Know Your Rights & History

For the past 50 years, Vietnamese immigrants have built strong, vibrant communities all across the U.S., even as the arbitrary immigration system left many in a limbo between deportation and staying with their families and loved ones.

While the administration’s constant policy changes can understandably feel disorienting—and when paired with on-the-ground immigration enforcement operations that are making our communities feel unsafe— it becomes all the more important to stay informed now than ever.

REPATRIATION ACT BETWEEN THE U.S. AND VIET NAM – AND WHAT CHANGED
A 2008 agreement between the US and Viet Nam protected Vietnamese immigrants who arrived before July 12, 1995 from deportation. However, in 2020, during Trump’s first term, his administration rescinded these protections and created a process for pre-1995 immigrants with removal orders to be deported.

In 2025, ICE began detaining and deporting pre-1995 Vietnamese migrants at record rates, following a surge in detentions in January and a withdrawal of their policy to release pre-1995 immigrants within 90 days of their final orders of removal. 

What to know: If you are Vietnamese and arrived in the US before 1995, you are no longer protected from deportation by the 2008 agreement.

THIRD COUNTRY REMOVALS
“Third country removals” refer to the deportation of a person to a country that is not designated by an immigration judge or by DHS during removal proceedings. On June 23, 2025, the Supreme Court issued a decision that allows for third country removals to continue without any mandatory additional notification or review process. DHS has the discretion to choose the country they remove people to. 

Vietnamese people have been removed to Panama, South Sudan, and Eswatini, and the Trump administration has attempted to deport Vietnamese people to Libya. The Libya flight was stopped by a court injunction.

What to know: If you are notified that ICE is attempting to remove you to a country other than Viet Nam, you should clearly tell your deportation officer that you are afraid of being persecuted or harmed in that country in order to request a credible fear interview.

It is certain that right now, we are witnessing countless Vietnamese immigrants—once protected by the 2008 Agreement—being denied their right to due process. But it’s also important to understand that this is also happening to Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders, permanent residents, and even U.S. citizens. And the same asylum-seeking rights that we, as Vietnamese refugees, once benefited from are now being denied to newly arrived asylum seekers.

In conclusion, this administration is doing all it can to ensure migrants and refugees don’t get their fair day in court.

But we are not alone! We must come together and learn from those who never had protections—those who’ve seen the rule of law fail them. And knowing your rights is a crucial first step in this fight.

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