Affirmative Asylum

If you are present in the United States and not in removal proceedings, you can file for asylum affirmatively with USCIS. After an application is filed, USCIS will issue a receipt notice to let the applicant know that the document was properly filed.  If you do not receive a receipt notice within 30 days, the application may not have been properly filed. This is a frequent occurrence, so it is very important to follow USCIS instructions. Please review your application, ensure that all the instructions for the application have been followed, and re-submit the application to USCIS. It is important to remember that a properly filed application must be received by USCIS before an applicant’s one-year deadline (within one year of your arrival into the U.S.). There are exceptions that apply.*

Because USCIS receives hundreds of applications, always make sure to mail the package with signature confirmation of receipt for your personal record.

New applications could be scheduled for an interview as soon as 4-6 weeks after the asylum application is received by USCIS. If all new applications are processed and there are additional interview slots, the asylum offices will choose a case from the backlog following a “last in first out” format. Under this policy, the asylum offices are scheduling interviews for applications filed before January 29, 2018, choosing the most recent cases first and moving backwards.

At the interview, applicants generally describe what (if anything) happened in the past and what they fear may happen in the future if they are forced to return to their country of origin. Two weeks after the interview, the applicant generally returns in person to pick up the decision. In some cases, the decision may not be ready for many weeks, in which case, it will be mailed to the applicant.