Asylum

ASYLUM

Who is eligible for asylum?

Asylum may be granted to people who are arriving in or already physically present in the United States. To apply for asylum in the United States, you may ask for asylum at a port-of-entry (airport, seaport, or land border crossing), or file Form I-589 (Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal), at the appropriate Service Center within one year of your arrival in the United States. You may apply for asylum regardless of your immigration status, whether you are in the United States legally or illegally.

You must apply for asylum within one year of your last arrival in the United States. You may also apply for asylum later than one year if there are changed circumstances that materially affect your eligibility for asylum or extraordinary circumstances directly related to your failure to apply within one year. These may include certain changes in the conditions in your country, certain changes in your own circumstances, and certain other events. We strongly recommend you consult with an immigration attorney before filing an I-589 Asylum Application after being more than one (1) year in the United States.

Who is ineligible to apply for asylum?

You will be barred from applying for asylum if you:

failed to file an asylum application (Form I-589) within one (1) year of your last arrival in the United States. Exceptions to this rule: The applicant demonstrates either the existence of changed circumstances (example: changes in conditions in the applicant’s country of nationality;) which materially affect the applicant’s eligibility for asylum or extraordinary circumstances (example: serious illness or mental or physical disability, ineffective assistance of previous attorney) relating to the delay in filing. Actually, this is a very delicate issue and we strongly recommend you consult with an immigration attorney before filing an I-589 Asylum Application after being more than one (1) year in the United States; or

previously applied for asylum and your application was denied by the Immigration Judge or Board of Immigration Appeals (exceptions: you may demonstrate that there are changed circumstances mentioned in above paragraph A which materially affect your eligibility for asylum); or

could be removed to a safe third country pursuant to a bilateral or multilateral agreement; or

ordered, incited, assisted, or otherwise participated in the persecution of any person on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion; or

were convicted of a particularly serious crime such that is a danger to the U.S. (including an aggravated felony as defined under INA § 101(a)(43)); or

committed a serious nonpolitical crime outside the United States; or

pose a danger to the security of the United States; or

have been firmly resettled in another country prior to arriving in the United States; or

have engaged in terrorist activity; or

are engaged in or are likely to engage after entry in any terrorist activity (a consular officer or the Attorney General knows, or has reasonable grounds to believe, that this is the case); or

Have, under any circumstances indicating an intention to cause death or serious bodily harm, incited terrorist activity;

are or have ever been a member of a terrorist organization, or

have received military-type training from or on behalf of any organization that, at the time the training was received, was a terrorist organization; or

are the spouse or child of an alien who is inadmissible under this subparagraph, if the activity causing the alien to be found inadmissible occurred within the last 5 years. To qualify as a “child,” the individual must be unmarried and under 21 years of age.,

How and Where to apply for asylum?

To apply for asylum, you will need to complete Form I-589 (Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal) and follow the instructions carefully. The table below summarizes where you will need to file your Form I-589. See 8 CFR § 208.4(b).

Circumstance	Where to File Your Form I-589
Applying for asylum for the first time and have not been placed in removal proceedings in Immigration Court	Service Center that has jurisdiction over your place of residence. Information about where to send your application can be found in the instructions to Form I-589. USCIS will confirm in writing its receipt of your completed application.
Previously applied for and were denied asylum by INS or USCIS Previously included in a spouse’s or parent’s pending application but no longer eligible to be included as a derivative	Asylum Office having jurisdiction over your place of residence. Include a letter with your application stating that you previously applied for asylum and were denied, or that you are now filing independently for asylum and reference the application on which you were a dependent.
Currently in removal proceedings in Immigration Court	Immigration Court having jurisdiction over your place of residence. Information about the Immigration Courts can be found at http://www.usdoj.gov/eoir

What is filing fee

There is no fee to apply for asylum.

How long does the process take?

The time frames below apply only if you will be scheduled for an interview at an asylum office. Time frames vary for those who live far from an asylum office because asylum officers must travel to other offices in order to conduct the long-distance interviews.

The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) provides in Section 208(d)(5) that the initial interview on asylum applications filed on or after April 1, 1997 should take place within 45 days after the date the application is filed, and a decision should be made on the asylum application within 180 days after the date the application is filed, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

Applicant files I-589 at the Service Center

Within 21 days of the filing date

Within 45 days of the filing date

Within 60 days of the filing date

Within 180 days of the filing date

The filing date is the date the complete application was received at the Service Center.

Applicant receives:

Receipt notice that USCIS received I-589
Fingerprint appointment notice
Interview notice

Applicant is interviewed at one of the eight asylum offices, unless applicant lives at a significant distance from an asylum office.

Majority of applicants return two weeks after the interview to pick up the decisions on their application, including referrals to the Immigration Court for final determination.

Applicants whose cases have been referred to the Immigration Court receive a decision on their applications.

How my case is decided?

The Asylum Officer or Immigration Judge will determine if you are eligible by evaluating whether you meet the definition of a refugee. The definition, in section 101(a)(42)(A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), states that a refugee is someone who is unable or unwilling to return to and avail himself or herself of the protection of his or her home country or, if stateless, country of last habitual residence because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. The determination of whether you meet the definition of a refugee will be based on information you provide on your application and during an interview with an Asylum Officer or at a hearing before an Immigration Judge.

Legal Definition of Refugee

The Immigration and Nationality Act defines "refugee" in Sec. 101(a)(42) as:

any person who is outside any country of such person's nationality or, in the case of a person having no nationality, is outside any country in which such person last habitually resided, and who is unable or unwilling to return to, and is unable or unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of, that country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion, or

in such circumstances as the President after appropriate consultation (as defined in section 207(e) of this Act) may specify, any person who is within the country of such person's nationality or, in the case of a person having no nationality, within the country in which such person is habitually residing, and who is persecuted or who has a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. The term "refugee" does not include any person who ordered, incited, assisted, or otherwise participated in the persecution of any person on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. For purposes of determinations under this Act, a person who has been forced to abort a pregnancy or to undergo involuntary sterilization, or who has been persecuted for failure or refusal to undergo such a procedure or for other resistance to a coercive population control program, shall be deemed to have been persecuted on account of political opinion, and a person who has a well founded fear that he or she will be forced to undergo such a procedure or subject to persecution for such failure, refusal, or resistance shall be deemed to have a well founded fear of persecution on account of political opinion.

Bringing Your Family to the United States

If you are granted asylum you may petition to bring your spouse and children to the United States. To include your child on your application, the child must be under 21 and unmarried at the time when you applied for asylum.

You must file the petition within two years of being granted asylum unless there are humanitarian reasons to excuse this deadline. There is no fee to file this petition.

Filing for Permanent Residence (Green Card)

You may apply for a green card one year after being granted asylum. You must submit a separate application for adjustment of status for yourself and, if applicable, for each family member who received derivative asylee status based on your case.

CONFIDENTIALITY

The information and documents you submit to US CIS will be used to make a determination on your application for asylum. They may also be provided to other government agencies (Federal, State, local, and/or foreign) for purposes of investigation or legal action on criminal and/or civil matters and for issued arising form the adjudication of immigration benefits. However, no information indicating that you have applied for asylum will be provided to any government or country from which you claim a fear of persecution.

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