Immigration court
Harlingen, TX Immigration Court
12 judges · TX
EOIR data through Oct 1, 2026 · updated monthly
- 5,676
- Granted
- 167,680
- Denied
- 12
- Judges
Distribution
How this court's judges compare
At Harlingen, TX, 10 judges range from 0.2% to 6.6%.
Each judge's all-time EOIR decided outcomes across every court they have served in: granted ÷ (granted + denied). Judges now based at this court with at least 100 decided cases. A historical pattern — not a prediction for any case.
Recent decisions (Oct 2024 – Sep 2026): Harlingen, TX Immigration Court granted asylum in 1.1% of 9,316 decided cases. That is lower than the court's all-time rate of 3.3% (173,356 decided cases). Over the same months, the national rate was 5.0%.
What people ask about Harlingen, TX Immigration Court
These are the questions people asked most about this court from Apr 2026 to Oct 2026. The answers come from EOIR immigration court data.
Which judges at Harlingen, TX Immigration Court grant asylum most often?
Among the 6 judges at this court with at least 25 decided asylum cases in Oct 2024 – Sep 2026, the highest grant rates were: Delia I. Gonzalez, 2.7% of 1,544 decided; Joseph T. Leonard, 2.5% of 1,608 decided; and Julian Castaneda, 1.2% of 1,586 decided. The median judge among them granted 1.0%.
What is the asylum grant rate at Harlingen, TX Immigration Court?
In Oct 2024 – Sep 2026, the court granted asylum in 1.1% of 9,316 decided cases (grants plus denials). Across all years in EOIR data, it granted 3.3% of 173,356 decided cases. Over the same recent months, the national rate was 5.0%.
How to Interpret This Court's Data
Court-level statistics aggregate the judges and cases assigned to the Harlingen, TX Immigration Court, so the court average can differ sharply from any one judge's profile.
High-volume judge profiles at this court include Ayala, David (50,549 total cases), Zlatow, Jeffrey (24,364 total cases), and Gonzalez, Delia I. (9,415 total cases). The largest nationality groups shown for this court (fiscal years 2020–2026) include Honduras (9,817 decided, 0.2% grant rate), Mexico (7,268 decided, 6.0% grant rate), and Guatemala (3,666 decided, 0.1% grant rate).
Asylum grant rate is calculated as granted / (granted + denied). Procedural outcomes are separated so users can distinguish merits decisions from docket-management outcomes.
This page uses public EOIR records last updated 2026-10-01. The data is informational and should not be treated as legal advice or a prediction for any individual case.
Read how EOIR data works or learn how to compare asylum approval rates.
Areas Served by This Court
Based on the official EOIR ZIP-code assignment, the Harlingen, TX Immigration Court is the assigned filing location for 92 ZIP codes. Main cities by state:
TX — Corpus Christi, Edinburg, Brownsville, Mcallen, Mission, Harlingen, Weslaco, Agua Dulce, Alamo, Aransas Pass, Armstrong, Banquete, Bishop, Chapman Ranch, Combes and 49 more cities
Not sure which immigration court serves your address? Enter your ZIP code in the AsylumTracker app's coverage map.
Judges at This Court
| Judge | Approval Rate | Granted | Denied | Decided |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ayala, David | 6.6% | 3,064 | 43,448 | 46,512 |
| Zlatow, Jeffrey | 6.4% | 1,249 | 18,359 | 19,608 |
| Gonzalez, Delia I. | 3.3% | 276 | 8,045 | 8,321 |
| Leonard, Joseph T. | 2.3% | 162 | 6,842 | 7,004 |
| Castaneda, Julian | 1.6% | 105 | 6,658 | 6,763 |
| Pineda, Christopher | 0.7% | 22 | 3,008 | 3,030 |
| Gilbert, Daniel B. | 5.1% | 49 | 911 | 960 |
| Rodriguez, Adam | 0.2% | 1 | 624 | 625 |
| Galvao, Andrew | 0.5% | 2 | 435 | 437 |
| Singh, Rantideva | 1.6% | 6 | 362 | 368 |
| FOX, ALISON | 4.2% | 1 | 23 | 24 |
| Burman, Lawrence R. | 0.0% | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Roster entries without a usable profile denominator: Ayala, David (Visiting Judge), Louisville Visiting Judge 3. They are excluded from the rate table above.
Approval Rate by Nationality
Fiscal years 2020–2026 (Oct 2019 – Sep 2026).
| Nationality | Approval Rate | Granted | Denied | Decided |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Honduras | 0.2% | 19 | 9,798 | 9,817 |
| Mexico | 6.0% | 437 | 6,831 | 7,268 |
| Guatemala | 0.1% | 5 | 3,661 | 3,666 |
| Nicaragua | 2.4% | 77 | 3,182 | 3,259 |
| El Salvador | 0.3% | 9 | 2,972 | 2,981 |
| Cuba | 8.9% | 120 | 1,233 | 1,353 |
| Ecuador | 0.0% | 0 | 1,297 | 1,297 |
| Venezuela | 13.6% | 129 | 823 | 952 |
| Colombia | 0.9% | 5 | 527 | 532 |
| Dominican Republic | 0.0% | 0 | 287 | 287 |
| Peru | 0.5% | 1 | 208 | 209 |
| Sri Lanka | 2.6% | 1 | 38 | 39 |
| China | 16.7% | 3 | 15 | 18 |
| Brazil | 5.6% | 1 | 17 | 18 |
| Haiti | 0.0% | 0 | 17 | 17 |
| Democratic Republic Of Congo | 0.0% | 0 | 13 | 13 |
| Romania | 0.0% | 0 | 11 | 11 |
| Belize | 0.0% | 0 | 11 | 11 |
| Costa Rica | 0.0% | 0 | 9 | 9 |
| Eritrea | 100.0% | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| Stateless - Alien Unable To Name A Country | 0.0% | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Angola | 0.0% | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| India | 0.0% | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| Vietnam | 0.0% | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| Guadeloupe | 0.0% | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| Cameroon | 40.0% | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| Russia | 0.0% | 0 | 1 | 1 |