Since the end of the 20th century, mulched drip irrigation technology has been widely promoted and applied in arid areas of northwest China, which has greatly pushed the development of oasis agriculture. However, the salt in water brought by drip irrigation cannot be discharged from the soil, which makes the sustainable development of oasis agriculture in arid areas challenging. Therefore, preventing and controlling secondary salinization of farmland to make use of the salt and alkali land resources widely distributed in the arid area of northwest China under conditions of water resource shortage is an urgent problem to be solved in order to promote sustainable development of agriculture. This article sorted literature on biological salt removal and the aspect of salt tolerance mechanism, growth and development of halophytes to salt, mutual feedback effects between salt removal of halophytes and reclamation of saline-alkali soil, and the effects of planting halophytes on soil water and salt dynamics. Also, this study points out the existing problems in the research of biological salt removal in arid areas of the northwest and suggests prospects for further research works. The study can provide decision bases for making reasonable, efficient and comprehensive salt removal systems in arid area agriculture and is of great significance for realizing salt balance in farmland, alleviating soil secondary salinization crisis and soil sustainable utilization.