B
O
C
ASYLUM:
Who is Eligible to Apply?
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 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, but you may 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 file within one year. These may include certain
changes in the conditions in your country, certain changes in your
own circumstances, and certain other events. You must apply for
asylum within a reasonable time given those circumstances.
You will be barred from applying for asylum if you previously
applied for asylum and were denied by the Immigration Judge or
Board of Immigration Appeals, unless you demonstrate that there
are changed circumstances which materially affect your eligibility
for asylum. You will also be barred if you could be removed to a
safe third country pursuant to a bilateral or multilateral agreement.
Can I Still Apply For Asylum Even If I Am Illegally in the United
States?
Yes, you may apply even if you are here illegally. You may apply
for asylum regardless of your immigration status as long as you file
your application within one year of your last arrival or demonstrate
that you are eligible for an exception to that rule based on changed
circumstances or extraordinary circumstances, and that you filed
for asylum within a reasonable amount of time given those
circumstances.
Can I Apply For Asylum Even If I Was Convicted of a Crime?
Yes, you may apply. However, you may be barred from being
granted asylum depending on the crime. You must disclose any
criminal history on your Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for
Withholding of Removal, and at your asylum interview. Failure to
disclose such information may result in your asylum claim being
referred to the Immigration Court, and possible fines or
imprisonment for committing perjury.
What About My Spouse and Children?
You must list your spouse and all your children on your Form I-589
regardless of their age, marital status, whether they are in the
United States, or whether or not they are included in your
application or filing a separate asylum application.
You may ask to have included in your asylum decision your spouse
and/or any children who are under the age of 21 and unmarried, if
they are in the United States. This means that, if you are granted
asylum, they will also be granted asylum status and will be allowed
to remain in the United States incident to your asylum status.
However, if you are referred to the Immigration Court, they will also
be referred to the court for removal proceedings. You should refer
to the instructions in Form I-589 for information on the documents
you will be required to submit establishing your family relationships,
such as marriage certificates and birth certificates.
Children who are married and/or children who are 21 years of age
or older at the time you file your asylum application must file
separately for asylum by submitting their own asylum applications
(Form I-589).
Once you are granted asylum, you may petition to bring your
spouse and/or children (unmarried and under the age of 21 as of
the date you filed the asylum application, as long as your asylum
application was pending on or after August 6, 2002) to the United
States or to allow those already here, who were not included in
your asylum decision, to remain incident to your asylum status.
Please see Grant of Asylum for more information.
What Happens if My Child Turns 21 After I Have Filed My
Asylum Application?
Under the Child Status Protection Act, signed into law by President
Bush on August 6, 2002, your child will continue to be classified as
a child if he or she turned 21 years of age after your asylum
application was filed but while it was pending. Your child must have
been unmarried and under 21 years of age on the date that you
filed your I-589. The “filing date” is the date that USCIS received
your application.
There is no requirement that your child have been included as a
dependent on your asylum application at the time of filing, only that
your child be included prior to the decision made on your claim.
This means that you may add to your asylum application an
unmarried son or daughter who is 21 years of age, but who was 20
at the time you filed your asylum application.
What is the Fee?
There is no fee to apply for asylum.
How Does The Asylum Officer or Immigration Judge
Determine If I Am Eligible for Asylum?
The Asylum Officer or Immigration Judge will determine if you are
eligible by evaluating whether you meet the definition of a refugee.
The definition, which can be found 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.
The Asylum Officer or Immigration Judge will also consider
whether any bars apply. You will be barred from being
granted asylum under INA § 208(b)(2) if you:
You will also be barred from being granted asylum under INA
§ 208 if you are inadmissible under INA § 212(a)(3)(B) or
removable under INA § 237(a)(4)(B) because you:
*These two categories were added by the Uniting and
Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to
Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT Act, P.L. 107-56,
October 26, 2001), which was passed in response to the
September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
How Long Does the Process Take?
The time frames below apply only if you will be scheduled for an
interview at one of the eight asylum offices. 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.
Who is Eligible to Apply?
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 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, but you may 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 file within one year. These may include certain
changes in the conditions in your country, certain changes in your
own circumstances, and certain other events. You must apply for
asylum within a reasonable time given those circumstances.
You will be barred from applying for asylum if you previously
applied for asylum and were denied by the Immigration Judge or
Board of Immigration Appeals, unless you demonstrate that there
are changed circumstances which materially affect your eligibility
for asylum. You will also be barred if you could be removed to a
safe third country pursuant to a bilateral or multilateral agreement.
Can I Still Apply For Asylum Even If I Am Illegally in the United
States?
Yes, you may apply even if you are here illegally. You may apply
for asylum regardless of your immigration status as long as you file
your application within one year of your last arrival or demonstrate
that you are eligible for an exception to that rule based on changed
circumstances or extraordinary circumstances, and that you filed
for asylum within a reasonable amount of time given those
circumstances.
Can I Apply For Asylum Even If I Was Convicted of a Crime?
Yes, you may apply. However, you may be barred from being
granted asylum depending on the crime. You must disclose any
criminal history on your Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for
Withholding of Removal, and at your asylum interview. Failure to
disclose such information may result in your asylum claim being
referred to the Immigration Court, and possible fines or
imprisonment for committing perjury.
What About My Spouse and Children?
You must list your spouse and all your children on your Form I-589
regardless of their age, marital status, whether they are in the
United States, or whether or not they are included in your
application or filing a separate asylum application.
You may ask to have included in your asylum decision your spouse
and/or any children who are under the age of 21 and unmarried, if
they are in the United States. This means that, if you are granted
asylum, they will also be granted asylum status and will be allowed
to remain in the United States incident to your asylum status.
However, if you are referred to the Immigration Court, they will also
be referred to the court for removal proceedings. You should refer
to the instructions in Form I-589 for information on the documents
you will be required to submit establishing your family relationships,
such as marriage certificates and birth certificates.
Children who are married and/or children who are 21 years of age
or older at the time you file your asylum application must file
separately for asylum by submitting their own asylum applications
(Form I-589).
Once you are granted asylum, you may petition to bring your
spouse and/or children (unmarried and under the age of 21 as of
the date you filed the asylum application, as long as your asylum
application was pending on or after August 6, 2002) to the United
States or to allow those already here, who were not included in
your asylum decision, to remain incident to your asylum status.
Please see Grant of Asylum for more information.
What Happens if My Child Turns 21 After I Have Filed My
Asylum Application?
Under the Child Status Protection Act, signed into law by President
Bush on August 6, 2002, your child will continue to be classified as
a child if he or she turned 21 years of age after your asylum
application was filed but while it was pending. Your child must have
been unmarried and under 21 years of age on the date that you
filed your I-589. The “filing date” is the date that USCIS received
your application.
There is no requirement that your child have been included as a
dependent on your asylum application at the time of filing, only that
your child be included prior to the decision made on your claim.
This means that you may add to your asylum application an
unmarried son or daughter who is 21 years of age, but who was 20
at the time you filed your asylum application.
What is the Fee?
There is no fee to apply for asylum.
How Does The Asylum Officer or Immigration Judge
Determine If I Am Eligible for Asylum?
The Asylum Officer or Immigration Judge will determine if you are
eligible by evaluating whether you meet the definition of a refugee.
The definition, which can be found 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.
The Asylum Officer or Immigration Judge will also consider
whether any bars apply. You will be barred from being
granted asylum under INA § 208(b)(2) if you:
- 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 - Were convicted of a particularly serious crime (includes
aggravated felonies) - Committed a serious nonpolitical crime outside the United
States - Pose a danger to the security of the United States
- Firmly resettled in another country prior to arriving in the
United States (see 8 CFR § 208.15 for a definition of “firm
resettlement”)
You will also be barred from being granted asylum under INA
§ 208 if you are inadmissible under INA § 212(a)(3)(B) or
removable under INA § 237(a)(4)(B) because you:
- Have engaged in terrorist activity;
- 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); - Have, under any circumstances indicating an intention to
cause death or serious bodily harm, incited terrorist activity; - Are a representative of
- a foreign terrorist organization, as designated by the
Secretary of State under section 219 of the INA, or a
political, social, or other similar group whose public
endorsement of acts of terrorist activity the Secretary
of State has determined undermines United States
efforts to reduce or eliminate terrorist activities;* - Are a member of a foreign terrorist organization, as
designated by the Secretary of State under section
219 of the INA, or which you know or should have
known is a terrorist organization; - Have used a position of prominence within any country
to endorse or espouse terrorist activity, or to persuade
others to support terrorist activity or a terrorist
organization, in a way that the Secretary of State has
determined undermines United States efforts to reduce
or eliminate terrorist activities.*
*These two categories were added by the Uniting and
Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to
Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT Act, P.L. 107-56,
October 26, 2001), which was passed in response to the
September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
How Long Does the Process Take?
The time frames below apply only if you will be scheduled for an
interview at one of the eight asylum offices. 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.
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OKOYE
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