If online reviews of Asylum Officer (“AO”) jobs are to be believed, our nation’s AOs are not doing well. They are overworked, fearful of losing their jobs, and unhappy with management.
Now, I know what you’re thinking – online reviews are not reliable. I agree. My feeling is that anyone who spends 20 minutes reviewing shampoo is not the type of person I want to take advice from–about shampoo or anything else. And so, it is important to take these reviews with a big grain of salt: They are written by anonymous people and we have no way of verifying their claims or knowing whether they have ulterior motives. Online reviews also tend to be written by people who are unhappy about something, and so I imagine that happy AOs are less likely to post a review than unhappy ones. Nevertheless, after looking at about a dozen detailed reviews online and checking with my inside source, I feel pretty confident that these reviews were posted by actual AOs and that they are generally reflective of the situation in our nation’s Asylum Offices.
The website with the AO reviews is called Glassdoor, which bills itself as “one of the world’s largest job and recruiting sites.” Apparently, the negative reviews caught the attention of management and caused a bit of a stir at the Asylum Office. You can see about a dozen AO job reviews here and one more here. Most of the reviews give the AO job one star out of five. The best review gives three stars and the average is 1.6 stars. By comparison, the Glassdoor page for USCIS gives jobs at the agency an overall rating of 3.3 (and this number would be higher if we could factor out AO reviews, which are included with all the other USCIS reviews).
Glassdoor breaks down the reviews into Pros and Cons, and has a section for Advice to Management. Let’s start with some positives. The two most common Pros listed by AOs are health insurance/benefits and that you have the ability to help people. However, even many of the Pros are qualified positives. Here are some Pros from two different AOs–
The Asylum Division has some of the smartest, most dedicated employees. Asylum Officers are highly educated and they are by far some of the most competent people working in the federal government. Many Asylum Officers have taken demotions and pay cuts to work as an Asylum Officer. Also, the cooperation among the Asylum Officers is exemplary. Asylum Officers work very well with each other as they can relate to each other’s pain and suffering while trying to learn this job and keep up with unrealistic demands by management.
You may get an office to yourself, with all the paper clips and staplers all setup for you because whoever you are replacing left in a hurry. You get a first hand horrific glimpse into how tax dollars are wasted, and a lesson in labor law and union “representation”, due to the gross mismanagement and brutalizing egos of socially awkward and millennial minded supervisors and directors. you won’t have to rent horror movies anymore, because you’ll be living in one.
Yes, those are the Pros. The Cons include poor management, an overwhelming case load, high turnover, unrealistic expectations, and working extra hours without pay. Here are some quotes from AOs about the negative aspects of their job. Trigger Warning: These ain’t pretty–
The current White House Administration would love for you to not exist.
The time provided to do interviews, update systems, and write up cases [is] insufficient and forces Asylum Officers to engage in unpaid overtime. If you get a backlog of cases, you may be written up and I have [known] people to [be] fired for having a backlog…. The IT systems Asylum Officers use is 40 years old. This makes doing the job very hard.
The workload is extremely unrealistic. You are expected to read your cases, conduct security checks, prep paperwork, call interpreters, interview 4 people, document miscellaneous items, and then write up your decisions in an 8 hr. day.
Too many [Cons] to list. All around awful experience. This place will be a stain on your professional record.
If we were to use one word to describe the Asylum Division’s conduct toward its employees it would be: abusive. The new PPA [performance evaluation] added another layer to this conduct. The Asylum program’s number one management tool in dealing with Asylum Officers is distilling fear; fear of not interviewing fast enough, fear of not writing up the cases fast enough, fear of not satisfying some of the supervisors, and most importantly, fear of the new PPA. Fear, fear, fear; almost nothing, but fear. So, if you want your career to be driven by meeting unrealistic expectations by fear, becoming an Asylum Officer would be the perfect choice for you.
If you already have experience in the field of immigration, this is CAREER SUICIDE. Supervisors (Who routinely have no experience in it) will resent you and make your life hell…. The supervisors are grossly incompetent, and will SET YOU UP to FAIL, and spend their time undermining your work, instead of actually helping to address the issue of THEIR failing procedures…. Supervisors and directors wholly operate with malicious intent and gross neglect in regards to the purpose of the agency, and are only concerned with getting a higher grade level and feathering their own nests. There is NO ACCOUNTABILITY whatsoever, from the supervisors, to the directors. The management at the asylum office ruins lives, and not just those of the applicants. OIG [Office of the Inspector General] needs to investigate management, bring charges and overhaul this agency.
Management is grossly incompetent, back-stabbing, insulting, treat you like kids in a summer camp and many are 2nd-tier law school graduates that couldn’t make it as a lawyer or even a government attorney for the family court, district court or any court…. You listen to stories of torture and persecution and unlike… any other government organizations, where time is built in to deal with 2nd-hand psychological trauma, you are told to “make sure you take care of yourself.” WITH WHAT TIME? … If you don’t churn out the number of cases that they want and keep in mind this is with the constant ramp-up, month after month[, you] will be terminated and your personal record will reflect that you were terminated. Do not take this job unless your rent is due, you have exhausted all your financial resources and you have no other government prospects. If you mis-step, you will NOT have a career in the government.
stunning incompetence and bad faith decisions at ALL levels of management, from the supervisors to the directors…. extremely low morale and toxic work environment.
Yikes. But there’s more. Here’s what some of the AOs had to say for Advice to Management–
If your department is turning over at 40% to 50% a year, it’s not that the work is too hard, it’s because you and those above you are lacking in the ability to establish a process with integrity, fairness and nurturance.
I have no advice. RAIO [Refugee, Asylum and International Operations] USCIS Management knows there is high turnover and does not care. They can simply hire more people. My advice is to the US Congress and GAO. You need to know what is going on in RAIO Asylum and make changes.
Lower the interview amount to 3 assigned cases a day, offer economic incentives to people who can do more in a day.
Adjust allotted times for interviewing and writing assessments.
How do you live with yourselves? Turn yourselves in before you make things even worse. You’re really, really bad at your jobs.
Advice to lawmakers: Someone should look into what is going on in the Asylum Division and stop the questionable labor practices.
Realize it’s not YOUR personal agency to make up the rules how you want. Seek therapy, get a life coach, and get a reality check: the younger officers who laugh at all your awkward jokes, and oblige your antics at forced weekly meetings where you give yourselves awards for a job well done (not making that up), don’t actually like you or agree with you at all. they are just afraid to lose their jobs. look into the actual work you are supposed to be supervising, don’t imitate the behaviors of the corrupt governments that the applicants are running from. morale is at an all time low, numbers are at an all time low, and you seem happy to make it worse. if you are getting a sense you are really bad at your job, move on to an agency or a do nothing federal position where you will do less harm.
Oy Vey. Again, we need to read the above comments skeptically, since dissatisfied people may be more likely to post negative reviews. Nevertheless, all this points to some real issues at the Asylum Offices.
As for solutions, there is no easy fix, particularly in the current environment, and I doubt we will see any improvement soon. The Director of the Asylum Division for the last six years was recently forced out. The new Acting Director was moved to his current position from the USCIS fraud detection section. How he will manage the agency’s problems, we shall see, but he faces a fundamental and perhaps unresolvable challenge: While the Administration wants to block all asylum seekers regardless of the law, the AOs themselves are sworn to follow the law. As long as management is pressuring AOs and their immediate supervisors to ignore the law, it is hard to imagine how working conditions will improve. And of course, all this affects asylum seekers in terms of worse decisions and longer delays.
The only hopeful note here is that AOs seem to be pushing back against the Administration’s worst excesses. But these only represents part of the problem, as issues at the Asylum Offices long pre-date Mr. Trump. Whether the bureaucracy can save us, I do not know, but as long as AOs continue to do their jobs and follow the law–even under difficult conditions–there is still hope for our nation’s asylum system.
I am a recent law school grad, currently working in a small immigration firm. I have received a tentative offer to be an asylum officer, and I am debating whether to accept. I’ve read all the reviews, and they scare me a bit, but I’ve wanted to do this job for years because of how important I feel it is to have fair and unbiased people in USCIS/ICE. I’m confident that I can handle the workload, and cautiously hopeful that things might change after the 2020 election, but obviously I know that nothing is certain. What would you do?
For largely selfish reasons, I hope you will take the job. We need people in that job who will follow the law, and that sounds like what you would do. My associate just started a job as an asylum officer, and so I know the position is still attractive (on the other hand, pretty much anything beats working for me). I think if you go in with your eyes open, it will be easier to deal with the situation there. Also, once you are in a government job, it is often possible to move around within the government, and so even if the job is not great, it should open doors for you to move to other positions. Good luck, Jason
As a former Asylum Officer, I would do the job with an escape plan. 1-1.5 years before moving on at most. I realize this is two year late, but am warning other potential asylum officers.
When is asylum officer position opening up again?
They are constantly hiring, or so it seems. I think you have to look on http://www.usajobs.gov to learn more. Take care, Jason
As a former Asylum Officer, I would do the job with an escape plan. 1-1.5 years before moving on at most. I realize this is two year late, but am warning other potential asylum officers.
Thank you – I think most officers at my local office (Virginia) do not stick around for more than a few years. Take care, Jason
I have just turned my seventh year anniversary waiting for a decision. I wanted to celebrate the pain with the Asylumist family since you guys tend to be the only ones who give you some ears as you live the same pain.
God bless you all. God bless America.
Sorry to hear this Syrian. I am on the same boat. It has been more than 14 months haven’t heard anything yet. Do you mind telling me one thing? When I took my interview she made me sign an affidavit before another asylum officer. Did they do the same to you or not?
We see this now and again. Often it is in a case where they think the applicant may have provided “material support” to a terrorist group. I wrote about that issue on February 27, 2014. Take care, Jason
Hello Jason,
If they think there is bar on the case because of the material support, then why they just do not outrightly deny the case rather than placing it on hold. This doesn’t make sense, does it?
It does not make any sense, I agree. Nevertheless, they put it on hold. Supposedly, they are waiting for some new regulations on TRIG, but we have been waiting for those for years, and whether we will ever see them, I have no idea. Ultimately, the only solution is a mandamus. If they can’t grant, they will send the case to court, where we have not seen these types of delays (there are big delays in court, but they do not normally relate to TRIG or security background checks). Why TRIG delays seem to exist at the asylum office but not in court, I do not know. I asked once, and was told that they have different types of background checks. This makes little sense, but that is what they told me. Take care, Jason
Thank you so much Jason.
There is something I would like to share with you. You might have some idea why the asylum officer said this. She said, before going out of her officer to call the other officer to be a witness’ that it is not a denial, just a procedure we need to follow. Why did she say this if she was referring my case to TRIG? Do you have any idea?
Call the other asylum officer to be a witness? I have no idea why she would say that. Theoretically, it is possible to do that, I guess, but I have never seen an example where it was done. So I am not really sure what she is saying. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason,
I mean before she got me to sign the affidavit. She asked me to read the affidavit. She went out of her office and after a few minutes she came back with another asylum officer. She asked me to sign the affidavit in front of the other asylum officer, and the other asylum officer also signed the affidavit. But she also told me that it is not a denial, just a regular procedure, we need to follow.
They do this sometimes – usually if there is some issue of concern. It is not very common, but we see it once in a while. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason,
Have you notice that they have canceled the asylum division meeting for November 14? it has been 6 months since the last report. What is going on?
Yes – they sent an email about that late last Friday afternoon (the time when people announce bad news). I am trying to find out more and I plan to do a blog post about it. Take care, Jason
Haha Damet Garm ba In esmet pesar, koli khandidam
Please,for god’s sake can someone help with the email address of Chicago asylum office?
15 months no decision! I am so desperate and silently dying. I know that nobody cares about my pain!
God bless you,Jason!
Follow the link at right called Asylum Office Locator – you will find it on their website. Take care, Jason
I have just turned my seventh year anniversary waiting for a decision. I wanted to celebrate the pain with the Asylumist family since you guys tend to be the only ones who give you some ears as you live the same pain.
God bless you all. God bless America.
It’s insanity. And they seem to treat Syrians worse than other nationalities (why, I have no idea – and the officers I asked about this deny it, but I believe it to be the case). You might think about a mandamus lawsuit – we wrote about that on October 2, 2018 – at least it would resolve the case, one way or the other. Take care, Jason
It’s FDNS not RAIO that’s holding these cases up. If they have a TRIG hunch but can’t get enough to deny a petition they’ll leave the investigation open and throw it into the backlog.
I’m so frustrated with LA office . They have no short list and they don’t accept Expedited request . Last time I went there to give them my medical documents , person told me Management decide wether or not they give you an interview. And I said well I gave you the document , take it to that son of a bitch and tell him I’m sick . Lol . I don’t regret it a bit
Hi Jason, I need your help about expired passport. If someone passport is expired while asylum case pending then is there anyway he/she can renewal it? If possible then how and where they need go for that?
Thanks in advance!!
If your country allows that, you can renew the passport, but this could have a negative effect on your asylum case. The US government may wonder why you renewed a passport from a country that seeks to persecute you, and why that government would give you a passport. If you fear a terrorist group or other non-state actor, this is easier to explain than if you fear your home government. Take care, Jason
I don’t blame you. What’s also bad is that they are not communicating with us, so we don’t know what’s going on. I do think all offices can except expedite requests, so you might try again – maybe by email. You can find their email address if you follow the link at right called Asylum Office Locator. Good luck, Jason
Hi Jason,
I read the administration wants asylum seekers who cross the border wait for one year to qualify for EAD. is that correct?
thanks
I have not heard about that, but such a move would not be surprising, so we shall have to wait and see what happens. Take care, Jason
Hi today receive my receipt number for renew my work permit my question can I renew my driver license with it mean before I receive EAD because I need DL thank you
The renewal automatically extends the old EAD by 180 days, so you should be able to renew. Talk to the DMV and if the person there does not help, ask to see a supervisor, as sometimes, people at the DMV do not seem to know about the automatic extension. That said, different states may have different policies on this, but with the receipt and the old card you are authorized to work, so hopefully they will renew it. Take care, Jason
Thank you for ur answer my question today how many days uscis send me EAD after receive my receipt number because Igo to DMV to renew my DL with receipt number they told me It should be aprove ur receipt.number then we renew ur DL so Iwant to know how long it takes to aprove thank you so much
You should get the receipt in 3 or 4 weeks, but to get the new card takes much longer – maybe 4 to 6 months for a renewal and maybe 2 to 4 months for a first-time EAD. If you are renewing your old EAD, you should be able to get a license with the old card and a receipt for the new EAD. Try talking to a supervisor if they are refusing you. Take care, Jason
I had to renew my driving license and they did not allow me to do so.
I was down graded to Driver’s authorisation.
They said whenever my work permit is ready i need to come back with the renewal card and they would allow me to go back to a driver’s license.
They do not accept renewal receipts.
Our situation is not recognised at DMV.
This is the state of nevada we are referring to.
I have one question which is unrelated to the article on the above post, sorry for that.
My question is “After we made address change online do we receive confirmation through mail”? I did address change like one month back but never received any confirmation from USCIS,
my service center was Texas office and my asylum application is at LA office.
Thank you
They do not sent a confirmation by mail, though at the time you submit the change, the system tells you that the address change was accepted. You should print that and keep a copy for your records. Take care, Jason
I will apply for short list again. Because I did it 2 years ago. I want to renew it. What am I going to attach to the request? I am doing this without informing my attorney. Because he told me to be patient and wait. It has been 3 years. I don’t want to wait.
What am I going to attach to the request? Will I only say that I want you to add me to the short list or do I have to write more detail?
Which office?I also want to short list in the Newark office…dies anyone knows how it works?
Contact them by email and they should be able to put you on the short list. You can find their contact info and email if you follow the link at right called Asylum Office Locator. Take care, Jason
I think it is a bad idea – first, you should already be on the short list. You should contact the asylum office to ask about that – you can find their contact info if you follow the link at right called Asylum Office Locator. If you “renew” the shortlist, you may end up at the back of the short list, instead of 2 years into the short list. Second, if you get an interview and your case is not ready, you are more likely to lose. For this reason, it is better to inform the lawyer. I think your better bet is to try to expedite if you have a reason – I wrote about that on March 30, 2017. I also highly recommend you tell your lawyer whatever you do, so as not to cause problems for the case. Take care, Jason
Do I need to provide any reason to request for shortlisted for interview?
You have to check with the particular office to know for sure, but normally, you do not need a reason to get onto the short list. Take care, Jason
Hello dear Jason
My case is with immigration court last year my attorney sent a motion and the court immediately denied it and this year again we send the second motion but it is almost 4 months we didn’t get any response from them so please give a little bit light what dose it mean ?
It probably has no meaning – they may just be busy or just did not get to it yet. Your lawyer can call the court to ask the clerk about the motion. Maybe that will help. Take care, Jason
My lawyer contacted and court received the motion and my lawyer says some of the motion take up to 8 months , is that correct ? What do you suggest if I contact with court and how I can contact with them I have no number please help.
Thanks
It is best to let your lawyer do that or at least coordinate with the lawyer. The time frame seems long, but every judge is different and the system is now an utter mess. Anyway, you can find the phone number if you follow the link at right called Immigration Court. Take care, Jason
Hey Jason,
After getting my asylum approval last week. I have a few questions.
1.Can I go on Monday to the SSA office to get a unrestricted ssn card? Or do I have to wait a few weeks.
2. Will I get a new EAD sent to me or I have to apply for one myself?
3. Can I immediately apply for a RTD because I plan to visit Europe in April next year.
Thanks
1 – I tend to think it is better to wait a few weeks, but I am not sure. 2 – If you won asylum at the asylum office, they should send the new EAD automatically. 3 – You can apply immediately for the RTD, and you probably should, since it can take 6 months. Take care, Jason
Dear respected sir jason , why is it that some people pick up decision in two weeks and other waits weeks for it in the mail? please if u know you can tell ? thanks
There are many reasons – some people’s cases are delayed due to security checks, headquarters review, the officer or supervisor does not have time to finish the case, etc. Each case is different and you really can’t predict who will have a fast decision and who will have a slow decision. Take care, Jason
I have a particular question about the online case status update. I know when the decision is going to be mailed you can receive some updates such as decision was made or decision was mailed before having your decision on hands. I was wondering if there is any update for people with pick up notice or the online status remains pending decision until the pick up day. Hopefully someone will be able to answer my question because I have to go pick up my decision and the two weeks feel like 2 years.
Great question , I was wondering the exact same. hopefRlly jason or anyone knows! PEOPLE PLEASE ANSWER IF YOU KNOW THANKS U!
Dear Asylum19,
Please do not count a lot on the online status updates. Based on my experience, my case got approved a month ago and I received the approval letter on the mail. However, the online status has not been updated yet. Just wait for the approval notice and that is the most important. I know it is very frustrating but that is what it is!
I think the online system does not tell you about this. However, normally, if the pick-up decision is delayed, the officer will call and tell you. If there is a delay, the officer almost always calls, but it has happened to our clients 2 times, that the officer did not call, and so the person went to pick up the decision and found it was not ready. This is very rare, though, so hopefully, your date will stay the same and you will get a good decision. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason
I approved my asylum file last year and I applied for my husband on February 2019 … when I checked processing time was 11 months but last week changed to 22 months !!!! That mean we have to wait 22 months for my husband interview? We are living separate more than 5 years … my sons graduated from high school and right now they are student in college….I am worried that they will graduate again and their father will not be here what should I do ?
My lawyer said we have to wait …. how can request to expedite? …. my lawyer said we can not request… is that true?????
It is very difficult to get them to expedite, but you can try – you can call them at 800-375-5283 and ask about that. You can also send them a letter. It is unlikely to help, but it won’t hurt. You can also contact your Congressperson to ask about this. I also saw that the wait times have increased. Whether that actually means you will wait 22 months, I do not know – we have not seen waits that long, so hopefully, it will be sooner. Also, if there is any chance your husband can qualify for an H1b or L visa (works visas), he may be able to get those even though the I-730 is pending for him. Good luck, Jason
Hey again so I got the mail decision and It was an approval. I wanna thank Jason and everyone for their help thru this 2 years journey.
Great news – Congratulations! I particularly like good news when I am about to leave for the weekend, so thank you for sharing, and Welcome to the US of A! Jason
Hi Asylee,
Do you mind sharing your timeline? Were you waiting for a decision for two years or the whole process took two years?
Hi Seeker,
The whole process took 2 years and the decision was in 2 weeks.
Here is my timeline.
Applied for Asylum: 1/18/2017
Biometrics: 2/6/2018
Shortlist Request: July/2019 after moving to Tennessee from Dallas ( Office changed from Houston to New Orleans)
Interview Notice: 9/16/2019
Interview: 10/16/2019
Approval: 10/30/2019
Now i can live without fear of persecution from back home.
Congratulations Asylee. Are you from the Middle East? If yes, are you form any of the banned countries?
Thanks,
Hi Optimistic,
No I’m not from the Middle East. I’m from Africa
Thank you for sharing this – and Congratulations! Jason
Dear jason, question. does the day you pick up your asylum decision and it states as approved counts as the official date you are asylee for green card application eligibility? and also, how many years after one is granted asylum can apply for citizenship? merci beaucoup.
The date on the top of the grant letter is usually the pick up date, but the date in the first paragraph of the letter (in bold type) is the date that asylum was granted. You have to wait one year after that date, but note that you have to by physically present in the US for at least one year to file for the GC. Meaning if you leave the US for one week, you have to add one week to the wait time to file the GC. So if you won asylum today (11/01/19) and you leave the US for 10 days, you should not file for the GC until 11/11/20. Once you get the GC, it is usually back-dated one year. You can file for your citizenship 4 years after the date on the GC, and you can actually mail the citizenship application 90 days before the 4 year anniversary. Je vous en prie, Jason
Lollll tu parles très bien français Jason .
Hi jason
It’s not 5 years as usual ?
It is 5 years from the date on the green card, but when an asylee gets a GC, it is back-dated one year (so if you got it today, it would say you have been a permanent resident since November 8, 2018. And you can mail the form N-400 90 days before your 5-year anniversary. Take care, Jason
Folks, it is my pleasure to let you know that I finally received my approval. Here is my timeline.
Applied for Asylum: 12/12/2018
Biometrics: 12/31/2018
Expedited Request: 7/9/2019 (by Jason as my attorney on health grounds)
Expedite Approved: 7/9/2019
Interview: 7/31/2019
Recommended App. 9/4/2019
Final Approval: 10/31/2019
Asylum Office: New Orleans
I am really thankful to Jason for his support as my attorney. I would also like to say thanks to all the people who comment here because it is a forum where we see good news and our hopes get strengthened and where Jason provides his expert opinion. So, keep hoping for good news.
Hey Ballo, I did my interview too at the New Orleans office. It was a smooth interview, still waiting for the decision mail coming in today.
My case has been transferred to New Orleans office a while ago by Houston Asylum office which was the address when I filed my case and since March 30, 2017 it has been pending for my interview. Would you mind sharing your timeline with me to let me guess when I might be called? Did you ever made an expedition or put your name on the short list? Where did they interview you and how was the officer? Congratulations and have a beautiful life!
We did expedite the case in NO and they were very responsive. It was the easiest expedite request I ever did, so give it a try if you want. Just email them and ask about that. You can find their email address if you follow the link at right called Asylum Office Locator. Take care, Jason
Yes they do have shortlist and it is was fast. I applied in 2017 Dec in Houston but moved to New Orleans office in March 2019 and emailed a request for shortlist in July 2019 and got an interview notice in September. The AO are very friendly and easy to relate with.
Hi Poet,
As Jason explained, we did expedite it. The officer was very considerate and polite and made every effort to accommodate a nervous asylum seeker in the interview process. I don’t know about the short list but they do respond to expedite requests if you have reason to expedite your case.
Thanks Ballo and Jason. Should I just basically email them that I want to expedite my case to be interviewed soon. What reason do I need to show them? What was your way of requesting an expedition regarding to your case? Did they invite you to the local office at where you are living or you went to New Orleans for your interview?
I wrote about reasons to expedite on March 30, 2017. They may expedite even without a reason, but you have a better chance of having it expedited if you have a good reason. Take care, Jason
Well, I guess I already said this on the phone, but Congratulations – you had a strong case and so I am glad it was successful. Take care, Jason
First and foremost, Congratulations. If I may ask you, if you are from the Middle East, and if yes, are you from one of the banned countries?
Thanks,
First and foremost, Congratulations Ballo for the approval. If I may ask you, if you are from the Middle East, and if yes, are you from one of the banned countries?
Thanks,
Thank you, I’m not from middle east, neither from banned countries. I’m from South Asia.
Can you please recommend me a safe area to live in New Orleans I want to transfer my case there?
Hello There,
I don’t live in New Orleans, my city comes into New Orleans sub-office jurisdiction. I’m sorry I don’t now about New Orleans city that much. I guess you can google about safe areas there and may find a suitable place.
Hi,
Try to look in either River Ridge, Harahan, Kenner or Metairie.
You do not necessarily have to live in NO to have your case in that office. Check the Asylum Office Locator – a link is at right. You can enter different zip codes or click on different states and find out whether that zip code or state is covered by the NO office. Take care, Jason
Hello Jason and everyone,
I tracked my application today and it says decision was mailed and also it says my asylum clock has stopped. What does this mean and why would the clock stop ?
Thanks
Congratulations, your asylum is approved and you will receive the approval soon.
@Ballo thanks and so if the clock stops it’s an approval
It happened with my case and here others shared same. When I got my recommended approval, it was still running, but once final decision was made after background security checks, the clock stopped. And I received my final approval.
Hi apply for renew EAD 2 months ago today instrument descended counts to uscis so my question when we will receive the receipt and how thank you
Usually receipts for EAD renewals only take about a month, but we have been seeing things move more slowly, at least for the I-589 receipts. If you paid the fee by check, and the check was cashed, that is a good sign. Also, you can get a copy of the check from your bank and the receipt number should be stamped on the back. You can then check that online at http://www.uscis.gov. If the check is not cashed, you may want to call USCIS to see whether it was received – the number is 800-375-5283. Take care, Jason
Some comments here indicate that this means a grant, but I am not sure, and I think it is best to remain patient. You will only know for sure when you get the decision. Good luck, Jason
HELLOW JASON,
4 MONTH AGO MY LAWYER HAS SUBMITTED MOTION TO EXPEDITE TO THE COURT AND THE JUDGE
ACCEPTED THE MOTION TO EXPEDITE MY INDIVIDUAL HEARING. THERE IS NO DATE ASSIGNED ON MY CASE IN THE SYSTEM. I HAVE TRIED TO CONTACT THE JUDGE LEGAL ASSISTANT MANY TIMES ALL MY CALLS WENT THROUGH HER VOICE MEAL. MY LAWYER TOLD ME HE HAS SPOKEN WITH HER AND SHE RESPONDED THERE IS NO AVAILABLE DATE TO REASSIGN MY CASE.
I WANT TO FOLLOW UP ON THE ISSUE MYSELF. WHAT DO YOU ADVISE ME?
THANK YOU IN ADVANCE
It is best to coordinate with your lawyer. Unless the lawyer is lying (in which case you need a new lawyer), the case is not yet assigned to a judge. This is fairly common. I suppose if they do not answer the phone, you can go in person to the court with an ID and ask the clerk about the case status. Take care, Jason
Hello Jason sir
I have a pending lgbt asylum in court and my individual hearing is in 2020 . Also my husband have a asylum interview next week in asylum office.
So my question is if my husband win his asylum case what’s gonna be my option,s ???
1 . Do I still need to go through court hearings
2 . How much time it will take to get my approval after he wins his asylum case
Many many thanks 🙏🙏🙏 in advance
1 – Probably not. Assuming you are legally married, he should be able to file a form I-730 for you and you should be able to get your asylum status through him. Depending on your situation, this may not work, so talk to a lawyer to be sure, but it should work. Once the I-730 is filed, you will have to communicate with the court to delay your hearing until the I-730 is approved. 2 – I am not sure, but you can check the processing time for the I-730 at http://www.uscis.gov. You can inform the court that the I-730 is pending, and the judge would normally give you more time so that can be processed. Take care, Jason
Hello again sir
So is there any interview for I 730 for husband or wife in the usa? Also how long the interview last
Thanks so much in advance
If the spouse is in the US, they should receive an interview. The interview does not normally discuss the substance of the principal’s asylum application, but it could. As to how long the interview is, I do not know, but I think it is relatively short – less than an hour, I would guess. It is not like a full-on asylum interview. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason,
I have had two interviews so far; my last interview was a week ago. Now I need to move to a different state due to my job. How could this move after having my interview affect my case?
It should have no effect unless they need to give you a third interview, in which case, that should take place in the new asylum office (assuming the move causes your case to move to another asylum office). Make sure to change your address using form AR-11, available at http://www.uscis.gov. Take care, Jason
Hello Jason, I did my interview two weeks ago and today I saw in my UPS notifications that I have a mail coming from USCIS. I just want to know do they send only Approval by UPS ? I’m so eager to see what decision is in it.
They send all decision by mail, so it could be either. Good luck, Jason
Hello Jason,
After two years of waiting for the interview results, my asylum is granted. I know some people will ask the details so here is the rough timeline:
– Applied in June 2017
– Short list notice in August 2017
– Interview in November 2017
– Decision in October 2019
So that being said, here is my question:
I talked with a lawyer and they told me that I have a very high probability of getting EB-1/2 certification through NIW. I know I can apply for green card after a year but I heard that it takes a long time for them to process (again). However, NIW processing time is relatively shorter (6-9 months tops).
Do you think I should go to NIW path? I don’t have a passport though so I don’t know whether it will be possible.
Please advice. Thanks.
I am just (hopefully) finishing an EB-2/NIW case and it was not that fast. Maybe EB-1 since you can premium process. My feeling, though, it that it is not worth it. Such cases are expensive and never guaranteed. If you wait a year and file for the GC, once you get the GC, it is back-dated one year. In the end, it seems to me uncertain which is faster overall, and I would rather save my money. On the other hand, nothing stops you from doing the EB-1 or EB-2 (I do not think you need a passport – but you should be sure about that before you file), and it may be faster than waiting for the asylum GC, though it will be more expensive. Anyway, it is good to have options. Congratulations on the asylum win! Take care, Jason
At Which office did you apply
Congrats Jane, would you please share the country you are from and the office where you conducted your interview. I am waiting for the decision for almost 2 years. Thanks
This month, in addition to first and second, we are interviewing third priority cases that were filed on or around June 2019.
This is the reply I got from the newark office…
Then what about the backlog??
Maybe this means they are making progress on the backlog. How much, we do not know, but if things are moving, it may be a good time to try to expedite. I wrote about expediting on March 30, 2017. Take care, Jason
My friend is an AO and he says every single AO in his group is looking to leave.
I am sorry to hear that. The real shame of it is that this should be a great job – you help people, protect the United States, and work on human rights issues. I hope we will see improvement in the asylum offices soon. Take care, Jason
Hello jason!
How can i expedite my rtd application? I haven’t sent it yet
If you already filed the form I-131, you can either call USCIS (800-375-5283) and ask about expediting, or write them a letter (with a copy of your receipt) and the reasons for expediting. Or you can do both. It is not easy to get an RTD (or anything else) expedited, but you can try. Take care, Jason
Hi, Jason,
Thank you for doing this research and opening to us “behind the scenes” aspect of officer’s jobs. I hope that these reviews are not how all the officers feel at their jobs, I can imagine how much stress they have just by interviewing asylum seekers, and making stay/leave decisions for them. I have worked at a job where because of the impossible deadlines and poor management, people were loosing their minds, becoming angry towards others.
P.s. I have a non-related question, I’m waiting for my interview but my national passport will expire soon, I heard different advises from people, some say renew at the emabassy, some say don’t. What’s the procedure for person without valid passport? For example, at asylum interview, or later when adjusting status to permanent or citizenship? Can I do that without passport? Thank you for all you do for us.
One Immigration Judge famously said that the Immigration Court system was like adjudicating death penalty cases in traffic court. I think that goes double for the asylum office – there is not enough time, and the stakes are high (though on the other hand, at least the officer do not have to deport anyone – they just refer the case to court). As for the passport, some people renew, and I have not seen bad effects from this, though sometimes the officers do ask about it and there is certainly some risk that it will cause problems for your case. If you fear your home government (as opposed to a terrorist group or some non-government actor), it is definitely better not to renew, as you will need to explain why the government was willing to renew a passport for someone who it wants to persecute. You can get by without a valid passport – you can use your work permit and driver’s license, and if you win asylum, you can get a Refugee Travel Document. I would say for all aspects of the immigration process – asylum interview, green card, citizenship – an asylum seeker/asylee does not need a valid passport and it is probably better not to have one, since then there will be no issues with obtaining a passport from a country that wants to persecute you. Take care, Jason
As a former asylum officer (3.5 years), supervisory asylum officer (3.5 years), and HQ asylum officer (16 years), there are some truths to some of the complaints, but my experience has been that AOs who hate the job are usually marginal officers who have problems keeping up. Generally I would take most of the comments at face value, but this one caught my eye:
“Lower the interview amount to 3 assigned cases a day, offer economic incentives to people who can do more in a day.”
I would suspect that the person who wrote the comment was never an asylum officer. The caseload, since asylum reform in 1995, has been 18 cases per pay period (10 work days). Now, there is at least one day per week where there are no interviews (a mandatory 4 hours per week of in-house training, plus time to catch up on decision writing), and some officers work a modified schedule where they work eight 9 hour days and one 8 hour day per pay period and get one three day weekend each pay period, so they might have to do four interviews on one day, but most officers only do three interviews in a given day, and only for three days a week.
So there is at least one review that is suspect. The other thing to consider is that there are only two reviews that were written prior to 2018, so prior to the republican’s being in office for a full year. More than half of the reviews were written after Sessions decided Matter of A-B- in the summer of 2018, and release of the policy memo that followed it, the opening salvo in a direct assault on the asylum program by the administration, and war that is still ongoing.
I would also take issue with the comment about 2nd tier law schools. Since I am a graduate of a 2nd tier law school, I suppose that I should say I resemble that remark, but I can name several dozen colleagues who attended law school at Yale, Harvard, Stanford, UC Berkeley, Georgetown and other top ranked law schools.
All the asylum offices, except one, are led by people who started their careers with the asylum program, and most as asylum officers. There are two office directors who started out as Presidential Management Fellows, but they still had to put in some time as an interviewing officer. In all the time I spent with the program and RAIO (23 of the first 24 years), I am only aware of three supervisory asylum officers who were hired without being asylum officers for at least a year first. Two were jammed down the throats of an office by Bill Slattery, when he was special assistant to Doris Meissner, as a favor to friends from his old District, and the third was hired directly from an NGO where she was director of litigation for several years before becoming an SAO. So I really don’t know where the comment about SAOs not knowing the law comes from.
The most perplexing thing about it all is that, ten years ago, in internal government surveys, RAIO officers were consistently rated tops in job satisfaction of any work unit in DHS. I would guess that the negative reviews are a combination of marginal workers upset because they can’t keep up along with an increasing toxic work environment as management and supervisors increasingly feel as though they are under siege and stress levels keep ratcheting up with every new administration initiative to kill asylum.
Hi Majun,
As an experienced AO, please can you offer some hint as to why a decision will be delayed well over a year after a successful interview. I’m truly worried no word from Chicago office since the interview.
I made enquiry, they send me a standard response: “decision is pending”
Thank you
Hopefully, he can respond. But in my experience, most post-interview delays are caused by the security background check, which can be very slow. There was a memo posted a few years ago about reasons that cases should be sent to headquarters. I wrote about that on October 20, 2015. If a case goes to headquarters, there is usually significant delay as well. Take care, Jason
Your response is pretty much on target. TRIG issues (usually material support) are the main reason cases disappear into the black hole, but any case that requires HQ review is going to be slowed up under the best of circumstances and these aren’t the best of circumstances.
All I can tell Mentor is, no news is good news. Especially under the current administration. If they could find a way to deny your case quickly they would.
That second paragraph is good to hear – I am never sure whether a long delay might be considered a positive sign. Most of my long-delayed cases were granted, but not all. So it is good to hear that it is generally a positive sign in terms of the decision. Take care, Jason
Hello! Do you know if AO notify applicants that their case was transferred to HQ? How can I know it? Decision pending 3 years now.
Thank you!
They will not notify you about this, but if you make an inquiry, sometimes, they will tell you. I did a post on October 20, 2015 listing the main reasons cases go to headquarters. Take care, Jason
Thank you – My sense is that most workers there are not as dissatisfied as the people who posted reviews, but it is difficult to know from the outside. My “source” at RAIO and your comments (not mention news reports) point to the fact that morale is low, and this is largely due to the current Administration’s directives. I did have a sense that the previous Asylum Division Director was trying to keep the ship afloat and protect his officers. How the new guy will be, we shall see. I’ve heard mixed things about him, but hopefully he is a capable manager who believes in following the law. Take care, Jason
I applied at Newark office in August 2016..case still pending…any information that which year are they interviewing?do they have a short list?
I believe they still have a short list – you can email them to ask. You can find their email if you follow the link at right called Asylum Office Locator. Also, that office seems to be moving pretty well, at least as far as I can tell, and so it might be a good time to try to expedite. I wrote about expediting on March 30, 2017. Take care, Jason
great piece. Thank you, Jason.