What Are the Requirements for Asylum?

Asylum provides protection to people who have fled their home country and are unable or unwilling to return due to persecution.

Eligibility. You must demonstrate a well-founded fear of persecution based on one of five protected grounds:

Race — Ethnicity or racial group.

Religion — Religious beliefs or practices.

Nationality — Country of origin or ethnic group.

Political opinion — Actual or imputed political beliefs.

Particular social group — A group sharing a common characteristic that members cannot or should not be required to change (e.g., LGBTQ+ individuals, certain family groups).

Types of asylum:

Affirmative asylum — Filed with USCIS if you are not in removal proceedings. You attend an interview with an asylum officer.

Defensive asylum — Raised as a defense in removal (deportation) proceedings before an immigration judge.

One-year filing deadline. You must file for asylum within one year of your last arrival in the U.S. Limited exceptions exist for changed circumstances or extraordinary circumstances.

Bars to asylum:

Participation in persecution of others

Conviction of a particularly serious crime

Commission of a serious non-political crime outside the U.S.

Security-related grounds

Firm resettlement in another country

If granted asylum:

You can live and work in the U.S.

You can apply for a green card after one year.

You can petition for certain family members.

This is legal information, not legal advice.