Asylum & Withholding of Removal
Individuals fleeing persecution in their home countries may be eligible to seek asylum in the U.S.
To determine whether you qualify for asylum, ask yourself the following questions:
If you answered "yes" to all of the questions above, you may qualify for asylum or withholding of removal in the U.S. You may still qualify for withholding of removal even if you have been in the U.S. for longer than one year, though this must be decided by an Immigration Judge.
However, even if you meet the criteria, certain individuals are barred from obtaining asylum. These include people who:
If you are granted asylum, you will be able to apply for work authorization. Later you will have the ability to apply for lawful permanent resident status, and eventually citizenship, in the U.S. Certain family members in the U.S. can also be granted asylum through your application, and you will have the ability to petition for certain other family members to come to the U.S.
However, if you are granted withholding of removal, additional family members will not receive this status and you will not have the ability to become a lawful permanent resident or U.S. citizen. You will still be granted work authorization and acknowledgement that you will not be returned to your country of origin.
Contact our attorneys for a more in-depth inquiry into your case.
To determine whether you qualify for asylum, ask yourself the following questions:
- Are you currently in the U.S.?
- Did your government harm you, or fail to stop others from harming you, because of your: a. Race
- Are you unable or unwilling to return to your home country because of the prior or future harm caused by the government?
- Have you been in the U.S. for a year or less, or are you able to show that extraordinary or changed circumstances prevented you from filing for asylum within your first year of presence in the U.S.?
- b. Religion
- c. Nationality
- d. Membership in a Particular Social Group, or
- e. Political Opinion?
- 2a. If not, do you fear that your government will cause you harm in the future?
If you answered "yes" to all of the questions above, you may qualify for asylum or withholding of removal in the U.S. You may still qualify for withholding of removal even if you have been in the U.S. for longer than one year, though this must be decided by an Immigration Judge.
However, even if you meet the criteria, certain individuals are barred from obtaining asylum. These include people who:
- Have resettled in another country;
- Were convicted of a "particularly serious crime;"
- Pose a danger to the security of the U.S.;
- Have participated in the persecution of another person;
- Have engaged in terrorist activity; or
- Have committed a non-political crime outside the U.S.
If you are granted asylum, you will be able to apply for work authorization. Later you will have the ability to apply for lawful permanent resident status, and eventually citizenship, in the U.S. Certain family members in the U.S. can also be granted asylum through your application, and you will have the ability to petition for certain other family members to come to the U.S.
However, if you are granted withholding of removal, additional family members will not receive this status and you will not have the ability to become a lawful permanent resident or U.S. citizen. You will still be granted work authorization and acknowledgement that you will not be returned to your country of origin.
Contact our attorneys for a more in-depth inquiry into your case.
