Should You Hire an Asylum Attorney?
An asylum attorney will help you apply for asylum and evaluate if you are eligible for any other forms of deportation relief.
If you’ve been living in the United States without citizenship documentation, you may want to explore the option of filing for asylum.
Asylum is a protection granted to foreign nationals who meet the international definition of a “refugee” and demonstrate a well-founded fear of persecution based on one of five criteria: race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group (including most LGBTQ group).
Filing for asylum is a complex process, so we recommend connecting with an experienced asylum lawyer.
Today, we’re taking a closer look at asylum so you understand your options.
Let’s get started …
What Is Asylum?
If you are an immigrant and want to remain in the U.S., there is a legal process you need to follow. It is a complicated process so hiring an attorney to represent you and help you prove that you need the protection of the U.S. government.
Since 1994, the U.S. immigration laws have included persecution based on sexual orientation as a basis for asylum. HIV-positive and transgender individuals have also been granted asylum as well as those who have engaged in rights activism for one of these groups and fear persecution in their home countries.
Asylum enables these foreign nationals to remain in the U.S. indefinitely.
Usually, filing for asylum status must occur within one year of the applicant’s last entry into the U.S. After one year of being granted asylum, they may apply for lawful permanent residence (green card).
Further reading: Green Card Requirements
Have You Been Persecuted?
You should seek a lawyer if you have been persecuted or fear persecution based on the criteria above.
While it is not defined precisely, persecution is considered to be the mistreatment that is inflicted either directly by a foreign government, or by individuals whom the government cannot or will not control. Abuse that is more significant than simple harassment or discrimination and has occurred over a long period of time can be considered persecution.
If you have not yet been persecuted but fear it will happen in the future, you may still win a case of asylum, but it is more difficult to demonstrate.
So, if you think you have a case, how do you go about gaining asylum in the U.S.?
Gaining Asylum In the U.S.
There are two ways to gain asylum in the United States. People who have not yet been involved in the deportation process can present their cases in an office-like setting to immigration officers at the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The USCIS is part of the Department of Homeland Security. This is an affirmative applicant asylum request.
People who request asylum as a defense against being deported from the U.S. must prove their cases to an Immigration Judge at the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), which is part of the Department of Justice. If the USCIS process results in a negative decision, the applicant is eligible for a second chance request with the Immigration Judge. In this de novo hearing, the judge is not obligated by the USCIS decision.
The Affirmative Asylum Process
In order to obtain asylum through the affirmative asylum process, you must be physically present in the U.S., and it does not matter how you got here or what your immigration status is.
You must apply within one year of your last arrival in the U.S. or show how circumstances have changed that affect your eligibility.
If you file on your own, you should keep a copy of what you submit for your records. You should send your application by certified mail through FedEx or UPS or some other delivery service so that you have a tracking number for what you sent as proof that you filed for asylum on time.
The asylum application consists of the following:
- Immigration Form I-589
- A declaration (this is your detailed personal statement)
- Any corroborating documents (medical reports, police reports, letters from witnesses, etc.) to back up your personal statement and story
- Documentation on country conditions (e.g. reports on human rights or reports from expert witnesses, newspaper articles, etc. that show how the country’s government treats similar people in your country
After sending your application, the Department of Homeland Security will let you know (by sending you a notice) that your application was properly filed.
If your case is not approved, and you don’t have a legal immigration status, the Department of Homeland Security will issue a Notice to Appear form and forward your case to an Immigration Judge at the EOIR for a de novo (new) hearing.
The Defensive Asylum Process
In general, you would be placed into defensive asylum processing in one of two ways:
- You are referred to an Immigration Judge by USCIS after you have been determined to be ineligible for asylum at the end of the affirmative asylum process, or
- You are placed in removal proceedings because you:
- Were apprehended the U.S. or U.S. port of entry without proper legal documents, or you were in violation of your immigration status, or
- You were apprehended by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) trying to enter the United States without proper documentation, were placed in the expedited removal process and were found (by an asylum officer) to have a credible fear of persecution or torture.
The Immigration Judge will decide whether you are eligible for asylum. If you are found eligible, the Immigration Judge will order asylum for you. If you are found ineligible for asylum, the Immigration Judge will determine whether you are eligible for any other forms of relief from removal.
If you are found ineligible for other forms of relief, the Immigration Judge will order you to be removed from the United States, a decision that can be appealed.
It can be difficult to estimate the timeline of an asylum application.
You could wait months (and sometimes years) to have your asylum interview scheduled. Sometimes, though, applicants are randomly chosen for much quicker processing times. After your interview, you would probably return in person to pick up the decision, although occasionally, the decision is mailed to you.
How An Asylum Lawyer Will Help
Your decision to file for asylum or not is an important one. An attorney can help you understand the consequences of that decision. You can gain legal status in the U.S. and have a pathway to citizenship. Or, without asylum, you may face deportation to the country where you fear persecution and torture.
Research has shown that lawyers do help immigrants get asylum approval.One study by TRAC Immigration shows that, without a lawyer, applicants win only about 11% of their cases.
If you have to appear before an Immigration Court, most judges will pressure you to get a lawyer, and they will usually give you a time to find one.
If you are filing with an Asylum Office, you should still have an attorney, especially if you are filing later than one year and are claiming an exemption or you have been convicted of a crime, and especially if the U.S. government may suspect you of persecuting others or supporting terrorist groups.
There are other information or issues that may arise that you would have to answer for or explain. Your best chance to remain in this country is to have a qualified attorney help you prove that the U.S. is your only source of protection.
Are you in search for a certified attorney to represent you?
Let us help you find one today!
