Immigrants & Immigration

Asylum is a form of protection for people in the US who fear persecution in their home country. If a person is granted asylum, then they are allowed to stay in US. There are three ways to apply: affirmatively, defensively, and when in expedited removal.

The US government must find the applicant is a “refugee” under US law. A refugee is a person who is afraid to return to their home country for specific reasons. A person must fear persecution in their home countries because of their:

• Race,
• Religion,
• Nationality,
• Political opinion, or
• Membership in a particular social group (this includes sexual orientation or gender identity).

The applicant must show that they were targeted or would be targeted for persecution based on these five traits. It’s not enough to show that conditions are generally dangerous or bad. Economic issues on their own are not enough to show someone qualifies for asylum. This includes things like not being able to find a job, or not being able to access food.

A person may not be eligible for asylum if they failed to file within one year of arriving in the US. There are exceptions. The person applying must prove:

• Changed circumstances that affected a person’s ability to get asylum, or
• Extraordinary circumstances relating to a delay in filing.

Changed circumstances include:

• Changes in country's conditions,
• Changes in the laws that affect your eligibility,
• Changes in family dynamics, such marriage, divorce, and death, and
• Changes in children’s ages.

Extraordinary circumstances include:

• Serious illness,
• Mental or physical disabilities, and
• Legal disability, such as a person’s status as an unaccompanied child or a mental impairment.

A person cannot apply for asylum if they were already denied asylum, unless their circumstances changed.

Certain other people are also forbidden from applying for asylum, or being granted asylum. These are mandatory bars to asylum. Mandatory bars include when a person:

• Has been convicted of a particularly serious crime,
• Has been found to be a significant danger to the US,
• Can move to a different country because of a treaty between the US and that country,
• Has had or received an offer or permanent residence in another country before coming to the US,
• Has been found to have persecuted others for their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group, or
• Has been found to have engaged in terrorist activities.

Generally, persecution is when someone is severely harmed by someone. This includes physical persecution, like being beaten, tortured, or unlawfully imprisoned. It can also include non-physical persecution like forbidding someone from practicing their religion. Non-physical harm can include serious and credible threats of violence or death. 

Note: To qualify for asylum a person must show that they were persecuted or would be persecuted because of their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular group. It’s not enough to show that conditions are dangerous generally. Economic issues alone are generally not enough to show someone qualifies for asylum.

Starting in July 2025, people applying for asylum must pay a $100 application fee. This fee applies whether the application is filed with USCIS or with the immigration court.

People must also pay a $100 fee every year to keep their asylum case active. These fees cannot be waived.

If a person includes a spouse or children in their asylum application, there is no extra charge. But if they want to apply for permission to work, each person must pay a $550 application fee.

One year after filing, asylum seekers must pay a $100 fee to keep their case open.

Because this rule is new, USCIS and the immigration court are handling older cases in different ways.

• If the application was filed with USCIS on or before September 30, 2024, the person must pay the $100 fee to keep their case open.
• If the application was filed with the immigration court on or before July 7, 2024, the person must pay the $100 fee to keep their case open.

From now on, everyone filing a new asylum application will have to pay the fee every year.

A person can apply for a work authorization card (permit) 150 days after they filed their asylum application. A work permit lasts for two years and it can be renewed. They can also get a Social Security card when they apply for a work permit.

A person given asylum can live safely in the US without fear of deportation. They can also file applications for their spouse and unmarried children under 21 years old if they are outside the US.

Asylum also creates a pathway to citizenship. After a person has asylum status for one year, they can apply to become a lawful permanent resident (LPR or green card holder). After a few years of being an LPR, they can apply to become a US citizen.

If USCIS denies an asylum application, the case will be sent to immigration court. There, an immigration judge will review it. If the judge also denies the case and the person has no other way to stay in the US legally, they may be ordered deported.

Applying for asylum also lets the government know that the person is in the US. For people without legal immigration status, this can increase the chance of being arrested or detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). If a person is already in removal proceedings, the risks of applying are lower, since they are already facing possible deportation.

If the government thinks a person lied about important facts to get asylum, then they might consider their application “frivolous”. If that happens, a permanent note goes in the person’s immigration record. This will block them from getting almost any immigration status or benefit in the future. Because the consequences are so serious, it is extremely important not to file a frivolous application.

If they don’t have a court case in immigration court, then they can file with the USCIS Asylum Office. If a person does have a court case, they must request asylum from an immigration judge.

If a person is placed in expedited removal proceedings, they can be placed in removal proceedings if they express a credible fear of returning to their country and they say they need asylum. There, they’ll be able to apply for asylum with an immigration judge.

Learn more about applying for asylum.

Yes. A person can apply for a work permit 150 days after they submitted their asylum application. They can apply by using Form I-765 online or filing a paper version. The fee to apply for work authorization is $550 as of July 2025.

Work authorization lasts for up to two years. It can be renewed while an asylum case is pending. The fee to renew a work permit is $745 if filing online, and $795 if filing by paper.

Asylum and refugee resettlement are different legal processes. In both instances, the person looking for help must show they meet the definition of “refugee” under US law. A person applies for asylum if they are already in the US. Asylum applications are handled by USCIS and immigration judges in the US.

Refugee resettlement is a process for people outside of the US to show they meet the definition of refugee. The US Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) handles refugee applications from people abroad. USRAP coordinates with refugee resettlement agencies to help get people to the US. These agencies also provide them with services after they arrive.

Withholding of removal is a type of protection. In this case, a judge orders someone removed, but also tells the government not to deport them. The person will still have a removal order on their record, but they will not be sent back to their home country.

To get withholding, the person must show that their life or freedom would be in danger in their home country. This danger must be because of their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.

It is harder to qualify for withholding than for asylum. Only a judge can grant withholding. Withholding also gives fewer benefits than asylum. A person with withholding cannot bring family members to the U.S. and cannot travel outside the U.S. But they will not be deported to their home country, and they can get permission to work. Withholding only protects the person from being sent to the country they fear. They could still be deported to another country that agrees to take them, even years later.

A person may not qualify for asylum but could still qualify for withholding. For example, people who were deported before cannot apply for asylum. People who missed the one-year filing deadline for asylum, and who do not meet an exception, also cannot get asylum. However, they may still qualify for withholding if they can prove that their life or freedom would more likely than not be threatened for one of the five reasons above.

A person can apply for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT) at the same time.

Relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT) is a type of protection that stops the U.S. government from sending someone back to their home country if they can show they would probably be tortured there. Torture means very serious pain or suffering, usually done by the government or with the government’s help.

Like withholding, the judge gives the person a removal order but tells the government not to send them back to their home country. This is harder to prove than asylum or withholding, because torture is seen as an even more serious type of harm than persecution.

A person granted CAT relief will not be able to bring family members to the US, travel outside of the US, or get citizenship. CAT relief only protects the person from being sent to the country they fear. They could still be deported to another country that agrees to take them, even years later. A person can apply for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under CAT at the same time.