If you are present in the U.S.—no matter your current immigration status—and you believe returning to your home country will subject you to persecution, you may be at a loss for what to do. Affirmative asylum is a way of asking the government for protection so you can remain in the U.S. This is something you can apply for and remain in the country if removal proceedings have not begun.
If the United States Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS) deems your application ineligible, you can continue to remain in the U.S. pending a review hearing before an immigration judge. USCIS reports that affirmative asylum seekers are rarely detained while an application or review is ongoing.
The application and vetting process is not simple. You must prove you will be persecuted upon returning to your home nation. However, this burden of proof does not always mean providing evidence of torture, imprisonment, or execution. The applicant’s testimony, if credible, may be sufficient to meet the standard. Even if the applicant previously established a credible fear of persecution, they may still bear the additional burden of proving eligibility for asylum. For help interpreting the U.S. immigration process, contact a Palm Bay affirmative asylum lawyer now.
The asylum process protects visitors from oppressive countries when they validly fear persecution primarily because of their:
The asylum process ensures that individuals who face threats based on these factors have a legal pathway to seek safety and protection in the United States.
For affirmative asylum, Form I-589, you must file an Application for Asylum and Withholding of Removal within one year of the last date you arrived in the U.S., with limited variance for exceptions. It does not matter if you are in the country on a valid temporary visa or undocumented when you apply. If the deportation process has begun against you, you are seeking defensive asylum. A Palm Bay affirmative asylum attorney could review your status and help gather evidence to substantiate your fears of persecution or retribution.
Defensive asylum allows you to defend yourself from deportation in immigration court held at the U.S. Executive Office of Immigration. This may apply if you were apprehended at a U.S. entry point or by a Customs and Border Protection agent without proper documentation, or if your affirmative asylum application has been denied. The judge will hear your attorney’s argument about why you should be granted asylum, which counsel for the government will oppose. If your affirmative asylum petition is denied, a skilled Palm Bay asylum attorney could present a compelling case for defensive asylum to help protect you from deportation.
One strong way to establish your fear of persecution in your native country is to offer details of persecution against you in the past. The USCIS or an immigration judge will review any corroborating evidence, such as newspaper or magazine articles, photos or video clips of unrest or direct harm to you, and witness affidavits.
Persecution is legally regarded as occurring when a government inflicts suffering or harm on a citizen because they are unable or unwilling to control them or cannot change a trait the government deems undesirable, such as ethnicity. To help establish your eligibility, a Palm Bay affirmative asylum attorney could help you prepare a detailed narrative that clearly outlines the persecution you have experienced and its connection to your fear of future harm.
Although affirmative asylum and refugee status are similar, asylees are already in the U.S. when applying, while refugees have no presence outside their native country but are unwilling to stay due to dire conditions. Refugees apply for status at an overseas USCIS office, while asylees apply within the U.S. The application process is different, but both applicants may be able to remain in the U.S., at least until the conditions in their native countries reverse themselves.
Affirmative asylum is reserved for a foreign national who must already be in the U.S. and not currently targeted for deportation. The stressful requirement is fear of persecution upon returning to your home country.
If you fit the description, this could be the right route toward living permanently in America. Call our dedicated Palm Bay affirmative asylum lawyer today to learn how we can help you.