“At this time, we have reached capacity at the San Ysidro port of entry for CBP officers to be able to bring additional persons traveling without appropriate entry documentation into the port of entry for processing. Depending upon port circumstances at the time of arrival, those individuals may need to wait in Mexico as CBP officers work to process those already within our facilities. As sufficient space and resources become available, CBP officers will be able to take additional individuals into the port for processing. CBP will communicate with Mexican authorities for operational awareness on this issue of capacity within CBP facilities as appropriate.
CBP officials are required to balance the resources necessary to both facilitate entry for the hundreds of thousands of travelers who arrive daily to the U.S. while also enforcing our nation’s immigration laws in a safe and orderly manner. When necessary to facilitate orderly processing while maintaining security and the health and safety of officers and the public, this obligation can require port access controls to allocate inspection resources efficiently and to maintain safe and appropriate conditions within port facilities.
As Secretary Nielsen said, we will enforce the immigration laws as set forth by Congress and encourage all individuals seeking to enter the U.S. that they do so lawfully. If you break our nation’s immigration laws, we will refer you for prosecution.”