Asylum Application Process in Maryland
In Maryland, individuals can apply for asylum at the USCIS office in Baltimore or, if in removal proceedings, directly to the immigration court.
The application for asylum is called the I-589 Application. This is a USCIS form that basically contains information about the applicant’s biographical background, family, and fear of return. Essentially, this form is the first part of the application. The second and most important part of the application is the applicant’s personal statement, which thoroughly details the reasons that he or she fears he will be persecuted upon return to his or her home country. The third part of the application requires that the applicant submit extensive documentary evidence to illustrate his or her claim. The documentary evidence required by the application depends upon the individual’s claim and how much evidence is necessary to provide it. Thus, the full length of the application will differ between applicants.
There are many different circumstances which affect the asylum application process for Maryland, and therefore, it is important to have a Maryland asylum lawyer on your side to help you navigate the process, and to explain any complexities.
What to Expect from the Process
The process for applying for asylum depends on whether the applicant is in removal proceedings or not. If the applicant is involved in removal proceedings, he or she will submit a defensive application directly to the immigration court. Under these circumstances, the applicant will first submit a basic skeletal application that includes the USCIS Form 589, a personal statement, and initial documentary evidence to corroborate the applicant’s claim. He or she will submit this package to the judge and then the judge will set a date for the applicant’s individual hearing. Prior to that individual hearing, the applicant will need to supplement the application with additional evidence and a brief that outlines his or her claim for asylum and any legal foundation on which it is based.
If the applicant is not involved in removal proceedings, he or she will apply for asylum affirmatively. Affirmative applications are submitted to a USCIS office that will then send receipt notices to the applicant or his or her attorney, and then schedule the applicant for fingerprints. Once this part of the process is complete, the USCIS office will schedule the applicant for an individual interview at which the applicant may tell his or her individual story.
Difficulty of the Process
This difficulty of the application process depends on if the applicant is involved in removal proceedings or not. Generally, defensive applications are more difficult, requiring a higher standard. Also, when individuals are involved in removal proceedings, their asylum claims will be contested and cross-examined by a prosecutor who will try to find faults in their declarations and the viability of their claims.
In an affirmative asylum setting, the application for asylum is not a contested matter so there is not an average adversarial process. In this application process, the applicant applies directly in front of the USCIS adjudicator. Because of this, the affirmative process is a little bit less form and a little more simple. If an individual’s application is denied at the USCIS level, then his or her case will be referred to the immigration court, allowing the applicant a second chance to argue and defend his or her claim.
Length of Application Process
The length of the asylum application process depends on whether the applicant is applying affirmatively or defensively. If he or she is applying affirmatively with USCIS, the length of the application process will depend on the volume of applications and wait period at the office to which the individual is applying. For instance, the standard wait time for asylum interviews for individuals affirmatively applying for asylum in Arlington and Baltimore is approximately two years, while the wait time for individual asylum hearings is even longer.
For individuals belonging to one of the categories of people for whom the government is currently providing expedited asylum hearings, such as unaccompanied minors, the asylum application process will likely be shorter. However, although such individuals may experience an expedited application process, the general application process takes approximately two years for affirmative applications and five to six years of defensive applications.
Documents to Submit
The necessary documents will differ from case to case. Some people have, for instance, submitted police reports or medical records, or threatening letters, or things of a similar nature as hard evidence to prove their claim.
Many applicants, however, do not have any evidence apart from their own declaration. In those cases, the applicant will need to do other things to supplement his or her case. For instance, the applicant may pay particular attention to the supporting and corroborating evidence that he or she submits, such as newspaper or blog articles from his or her home country or international media outlets. In these instances, condition reports from the Department of State may also provide sufficient corroborating evidence.
Submission Timeframe
The timeframe for submitting these documents depends upon whether the applicant is involved in removal proceedings. If the applicant is applying affirmatively with the USCIS office, he or she will need to check with the specific USCIS office to which he or she is applying as the rules for submission of evidence differ from office to office. In Maryland, it is advisable that an applicant submit all supporting documents a month ahead of time, though, it is required that he or she submit at least 10 days prior.
If an applicant is in immigration court, his or her deadline for submitting documents will depend on the judge assigned to his or her case as the judge can set a timeline for how many days prior to the individual hearing the documents must be submitted. In general, however, applicants should aim to submit 45 days prior to their assigned hearings.
Getting an Attorney’s Help
If possible, it is definitely better to hire an attorney. The asylum application process is very legally-complex, requiring that the applicant ensure that his or her case is well-documented in terms of the applicant’s membership in a particular social group and the connection of that membership to future persecution. In this way, the applicant’s case must be well-documented and clearly laid out to the immigration court or the USCIS office. In many cases, this can involve complicated and nuanced legal argument; thus, it is definitely advisable that an applicant have an attorney.