--- description: Photographer John Moore documents the scene along the border in El Paso days before the end of Title 42. title: Photos: Migrants Brace for the End of Title 42 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt310b2574d368e30a/698a3cbdb3fce391dc0ca723/john-moore-title-42-border-01.jpg?branch=production --- * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Immigration](/tag/immigration/) ## Immigration Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Photos: Migrants Brace for the End of Title 42 ## Video: White House Urges Migrants Not to Cross the Border Ahead of Title 42's End [Watch (HLS stream): White House Urges Migrants Not to Cross the Border Ahead of Title 42's End](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/4WaRYjK9.m3u8) (3:56)  _Published 2023-05-11. Border Patrol agents are already encountering more than 10,000 people per day trying to cross the Southern Border as the Title 42 pandemic-era border policies expire, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Thursday. But the Biden Administration has a message: the new rules will be tougher, not easier._ Updated: Jan 22, 2026 8:36 AM CUTPublished: May 10, 2023 6:19 PM CUT  Immigrants step over a trickle of the Rio Grande while crossing the border from Mexico hoping to be processed for asylum in El Paso, Texas, on May 8, 2023. Immigrants step over a trickle of the Rio Grande while crossing the border from Mexico hoping to be processed for asylum in El Paso, Texas, on May 8, 2023.John Moore—Getty Images  by [Sanya Mansoor](/author/sanya-mansoor/)  ## Sanya Mansoor Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Jan 22, 2026 8:36 AM CUTPublished: May 10, 2023 6:19 PM CUT On Thursday, a pandemic-era federal order allowing the U.S. to quickly expel large numbers of migrants at the southern border will come to an end. Officials and local communities are already [bracing for a significant increase](https://time.com/6277557/immigration-title-42-border-crisis-biden/ "undefined") in the number of migrants crossing the border**.** Since it began under the Trump Administration three years ago, Title 42 has been used more than 2.8 million times to expel migrants without giving them a chance to file asylum claims in the name of [mitigating the spread of COVID-19](https://time.com/6105055/biden-title-42-covid-19/ "undefined"). Most of those expelled are from Mexico and Central America; many are fleeing violence and extreme poverty. Immigration advocates have criticized the policy for infringing on asylum seekers’ rights to access legal pathways to entry. The program’s expiration has already [been delayed multiple times](https://time.com/6172684/judges-us-immigration-policy/ "undefined") after Republican officials have sued to keep it in place. Three Republican-governed states—Missouri, Arizona and Louisiana— sued last month to preserve Title 42 restrictions, claiming that doing so would lead to an “unprecedented crisis” at the border. But if that suit doesn’t halt the expiry, the Biden Administration is [preparing for an influx](https://time.com/6278656/biden-title-42-migration-border-crisis/ "undefined") of migrants, planning to open about 100 centers to help direct migrants to legal pathways to enter the U.S., expand border cities’ capacity to detain migrants, and [deploy additional troops to support border patrol](https://time.com/6276438/biden-troops-border-title42/ "undefined"). [Pulitzer-prize winning photographer John Moore](https://time.com/longform/john-moore-getty-zero-tolerance-immigration-policy/ "undefined") has covered the Southern border and immigration for many years. Below are photos he took along the border in El Paso on May 8 and 9, days before the end of Title 42, documenting the preparations from officials and the arriving migrants.  Immigrant families cross into the United States from Mexico to seek asylum in El Paso, Texas, on May 8, 2023.John Moore—Getty Images  As seen from an aerial view, Texas National Guard troops set up a “choke point” near hundreds of immigrants who had crossed into the United States from Mexico on May 9, 2023.John Moore—Getty Images  Immigrants seeking asylum in the United States wait to be processed by U.S. border agents after crossing over from Mexico into El Paso, Texas, on May 9, 2023.John Moore—Getty Images  Texas National Guard troops set up razor wire near hundreds of immigrants who had crossed into the United States from Mexico on May 9, 2023.John Moore—Getty Images  Immigrants pray while hoping to be processed by U.S. border agents for asylum after crossing over from Mexico into El Paso, Texas, on May 9, 2023.John Moore—Getty Images  Immigrants speak with Texas National Guard troops after crossing over from Mexico into El Paso, Texas, on May 9, 2023.John Moore—Getty Images  Immigrants cross from Mexico into the United States to seek asylum on May 8, 2023.John Moore—Getty Images  As seen from an aerial view, immigrants wait to be processed to make asylum claims after crossing the Rio Grande from Mexico into El Paso, Texas, on May 9, 2023.John Moore—Getty Images  An immigrant hydrates after crossing into the United States from Mexico on May 9, 2023.John Moore—Getty Images  Immigrants seeking asylum in the United States wait to be processed by U.S. border agents after crossing over from Mexico into El Paso, Texas, on May 9, 2023.John Moore—Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6278600/photos-migrants-border-title-42/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6278600/photos-migrants-border-title-42/"},"headline":"Photos: Migrants Brace for the End of Title 42","datePublished":"2023-05-10T18:19:48.000Z","dateModified":"2026-01-22T08:36:45.000Z","description":"Photographer John Moore documents the scene along the border in El Paso days before the end of Title 42.","url":"https://time.com/6278600/photos-migrants-border-title-42/","keywords":["Immigration","Photo","longform","uspoliticspolicy"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt310b2574d368e30a/698a3cbdb3fce391dc0ca723/john-moore-title-42-border-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sanya Mansoor","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/sanya-mansoor/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt310b2574d368e30a/698a3cbdb3fce391dc0ca723/john-moore-title-42-border-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"john-moore-title-42-border-01","caption":"Immigrant families cross into the United States from Mexico to seek asylum in El Paso, Texas, on May 8, 2023.","creditText":"","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/immigration/","name":"Immigration"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/6278600/photos-migrants-border-title-42/","name":"Photos: Migrants Brace for the End of Title 42"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"White House Urges Migrants Not to Cross the Border Ahead of Title 42's End","description":"Border Patrol agents are already encountering more than 10,000 people per day trying to cross the Southern Border as the Title 42 pandemic-era border policies expire, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Thursday. But the Biden Administration has a message: the new rules will be tougher, not easier.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/4WaRYjK9/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2023-05-11T20:41:35.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/4WaRYjK9.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/6278600/photos-migrants-border-title-42/","duration":"PT3M56S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/6278600/photos-migrants-border-title-42/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```