. Coming from a sitting congressman who is also running for governor, the bill is both a policy marker in the national immigration fight and a campaign signal to voters who want tougher vetting and narrower asylum rules.