Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill”: Review of Immigration Provisions

On July 4, 2025, President Donald J. Trump signed into law the “One Big Beautiful Bill”—a sweeping budget reconciliation package that delivers a seismic shift in immigration enforcement and policy across the United States. Touting the bill as one of the toughest immigration plans in American history, the Trump administration celebrated the legislation as a return to strict border control and American sovereignty. But behind the patriotic branding lies a collection of immigration provisions with profound implications for enforcement, humanitarian protections, and immigrant communities. 

With over $150 billion earmarked for immigration-related efforts, the bill: 

• Expands detention and deportation capacity 

• Funds the border wall and surveillance systems 

• Imposes financial penalties and restrictions on immigrants 

• Reduces access to federal benefits 

• Accelerates removals and curtails humanitarian pathways 

Massive Expansion of Enforcement Overreach 

Massive detention expansion is one of the most alarming features of the bill. Funding 100,000 daily detention beds more than doubles the previous capacity of 40, 000 and solidifies the U.S. immigration system into the world’s largest immigrant detention regime. The bill lacks any meaningful safeguards against abuse, prolonged detention, or the detention of vulnerable populations like children, asylum seekers, or people with medical conditions. 

The bill invests $80 billion into the interior immigration enforcement, dramatically increasing federal capacity to detain, process, and remove immigrants from the United States.  The bill proposes to hire 10,000 new ICE agents and 3,000 additional Customs and Border Patrols (“CBP”) officers and border patrol agents.   

Creating a system where “the right way” is financially out of reach 

The bill introduces asylum application fees and penalty fees—two policies that would disproportionately impact low-income immigrants and asylum seekers fleeing violence and persecution. These measures don’t just raise revenue—they deliberately create financial barriers to legal relief. 

Significantly, the bill introduces a slate of new fees and penalties aimed directly at immigrants and asylum seekers.  Importantly, many of these fees are minimums that can be raised at any time and are also set to automatically increase every year with inflation. 

New Fees (not a complete list)1 

New Enforcement Related Fees 

These financial hurdles could deter legitimate asylum claims and disproportionately harm low-income families seeking legal pathways to obtain status.  Furthermore, there have been reports that immigration judges have already started requesting evidence of these new fees, even though the agencies in charge of collecting these fees have not yet set up mechanisms to accept these new fees.  Thus, immigrant respondents will have to deal with further delays and confusion related to the processing of their case, through no fault of their own.   

Additionally, with the government’s increase in enforcement actions in and around immigration courts, actively detaining individuals while they attend their removal hearings, the government is effectively setting a trap for respondents in removal proceedings—only to later penalize them with a fine if they fail to appear and are ordered removed in absentia. ICE officers have frequently detained individuals when they attend immigration court. Respondents must choose between attending court and risking being detained without bond, or being ordered removed and incurring a $5,000 fine for failing to attend. Rather than encourages a fair and just immigration court system, this bill works hand in hand with DHS enforcement policies to strip immigrants of due process and eliminate access to justice. 

Expedited Removal: Justice Without a Judge 

The bill dramatically expands the use of expedited removal, allowing immigration officers to deport individuals without a hearing before a judge. The bill extends the time frame and geographic reach—now applying expedited removal to anyone who cannot prove they’ve been in the U.S. for over two years, regardless of where they are found. This effectively guts due process protections and increases the risk of wrongful deportations, especially for asylum seekers and long-term residents who lack immediate documentation. It puts unchecked power in the hands of enforcement agencies while sidelining the immigration courts. 

The U.S. immigration system already suffers from overloaded courts and inconsistent adjudication. Instead of strengthening procedural protections, the bill strips them away. 

Terminating Parole and Ending Hope 

The bill also ends Biden-era parole programs, abruptly revoking humanitarian protections and work authorization for tens of thousands of individuals from countries like Venezuela and Haiti. These individuals, many of whom are integrated into U.S. communities and workplaces, now face an uncertain future—and possible deportation. 

Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” is more than just a funding mechanism—it’s a statement of intent. It reflects a dramatic reorientation of U.S. immigration policy toward enforcement and exclusion, reversing many humanitarian measures enacted in prior years. 

For immigrant communities, legal advocates, and policymakers, the road ahead will involve legal battles, humanitarian responses, and community organizing to mitigate the impact of this sweeping legislation.  At Minsky, McCormick & Hallagan, our experienced attorneys remain steadfast in helping individuals navigate the complex nature of their immigration cases during these unprecedented times.