Arlington Asylum Lawyer
In order to be granted asylum an applicant must submit an application within one year of their last entry to the US (unless an exception applies). With the help of a Arlington asylum lawyer, you could demonstrate that you have suffered persecution in the past. An experienced immigration attorney could help you establish a well-founded reason to fear persecution motivated by race, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.
Requirements for Asylum Applications
To be granted asylum the applicant must be present in the United States, submit the application within one year of entry (although there are specific exceptions), and fear returning to their country of origin, or where they may be returned, because they have suffered past persecution or has a well-founded fear of future persecution, and the persecution is on account of their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group. Internal relocation must not be possible, and the country is not able or willing to protect the applicant.
What is the Role of an Asylum Applicant?
An asylum applicant must present evidence of either past persecution or a well-founded fear (reasonable fear based on facts) of future persecution. An applicant and an Arlington asylum lawyer could try to prove that they have been persecuted in the past by providing a detailed credible statement about the persecution from the applicant and witnesses, police reports, hospital records, newspaper articles, country conditions, and any other evidence that goes towards what occurred.
In order to demonstrate a well-founded fear of future persecution, the asylum applicant should submit evidence as to why it is reasonable based upon current country conditions or other similar circumstances that the applicant fears persecution on account of their race, nationality, religion, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.
What is the Investigation Process for those Seeking Asylum?
An asylum application can be an affirmative asylum application, in which the applicant submits the application to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, or a defensive asylum application, in which the applicant is in removal proceedings and submits the application to an Immigration Judge in Immigration Court.
If the applicant submits an affirmative application then the adjudicator will be an asylum officer, who will interview the applicant at the nearest asylum office. If the applicant submits a defensive asylum application, the adjudicator will be an Immigration Judge, who will require that the applicant testify in open court at a hearing where an attorney representing the US government will ask questions about the asylum claim.
Timeline of Asylum from Application to Approval
The decision to grant an asylum application is made by either an asylum officer or an immigration judge. If the affirmative application is filed with USCIS, the asylum office, as of January 29. 2018, will schedule interviews that were set for an interview but had to be rescheduled first, thereafter applications that have been pending 21 days or less, and then all other applications last in first out. This means that soon after asylum applications are filed, interviews are scheduled. Within two weeks of the interview, a decision will be issued by the officer.
Important Travel Information for Potential Asylees
An asylee will be granted an opportunity to travel with a travel document, however, an asylee will need to be careful traveling to the country of origin because the asylum claim was based upon a fear to return and if the asylee is able to return the asylee status can be terminated. It may be critical for an applicant to ask Arlington asylum lawyer questions about application considerations.
Asylum applicants should be aware that failing to apply for asylum within one year of entry (barring an exception) will prevent an asylum applicant from being granted asylum. Asylees should be aware that returning to the country where one fears returning can result in questions about whether the asylee can now be returned to the country.