Are You Seeking Asylum?

An asylum seeker is a term used to define someone who has fled their home country in search of protection in another country. Asylum seekers cannot receive protection from their home country and are of any age, gender, race, nationality, and socio-economic status—though the majority come from areas suffering from conflict, a weak ruling of laws, and disaster.

Persecution-fearing individual inside the United States borders may seek asylum in the U.S.

Every year, asylum seekers enter the United States looking for protection against persecution or fear of future persecution based on the following:

Race;
Religion;
Political opinion;
Nationality; or
Membership in a Particular Social Group (PSG)—a group of people sharing a common identity.

The U.S. applies the term “asylee” to anyone granted asylum. Under U.S. immigration law, asylees are legally allowed to stay without fear of deportation. If specific requirements are met, they are qualified to work, travel abroad, and apply for their immediate relatives (spouse and children under the age of 21) to join them.

Only asylum seekers that are actually present in the United States may file a petition for asylum.

Affirmative Asylum Processes with the USCIS

To acquire asylum through the United States affirmative asylum process, you must be physically present in the U.S. Any asylum seeker may apply for asylum regardless of their immigration status or if their arrival to the United States was lawful or unlawful. However, you must apply for asylum within one year of the latest date you arrived in the U.S. with certain narrow exceptions.

Those who can show the following will not have the one-year time constraint applied to their asylum:

Exceptional circumstances that resulted in the delay of your filing for asylum, or there are changed happenstances that affected your ability to seek asylum; and
You filled within a reasonable timeline as a result of those circumstances.

U.S. Residency While Application for Asylum Pends

Asylum seekers may reside in the United States while their Form I-589, Application for Asylum, pends before the USCIS. If the application is unqualified, it will be referred to an Immigration Judge. Asylum seekers may remain in the U.S. while Form I-589 pends with an Immigration Judge.

Application Process for Applying for Asylum in the United States

1. Arrive in the U.S.

All asylum seekers must be physically present in the U.S. to apply for asylum.

2. File an Application for Asylum

You must file Form I-589 with the USCIS within one year of your latest arrival to the U.S.—unless you qualify for an exemption to the 1-year deadline.

Should an asylum seeker fail to file Form I-589 within the 1-year deadline, they may not be qualified to apply for asylum.

3. Fingerprinting and Background Checks

The USCIS will issue asylum seekers an Application Support Center (ASC) Appointment Notice. It’s advised all asylum seekers read the Appointment Notice and carry it to the fingerprinting appointment at the ASC. Asylum applicants are not required to pay a fingerprinting fee.

If an asylum seeker is also requesting asylum for their spouse and children, they must accompany you in the United States and be present at their ASC appointment.

4. Receive an Interview Notice

Depending on your residence, the USCIS will schedule an interview with an asylum officer at a USCIS field office or a USCIS asylum office. The interview notice will detail the asylum interview’s date, time, and location.

5. Interview

Asylum seekers can bring an attorney or an accredited representative to the interview. The asylum applicant must also bring their spouse and children seeking derivative asylum benefits to the interview.

6. Decision underway

The asylum officer will decide whether or not the applicant qualifies. The officer will also see if the applicant meets the definition of a refugee and will find if you are barred from being granted asylum.

7. Receive Decision

Most asylum applicants will return to the asylum office to retrieve the decision after the interview.

If you are considering filing a writ of mandamus to compel an immigration agency to act on your case, Krewson Law can help. Krewson Law has extensive experience and knows how to file the necessary paperwork and plead your case before a federal judge. Rachel Krewson understands the frustration of an inactive immigration case and will work diligently to have your case moving again.

Contact Krewson law today for a consultation if you require help with any aspect of the U.S. immigration process.
Krewson Law is here to help your family safely and legally into the United States.