Last week, the Biden Administration released its Blueprint for a Fair, Orderly, and Humane Immigration System. The Blueprint contains a number of components. Here, we will discuss two: Expedited Removal and “fairness of the U.S. asylum system.” Despite the Administration’s good intentions, I fear that we cannot have it both ways. Either we have a system to remove new arrivals expeditiously or we have a system to fairly adjudicate asylum applications at the border. We cannot have both.
Let’s start with some numbers. The crisis at the Southern border seems to be perpetually getting worse. In June 2021 (the most recent month where data is available), “CBP encountered 188,829 persons attempting entry along the Southwest Border.” “This total represented a five percent increase over May 2021.” More than a third of these would-be migrants had made a prior attempt to enter the U.S., and so if you look only at “unique new encounters,” the numbers are slightly lower for 2021 than they were for 2019. Perhaps that’s good news (since repeat customers can be dealt with more quickly than new arrivals), or maybe its bad news (since migrants are not being deterred from repeated attempts to illegally enter the U.S.). The majority of those who arrive at the border are expelled under a public health directive related to the pandemic (in June 2021, 103,014 people were refused entry under this directive). More significantly for our purposes, during June 2021, there were 10,003 credible and reasonable fear cases recorded at the border. These are initial claims for asylum by arriving noncitizens. Of these, 4,464 people “passed” their credible or reasonable fear interviews and will presumably be permitted to apply for asylum before an Immigration Judge–at an expedited removal hearing.
I must admit that I find all this a bit confusing. Even if you remove the 103,014 people from the mix, that still leaves over 88,000 people who arrived at the border in June. Did only 10,000 of those people request asylum? That seems awfully low. Also, the approval rate for credible and reasonable fear interviews is less than 45%. In the past, it was much higher. For example, in January 2018, almost 90% of applicants passed their credible fear interviews. Due to policy changes from the Trump Administration, the approval rate had been dropping, but a 45% approval rate is still lower than I would have expected.
For those people placed into expedited removal proceedings (4,464 in June 2021), they should have their asylum claims quickly adjudicated by a judge. If they are approved, they can remain in the U.S. If they are denied (and if any appeal is denied), they will be expeditiously removed from the United States. In theory, this makes sense–people who are eligible for asylum under the law should be permitted to stay; those who are not eligible should be removed. In practice, however, things are not so simple.
The main problem is that it takes time to properly prepare an asylum application. New arrivals are often disoriented and frightened. They may not understand the system or what is expected of them. Many do not speak English or have an attorney to help them. Also, it takes time to gather evidence and translate documents. Applicants need time to identify the legally relevant aspects of their cases, to prepare affidavits, obtain witness letters, and think about legal obstacles. Most important, asylum seekers need time to talk with a lawyer to decide how best to present their case. While some asylum claims are obvious, others are not. And unless asylum applicants have an opportunity to get professional advice, they could easily lose the opportunity to effectively present their claim.
To the Administration’s credit, the “President’s FY 2022 Budget requests $15 million to provide representation to families and vulnerable individuals, as well as $23 million to support DOJ legal orientation programs.” If this budget is passed (and that’s a big “if”), these resources should help asylum seeker at the border and elsewhere. However, even with additional legal assistance, applicants still need time to meet with attorneys and develop their cases.
And that’s the problem: The expedited removal process does not provide enough time. For overworked lawyers managing heavy caseloads, it strikes me as unlikely that they can do their best work under such rushed conditions.
Moreover, if pandemic restrictions ease, and if the government lifts the Trump-imposed health ban, we can expect many more people to seeks asylum, thus further straining resources.
So what’s the solution? First, as I have written before, we as a nation need to decide who we want to protect. If we can reach a democratic decision on this point, it may give our leaders the political wiggle room to enact more rational policies at the border. In the likely event that we do not reach such a decision, the Administration needs to do its best to clarify who is eligible for protection under current law. There has been some movement in that direction, and some Trump-era changes have been reversed. But even under the pre-Trump rules, it was very difficult for most Central American asylum seekers to properly present their cases, as such cases tend to be legally complicated.
Barring any real change to the law, asylum seekers simply need more time to present their cases. Perhaps the expedited removal process could be modified to allow asylum seekers additional time if they need it. Those who are prepared to present their cases can do so, but those who are not prepared can be offered more time. Allowing newly-arrived asylum seekers into the U.S. and giving them sufficient time to properly present their cases is fair to the asylum seekers, but may be politically untenable.
In its Immigration Blueprint, the Administration states that it is “working to improve the expedited removal process at the border to fairly and efficiently determine which individuals have legitimate claims for asylum and other forms of protection.” While fairness and efficiency are both important, the expedited removal process prioritizes speed over due process of law. Presumably, this is done to appease those many Americans who are concerned that our border is too porous, and to avoid negative political repercussions. Unfortunately, it seems impossible to have it both ways, and if the Biden Administration continues to favor speed over fairness, some applicants who could qualify for asylum will instead be deported to face persecution.
Hi Jason, is there are any way to expedite advance parole processing for medical reason?
You can try – I wrote about expediting with USCIS in January 2020 – maybe that post would help. Take care, Jason
EAD renewal delays. Hi Jason. Any update on what is happening with the timing of EAD renewals? Friends sent in their I-766 forms with fees several months ago. No EAD card and former card expired. We know that they get the automatic employment extension for 180 days, but I’m wondering what happens if the EAD doesn’t arrive. Recently I’ve had several pieces of mail that were sent but never arrived. Any way to track an EAD? A recent story on DACA ER MD who had to stop working because he hasn’t received his renewal documents raised our concerns about this. Thanks.
EAD renewals are slow – maybe 5 to 7 months; sometimes more. For asylum pending EADs (c-8), if the EAD expires and the 180-day extension ends, the person cannot work. All you can do is call USCIS, try to expedite (I wrote about this in January 2020), and/or file the renewal as early as possible (180 days before the old card expires). Hopefully, USCIS will start sorting out their problems soon. Take care, Jason
Jason, thank you. I just received your book and recommend it to everyone. It is excellent. Thank you for writing it. Yesterday my friend received word that her case has been denied and received a Notice to Appear. We are surprised and still in shock as she has a very strong case. The NTA is next July, but after reading your immigration court chapter, we will call in regularly. Since she is Venezuelan, she is eligible for TPS. I need to go back and read your answer to my earlier questions on TPS and see if they answer our new questions. One question, is your firm limited to representing clients in your geographic area or could you represent a client in the midwest? At this point, she needs an immigration attorney who can represent her in court (Omaha, Chicago district). Her current attorney does not do court appearances. She needs a skilled immigration attorney who can strategize and put this case together and help her go in very prepared.
Thank you for the kind words. At the moment, I am very busy due to events in Afghanistan, and I am not taking court cases outside the DC area. However, we normally do take such cases and I expect we will be able to do so again before next year. However, it is often better (and less expensive) to find a local lawyer who is more familiar with the judge and the DHS (prosecutor). If your friend wanted to do a consult on the case, she can email me after next week and I can check my availability. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason ,
I applied for asylum in Feb of 2017 and I am still awaiting an interview. I recently got married to a US citizen and filed for a green card in June 2021. My question is should I contact the asylum office to cancel my case or will that happen automatically if my i485 is approved? TIA
My timeline for my i130 and i485
-Package initially sent out end of May to Chicago office and returned after 3 weeks for missing check.
-June 20 resent package with both checks
-June 21 UPS package received
-June 23 Checks cashed and got MSC case numbers
-July 8 received notice in mail Biometrics reused
-August 2 Biometrics accepted for i485 (the rest of the applications are still on Case Received)
-August 6 i485 status change to Case ready for Interview.
So far this have been going super fast hope the interview will be scheduled soon so that i can finally be at ease.
For our clients, I wait until they have the GC and then contact the Asylum Office to close the case. It is pretty rare that the asylum case is interfering with the marriage case, but if you face a long delay with the GC case, maybe you will need to inform the Asylum Office. For now, it is probably best to do nothing and see if you get the GC in a reasonable period of time. Take care, Jason
HI THERE,
Currently in the same boat as you. Just applied to change my status to marriage based GC from asylum. I just submitted the forms you mentioned and I was wondering if you got your interview yet? and if so how long did it take? I was hoping to get an estimated timeline.
Thank you for your help in advance!
We are seeing interviews in marriage cases taking maybe 10 or 12 months. Take care, Jason
Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill:
Does the passage of this bill affect, in any way, immigration ?
I have not seen anything about that yet (and the bill has only passed the Senate, not the House, so it is not yet final). Take care, Jason
Hi Jason!
Thanks a lot as for being the power for the powerless! Seeking your advice on my case. Interview for my status adjustment through marriage was cancelled more than 7 month ago and the field office hasn’t reschedules it. Do you think contacting the office would help? Or its normal for family based status adjustment interview rescheduling to take this long time?
It may have to do with their capacity and Covid, but it really should have been rescheduled by now. I do think you should try to contact them. You can call them (800-375-5283) or maybe try to contact them online – under Resources, try the link called USCIS Help. Good luck, Jason
Thanks a lot Jason! One confusion I am having is that my lawyer’s position is that we should give them time since the case is a bit complicated. We, however, passed to deadlines he gave to move to next step (such as contacting them to reschedule the interview). My thought is similar to you in that they cancelled the interview due to capacity shortage as the interview was during X-Mass season as well as when COVID infection here was at pick and they forgot to reschedule it. Do you think it is an issue if I contact them to check the status without my lawyer’s knowledge?
I really see no harm in contacting them, especially if the case is already complete and filed. Speaking as a lawyer, it is very important to be on the same page as your attorney. When my clients periodically contact the asylum office without letting me know, it potentially creates huge problems (if the case is not complete). I guess I do not see why it matters if the case is complicated – I do not see how that affects when it is scheduled for an interview, and I do not understand the reasoning for not inquiring. For my own cases, the only reason I would not inquire is if the case was not complete and I did not think I could get the work done in a timely way. Take care, Jason
Thank you so much Jason! I completely agree with you in that I should be in the same page with my lawyer. Frankly, I am also very confused why he still didnt want to contact them given that we already submitted almost all the documents he wanted to submit. I will wait for the latest deadline we gave for the office to reschedule the interview and if nothing happen, I will ask him if I can contact the local office about rescheduling.
Thanks so much again Jason!
Speaking as a lawyer, we are often overwhelmingly busy, and this makes it difficult to be more responsive. Clients often do not understand that and they have their own difficult problems to deal with, but we are also limited in what we as lawyers can do, and we have to manage our entire caseload. Take care, Jason
Hello to all
GC,EAD,TD apply 10/07/2020 MSC service centre.
GC fingerprint taken 11/04/2020 still pressing
TD approved 05/27/2021
EAD new card order 08/10/2021
Hi Alam, thank for sharing your timeline with us. Do you mind answering these 2 questions:
1) Are you an asylee?
2) Did MSC transfer your GC case to another office? Thanks
Hi Sal
Yes I am Asylee, GC still processing MSC service center. I have been trying to find MSC GC processing time since applied but not able to get info anywhere.
@alam
MSC doesn’t mean anything they should transfer your case to Nebraska or Texas or local field if interview is needed ! mSC means your case still stuck and didn’t move to any service center
Got mail from USCIS today about my pending EAD I applied for while my i485 was processing. The letter said the EAD is being denied since I am now an LPR. Just some information for those who might be in a similar situation. The letter also said there is no prejudice and no money withdrawn from my account either.
Hi @Enronn,
When did you apply for GC and what centered processed it? If you don’t mind me asking. Also, did you get the recent update they sent saying fingerprints apply to your case.
July 2020
Nebraska
I had to do biometrics…again.
Interesting that no money was taken – didn’t you pay in advance at the time you filed the I-765 form?
I remember back in March, I had gotten a I-797C notice from USCIS saying G-1450 Authorization for Credit Card Transaction was destroyed. This was around the same time I had applied renew the EAD. But they likely were communicating with the GC folks and they informed them he is likely to get his green card before that EAD is processed, so they likely just cancelled the payment.
It’s hard to believe they are that organized, but it is nice to hear (and nice to save some dinero). Thank you, Jason
Not only did I wait for 5 years to receive an asylum interview, USCIS kept my $495, even though they declined my EAD application.
How unfair!
I wish I paid with a credit card. I would be disputing the charge with my bank by now. Unfortunately, I sent a check.
You declined it because I no longer qualify for it, why did you keep the money?
I guess it could have been worse, so I am thankful for the progress.
Hi Jason,
If I applied for green card as an asylee (One year after granted asylum) and the pending application took more than 4 years, will I then be eligible to apply for US citizenship before or after got the green card? In other words, will the waiting time for pending green card application be counted for the citizenship requirement? Thanks!
Count from the year the green card was backdated (5 years). Using my case as an example, I just got my green card this summer and it was backdated in summer 2020. This means I won’t be eligible to apply for citizenship until the earliest spring 2025.
@bassam
4 yearsssss whattt are you kidding me? Did you have issue cause usually the gc process nevtake that long
@ADAM
I’m just providing a case scenario. However, I’m encouraging you to be more patient like that, since it could be highly expected for a green card application takes more than 4 years to be done. What is your time expectation though? 11 months?
Maybe the “issue” is the Texas Service Center, where processing times can exceed 5 years! Take care, Jason
Bassam, no you will not. Days waiting for an approval don’t count towards citizenship. You start counting from the approval date on your GC.
Or rather the “Resident since” date on the GC.
It will not be counted. Sometimes, though, I have seen USCIS back date the GC more than one year (normally, all asylum based GCs are back-dated one year). I assume this is an error, but I have seen it once in a while. If so, you can apply for citizenship five years after whatever date is printed on the GC (and you can mail the N-400 up to 90 days before the 5-year anniversary). Take care, Jason
Hi Jason,
I applied for asylum 2-3 months ago, I didn’t get any documents yet like receipt.
I would like to flight to another state, can I do that without any problem?
My home country passport is still valid with a student visa, but the I94 is expired.
Thank you so much for your time & help.
By the way, if the asylum office does not have a record of your application, you may need to re-file. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason,
I applied for asylum few months ago, I didn’t get any documents yet like receipt.
I want to flight to another state, can I do that without any problem?
My home country passport is still valid with a student visa,but I94 is expired.
Thank you so much for your help.
Hi, Ozlem. Jason will respond to you.
If I were you, I wouldn’t leave the state, or fly domestically, without first getting the asylum receipt. At this point of your asylum journey, you are not sure if the application was received by USCIS (at least, that is what I gathered from your question). And if the system shows that you are out of status, because there is nothing in the system to show that you filed for asylum, you run a greater risk of being placed in removal proceedings, or your information cross-referenced among different Federal databases.
You should bear in mind, too, that you come in close contact with immigration and border officials when you transit through an international airport. Most airports are considered “international”, even though they are on U.S. soil. Thus, though your flight is domestic, you are still subject to the laws concerning (in)admissibility and overstaying your visa.
The receipt should only take a month or so, so something may be wrong. It is difficult to communicate with the service centers (where the case was filed), but you can email your local asylum office to ask whether the case is in the system – you can find their email if you follow the link under Resources called Asylum Office Locator. Maybe if they have the case, you can try to get a copy of the receipt (though you may need to do that through a Freedom of Information Act request – see FOIA USCIS under Resources. In terms of the domestic flight, it should be ok, but it is strange that you say your I-94 has expired, since an I-94 for an F-1 should say D/S, meaning “duration of status.” In other words, as long as you are attending school, you should be in valid F-1 status. Take care, Jason
Accountability of persecutors and battling with depression:
Many asylum seekers have to endure at least half- or one third-life of sorrow and suffering (if lucky, in unlucky cases, some may simply pass away soon or not even able to make it before reaching safety)…When the fact that the existence of persecutors and persecutions put your life in this irreversible damage, how can you find it in your heart to forgive and find peace with yourself ? Because if not for the existence of such persecutors or persecutions, asylum seekers could have lived a happy and peaceful life, they may not even have to seek asylum. Now, even if asylum seekers are eventually granted asylum, many things stay permanent, the life will be a forever injured, forever scarred one…Many people suffer from PTSD because of past persecution or well-founded fear…There is no second chance at life…how to compensate for lost opportunities, education, employment, professional and personal…
So in the face of this reality, the damage done by persecutors I feel is more than just persecution…So I want to ask, does it make sense for asylum seekers or asylees to take action to hold persecutors accountable ? I am thinking maybe from a national level, can we help the U.S. government weaken the standing of the particular country of origin…can we even try to contribute to eventually overthrowing the evil government and rebuilding a democratic one ?…
It is obviously important to hole persecutors accountable, but that is the job of governments, which have other interests aside from enforcing human rights. Take care, Jason
Thanks Jason for weighing in 🙂 .
I guess I am just sad that these people probably won’t get compensation like the usual personal injury suit they deserve…If what happened to them happened in the U.S. I think everyone of them is eligible to collect a lot of compensation…Or maybe…the grant of asylum can…effectively be counted as … one form of compensation….
Hi Jason,thank you for everything that you did for us
I have a question,do you think it’s possible we can file a class action lawsuit against USCIS to switch back to FIFO?the current FILO is very unfair to people who have been waiting for years,like what they did in 2014 a class action lawsuit to against the USCIS
I have mixed feelings about FILO…But I doubt such effort will be successful…
Possibly, but I do not do such cases and so I am not sure. Also, I do not know of any organizations working on that. I have been lobbying Congress on this issue (among others) and it seems like some senators may write a letter to the Director of DHS and USCIS about returning to FIFO. Whether that will happen, I am not sure, but we seem to be making progress. Also, even if they do write the letter, DHS may ignore them, but maybe they will be responsive. We shall see. Take care, Jason
For me it seems to be a suicide for USCIS to get back to FIFO. This would motivate border crossings insanely and all the GOP tomatoes would be on their faces.
This assumes that long waits actually encourage fraudulent asylum filings, which was the Trump Administration’s theory. There is little evidence to support this idea, and I highly doubt we would see a surge in filings if FIFO returned. In addition, border crosses almost never get to file asylum affirmatively (they file in court if the are able to pass the initial screenings) and so they would not be affected at all whether it is FIFO or LIFO. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason,
I have applied to renew my work permit and after 6 months I checked the updates online and now it says “sunce August 5th the case been actively reviewed by the USCIS and no futher avtions are needed”. Any idea of whether is this a bad or a good sign? Have you had experiences like this before?
Thanks.
Hello Gonzala,
One day after I received the same message, my application was approved and now I have my EAD. That simply means that in less than two days , your EAD application will be approved
I rarely look at the online messages, so I don’t really know, but it sounds like at least they are processing the case. Most renewals seem to be taking maybe 4 to 7 months, so hopefully, you will get the new EAD soon. Take care, Jason
I have been waiting for an interview for more than 6 years now( Arlington office). Tried to expedite multiple times, and nothing. My parents are elderly , and my kids probably will never see them. This is absolutely inhumane. Has anyone else waited for an interview for more than 6 years?
I am in the same boat, almost 6 years, Arlington Office. I have 2 kids now, they do not know their grandparents :(. I do not know what to do! I was delighted when Biden took the office, but now I have no hope for any reform in immigration system, specially Asylum applicants.
You can try to expedite if you or any of your family members have medical condition they only expedite for serious things like medical condition not cause you just wanna have interview lol unfortunately that doesn’t work with USCIS hmm i let my Dr send them a letter and I was called for interview after 10 days after being waiting for 5 years so if you or anyone has a medical condition you will get expedite easily
It’s gonna be 6 years in 3 months.
waiting for interview since JAN-2016…Almost 6 years now….
Waiting for 1st interview since January 2015, good thing is while waiting I became Aircraft technician in four year studies!
Impressive – it is more difficult to achieve such accomplishments while living with the uncertainty of an asylum case, so this is a particularly impressive achievement. Take care, Jason
I feel a sense of guilt when I think about how relatively fast (its still years) my case was processed, asylum granted and I became a LPR. Reading stories like yours is both an encouragement and motivation to make the most of the opportunities here. I am currently embarking on retraining to start a new career hopefully in the new year.
You will be in good shape my friend, and congratulations for your LPR, opportunities comes at their own times, Looking forward for the interview day for myself and best of luck for your new career!
Congrats Enronn. Even though I am not religious. I believe there is something higher than all of us. The injured will be compensated, and the persecutors will be held accountable.
@SULI, I am in the same boat. I applied for my asylum in May 2014 and still waiting for my interview. However, I was able to get my Master Degree and PhD in Electrical Engineering while waiting and now I am working for a Power Utility. I hope the Senate includes a Citizenship Pathway to Essential Workers with the Reconciliation Package as they are proposing.
Take care!
You can try a mandamus lawsuit to force an interview. We wrote about that on October 2, 2018 (in the context of forcing a decision after the interview, but it is the same idea). Talk to a lawyer about that if you want to try. Take care, Jason
Thank you very much Sir I’m glad to that I was able to finish my studies, and yes I will talk to my lawyer about mandamus!
Take care and You are the best…!
Hi Jason, I and my family was granted asylum in May 2018. After a year, in August 2019 we send our I-485 to Nebraska office. At the end of October my wife and son was invited to an interview in the field office. Nothing serious or special questions was during an interview. They said we’ll send you a letter of the result of this interview. Eventually we didn’t receive anything. Again after a year, in October 2020 we contacted through attorney why we can’t get our green cards. In case check nothing changed since first remarks, that they received and working on it. Field office informed us that your case sent back to asylum office, after it we contacted to asylum office. They called back and told to attorney that they will send next week back to the field office. Since November field office received back our case, but nothing changed since that time. They informed us that they need to wait security check clearance to process it. Now is 2 years we can’t get anything, no green card, no any satisfied reply. Have you had any practice similar to it and what can cause this? Thanks, Steve.
@steve
How come they sent back to the asylum office! Never heard something like that!! Looks like it’s a big issue but good luck man
I don’t know how they sent back to the asylum office, the fact later asylum office sent back to the field office. No one called us to an interview after that. I heard someone else had same process. I think they do now in some cases. I don’t think that is a big issue, or may be they check same officer cases. But still these are versions.
I do not know what caused this, but USCIS has greatly increased its fraud detection efforts, and cases are getting more scrutiny. Such problems often seem to be caused by nothing at all. The problem is how to make it move faster, and unfortunately, that is difficult. My guess is that the case is still within the “normal” processing time. If so, I doubt USCIS will take any action, unless maybe you have some compelling reason to expedite (I wrote about expediting with USCIS in January 2020). If it is outside processing time, you can call them (800-375-5283), contact the USCIS Ombudsman (see the link under Resources), which sometimes helps with delayed cases, and if none of that works, file a mandamus lawsuit to force a decision (talk to a lawyer about that). I suppose you can take these same actions if the case is still within the processing time, but USCIS is less likely to respond. Take care, Jason
Alex,
Sorry to hear about your situation.
Jason,
I think Alex’s case is outside “normal processing times “ if he filed his I-485 in Nebraska in August 2019. Processing time at Nebraska is 11-17 months currently. Not sure how this applies since they moved the case to field office and to the Asylum office again. It seems unlikely Obudsman will help since there’s a security check clearance at the Asylum office stage-they might.
Jason, can a mandamus lawsuit help in this case.
Because USCIS moves cases around, it is difficult to know which processing time to rely on. Ideally, processing times would be the same nationwide, but at this point, talking about what is ideal and USCIS in the same sentence is a sad joke. I do think the Ombudsman is worth a try. Sometimes, they help, and in any case, it is a good idea to “exhaust your remedies” (i.e., try everything at the agency level) before filing a mandamus, since a mandamus can theoretically be denied for failure to exhaust remedies. As for the mandamus, it can help, but at least in the asylum office context, if the case cannot be approved due to a background check issue, the asylum office could deny the case and send the person to court. Whether that could happen at the GC stage, I do not know, but it would be worth discussing with a mandamus lawyer before proceeding. Take care, Jason
Jason i think in steve case maybe he has a problem with the security background check or trig cause if there was fraud the asylum office wouldn’t send back his file to his local USCIS field office
USCIS most likely fights the fraud in marriage cases but the asylum cases are very rare in fraud unless there’s an attorney or someone who offers fake documents to the clients and these clients the USCIS raised the red flag on then as they have similar documents and same attorney so here is different story!
Sorry I meant Steve. Not Alex.
It could be that USCIS suspects fraud, but their effort to weed out fraud seems to me overbroad. This effort was never very efficient to begin with, but then the Trump Administration decided everything was fraud, which clearly was false. We are still waiting for this to be straightened out, and so maybe there is actually an issue with the case, or maybe this is just an overly broad effort to find fraud where there is none. Take care, Jason
Hello jason
In your experience how can uscis suspects fraud in asylum case? I mean in marriage cases it’s known sometimes they go visit the couples at home and sometimes asking the neighbors but with asylum any idea how they suspect a fraud especially on the GC process cause if the applicant goes back to his/her country that could also be a fraud suspect but before the green card process what do you think make them suspect fraud?
There are lots of ways – inconsistent statements within the case, differences between what you say and what they already know (for example from your visa interview or sometimes from country condition reports), documents that seem fraudulent, etc. It really depends on the case. Returning to the home country could potentially trigger an investigation of fraud, but I doubt that that alone would be enough (though again, it might depend on the case). Take care, Jason
Thank you, Jason. I’m checking and calling to the USCIS customer service line, and they say same that it’s within “normal” processing time. I’ll try use some compelling reason, may be that would work. Thanks.
I just double checked it. Processing time for I-485 at Nebraska is 13-38.5 months. My bad.
Why do they even bother posting the processing time if it is 1 to 3 years. It’s completely ridiculous and basically tells us nothing, as this is a very broad range of time. USCIS is in desperate need of a top to bottom overhaul. The agency is a disaster. Hopefully, the new director can make some positive changes. Take care, Jason
Jason, so true! I don’t even know where to begin when it comes to USCIS! It’s almost like everyone who works at TSC just goes to work and sits down and does nothing everyday! My 2 friends in New York City are waiting for their asylum-based GCs for 3 years and 9 and 3 years and 4 months, respectively. And they get attitude every time they call the office! They need to stop taking the applicants’ money and not performing any action on their cases! This is illegal!
Actually, you give me an idea. Maybe I can take the money and then relax. Interesting…
🤣🤣🤣
LOL 🙂 I am so upset with USCIS right now… I can’t even put it into words!
Hi Jason, I want to thank you and the community here for all the help. I received an update today that my green card application has been approved. I did not use a lawyer but you and this forum has been more or less a lawyer to me. I filed everything myself from Asylum, EADs, travel documents, and now green card. I can’t wait to file my citizenship application in four years. Here is my timeline:
Submitted I-485, I-765, I-131 = Sept. 15, 2020 (Nebraska Service Center)
Check cashed = Oct. 9, 2020
Text notification received = Oct. 12, 2020
Notice for I-485, I-765, I-131 received = Oct. 17, 2020
Fingerprint Notice for I-765 = Oct. 19, 2020
EAD card produced = Dec. 8, 2020
Travel Doc produced = Apr. 13, 2021
Green card produced = Aug 5, 2021
Goodluck everyone. Don’t lose hope.
Congrats @Asylee,
Thanks for sharing the timeline and your whole journey to permanent residency. Please, don’t get me wrong, I’m very happy when follow asylum seekers finally get over this long, emotional challenging process; but I can’t help but feel like, it is easy to say “don’t lose hope” when you clearly feel unjustly treated when your application is pending for more than three years in Texas Service Center and there is virtually nothing you can do about it. Meanwhile some people that filed asylum at the same time as you are about to get naturalized.
Again, don’t get me wrong. I hope you understand my frustration.
I understand your frustration Cordy. Texas is by far the worst service center. I hope things get better. Let’s hope for the best.
It’s really sad and disappointed. Is there anyway we can sue that service center ?
Thanks for sharing – these days, that is a pretty fast time frame. Take care, Jason
Can’t we just drop nuclear bomb to these evil countries (i.e China, Russia, North Korea, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, ) ? I frankly don’t understand, these countries persecute people so that people have to seek asylum. I don’t understand why these evil axis countries are allowed to exist in the world. Like shouldn’t UN & U.S. and all the democratic countries joint forces to rescue people from suffering under their despotism ? If we can eliminate these countries from the world, I am sure the asylum crisis can also be resolved…And all the people can live in peace, without the need to seek asylum
Please jason and all of you here no body reply or cqre about that @asylum seeker comments so when no body reply him or his stupid comments he will be depressed and disappear he is just seeking attention from y’all so please from now on no body reply him or comment about what he says just ignore him like a stray dog
We need to hold persecutors accountable. I feel that running away, seeking asylum will not make you permanently safe. We need to address the source of the problem, which is destroying the evil axis countries, exterminate them from the face of Earth.
To ASYLUM GRANTED
This “ASYLUM SEEKER” guy is a mental case…….. He has been spreading misinformation here for many months………I think his only objective here is to mislead and deceive people…… Most of the useful information shared by either JASON or other Asylum seekers is usually lost these days with all these spam and useless comments……..Thus he has made it difficult for other people to benefit from good, honest and useful advice because he is spamming the comments with false and misleading opinions and ideas……….
I disagree. There are a lot of important ideas that I am touching on.
He also seems very pathetic and needy for attention. That’s why he comes here to seek acceptance and validation …… He probably does not have a day job or any friends to talk to……
I posted a less radical version in the newest comment, check on top.
Received my AB60 driver’s license today from CA DMV….It was extended/issued until SEP-2025….
Good thing now I don’t have to rely on my EAD to get valid U.S photo I.D/driver’s license….This is one of the advantages of living in california as an asylum seeker…..
Congrats Steve!
Thanks
Hello sir I applied i730 petition in march 2019 now scheduled is april 2019 my processing time is completed but they didn’t send me any approval letter what did i do sir. Thankyou i am very upset for my family.
The I-730 cases are a mess. You can try calling USCIS at 800-375-5283 and try to talk to a person. You can also contact the USCIS Ombudsman – a link is under Resources. They can sometimes assist with a delayed case. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason,
First and foremost, thank you so much for providing information for those (like myself) who are anxiously waiting for results on their cases.
I actually have a question regarding EAD extension. So if I’ve filed renewal of EAD on time, but a decision on my renewal has not been made by the time the 180-day automatic extension expires, can I request another extension, so I won’t have to stop working? And do I have other options?
Thank you,
Andy
Unfortunately, I think there is no way to get another extension and – assuming this EAD is based on asylum pending, category c-8 – you cannot work once the card and 180-day extension end. Sometimes, employers are flexible about this – maybe stopping your pay for a time until the new EAD arrives and then paying you a “bonus” to make up for it, or allowing you to work as an intern without pay but keeping your job. Other employers never notice and so the person keeps on working. If it is getting close to the end date for your extension or if you are worried about it, maybe you can call USCIS to see whether they can expedite (800-375-5283). It is not easy to reach them, but sometimes, they can help. You can also inquire with the USCIS Ombudsman – a link is under Resources. They sometimes help with delayed cases, but they are not quick. Take care, Jason
Thank you Jason, that’s very helpful!
Hey Jason.
I tried to expedite my EAD one week ago, I got a reference number. but when I log into my profile on uscis site, There’s no evidence that my expedite request was even submitted. They still haven’t updated my new mail/ resident address online after I requested the update over a month ago. Good thing is that I let my former landlord know about this problem, he said he would look out for the mail from USCIS (if usps doesn’t forward it to my new address).
If you received the confirmation for the change of address, you should be fine. The only other way I know to double check would be to call USCIS (800-375-5283), but it is a pain to reach a human being there. Take care, Jason
The prospect of LIFO:
It has been several years since the implementation of LIFO. I personally have mixed feeling regarding this policy, but it has obviously created a lot of suffering for a lot of people. But is there any change going on ? It has become increasingly clear that this admin is not treating it as its priority as we are slowly approaching the one quarter mark of the current tenure…It’s a regret that some private citizens (which I applaud) have to lobby for that instead of the office holders spontaneously acting to change it…
But in the foreseeable future, as in, say before end of 2022…will some change happen ? There is a lot of decisions I need to make, so just curious, what’s a good estimate for this particular factor.
I notice some positive judicial improvement.
We will see – I think USCIS just got a new director, and she will oversee the asylum office and thus, ultimately, LIFO. Whether things will change, I do not know, but hopefully Congress will send a letter about this issue in the next couple months. Take care, Jason
Jason, thank you! I know that there are more pressing issues than my concern, but is there a way we can ask her (the new asylum director) to extend the validity of RTDs from 1 year to at least 5 years? It’s extremely unfair to ask asylees and asylum-PRs to find $220 every 6 months or so to pay for a travel document. I used 6 months because the validity of the document is extremely short and you have to wait 6-9 months for the document to process. It is also ridiculous that you have to wait so long for the document. It means that you can’t leave the country, and therefore you travel outside the country is severely restricted, because you do not have a valid RTD. A violation of the Convention. In addition, it’s taking close to 3.5 years to process a GC at a particular processing center. On top of that, it takes another year or more, at this time, to process citizenship applications. The U.S. is one of the very few countries that issue RTDs for 1 year, and it is probably the only country that takes up to 9 months to process such document.
Also, is there a way we can ask her to look into the processing of GCs for asylees at TSC?
Thanks Jason for weighing in 🙂 . I like the background of this new director. I guess another project of mine is…how to push for more pro-asylum appointments…They are not moving very fast…Maybe they have their own reasons and agendas…But I worry that soon they will be losing the power they have now to appoint and confirm.
Dear Jason,
I have USCIS Service Center Confusion. I am Us Citizen filed I-130 by paper for my parents and we received IOE Case Number, The thing that confuses me is that our online status states Nebraska while our official hard copy says Potomac.
May I know the correct service center for our case? Which service center should I check in the USCIS processing times?
Thank you for your time and help.
I am not sure, as USCIS moves cases around between offices. Normally, I would check whichever office most recently communicated with you – whether it was on paper or online. Take care, Jason
Received my GC after 1 year. This oine comunity has been a great resource. Sharing my timeline: (Nebraska)
06/16/20 Application received by USCIS
07/17/20 Fingerprints applied
06/10/21 RFE
07/14/21 Response to RFE received by USCIS ( MEDICAL EXAM)
07/27/21 Card ordered
07/28/21 Case approved
07/30/21 we mailed youe card
08/03/21 received my card in the mail
Good luck to all
Congratulations P I’m really happy for you and i will apply for my GC in few months so can i know where did you file from? Which state cause I’m trying to avoid texas service center
It is probably wise to try to avoid Texas. Any state that falls under Nebraska Jurisdiction would do even though cases can get moved around. However, you are more likely to end up with Nebraska center if you apply from one of the states under its jurisdiction. As for which states fall under Nebraska I am sure you can find that in USCIS website. Thanks and good luck
@p
Which state did you apply from?
Alaska. Hope that helps.
P, congrats on your GC approval. However, please stop misinforming people. You do no have control over where your asylum-based GC ultimately ends up. There is no information out there- at least not from USCIS- that supports the idea that the state you live in influences where your asylum-based GC gets adjudicated/decided on.
Jamie. I think you are misinformed about this. The service centers cover certain geographical areas in the US. You can easily know where your case will be processed based on which state you live in. It should be the same service center that ur EAD usually gets processed at. However, cases can obvioulsy be moved around. This information was available somewhere in uscis websitw but they changed the pages. After 6 years in the asylum process.. I know what I am talking about. Best.
Look, I am not going to argue with you about this. My spouse and I live in the SAME apartment and our cases get sent to two different places because we applied a few months apart. 4 of my friends in NY applied in the same year and 3 got sent to Texas and one to Nebraska. I also work with a non-profit that helps asylum seekers and asylees and MANY of the cases in NY get sent different locations, including the NBC. I know people in different states where the same thing happens. What you are confusing is the place where the application ultimately ends up and where it’s received at first. The place where it’s originally received is not where it’s processed or where it ultimately ends up. Say in your lane.
That’s great – Thank you for sharing. Take care, Jason
Hello Jason,
I was wondering how long does the USCIS take to respond after they receive RFE response.
Thanks.
it depends on the case and is not predictable. Sometimes, it takes days; other times, many months. Take care, Jason
Jason, thank you for your response! Very well said. To be pessimistic in these times in not a bad idea. If you don’t get your hopes up, or better yet, if you remain bereft of hope, then you probably won’t suffer too much psychologically or feel too disappointed when things have hit the lowest possible point. I guess you’d have conditioned your mind for the absolute worst. I think one thing we can agree on is the moral bankruptcy of American politicians and their glaring ineptitude.
I think being pessimistic about my clients’ cases has made me a better lawyer (that may not work for other lawyers, but I think it works for me). On the other hand, as they say: The worry is the pain before the wound. Take care, Jason
Haha great point
Potentially challenging question for asylum seekers:
Okay, so you are persecuted or have a well-founded fear in your country of origin, then why do you HAVE to choose the U.S. as your destination. There are many other countries that can offer protection, how can we establish that you are, at least, not also come to the U.S. for economic reasons ?
Could an asylum seeker be potentially presented this kind of question ?
This is the sentiment of some of the private citizens I know…I feel it’s really a meritable question. Why do so many asylum seekers come to the U.S. to seek asylum ? There are many other countries that can offer protection, are they sure they are not coming to the U.S. because of economic reasons ?
Also, by the way, the countries receiving the most asylum seekers (at least over the past decade or so) are probably South Africa, Iran, and Pakistan. Maybe also Jordan and Turkey. So it is not just the US. Take care, Jason
There is push (violence in the home country) and a pull (the opportunity for a safe life in the US, plus jobs, education, etc). I think you cannot expect asylum seekers to go from one unsafe place to another. They are seeking safety and protect, and the US offers that. Other countries do as well, but they are harder to get to, and do not have pre-existing communities that can assist the new arrivals. Take care, Jason
Thanks Jason for weighing. No doubt that if this question is ever asked…it almost certainly shows that the question asker is disinclined to grant asylum or see the seeker granted asylum…
I guess I am just worried that, because the anti-asylum seeker sentiment is very strong…the adjudicators, while disinclined to grant asylum…may worry they might be accused of “sending people back to danger”… Okay, so they offer an alternative “go to some other safe countries to seek asylum”, to dodge the blame…
Has any adjudicator asked asylum seekers this kind of question before ? Like, oh yeah, I find your testimony credible, and even though internal relocation is not possible, there are other safe third country you can go to…so please seek asylum there… I don’t know how I can answer this kind of question at this time if presented in an interview…not sure if I can give a good answer to this…but is this something I have to worry about/prepare ?
Cases are sometimes denied as a matter of discretion for passing through other countries and not requesting asylum. We just had a case like that – the person was denied asylum as a matter of discretion for failing to seek asylum in a third country. We did not do the case, but we did the appeal. Last month, the BIA ruled that the judge could not deny asylum solely for this reason and ordered the judge to grant asylum. Hopefully, the judge will comply and that will be the end of the case. Take care, Jason
Thanks Jason for weighing in 🙂 .
I…am just amazed of the reason of 3rd country is still … being…used as a reason to deny…
I am equally surprised the BIA today could reverse the denial and grant asylum…
This, after all though, is a positive indication
I travelled through Malaysia to the US and applied for Asylum in 2016. Initially, my application was denied by the asylum officer. In the written decision the asylum officer indicated that I was credible. However, my application was denied because according to the AO I had an opportunity to get protection in Malaysia and I did not. My case was referred to the Immigration court for removal proceedings. When my attorney was preparing my case before the court, he found out that Malaysia was not a party to UN conventions on refugees and Malaysia is one of the very few countries that never accepts asylum seekers from any country. During the court proceedings the judge mentioned that since I was already found to be credible by the asylum office so the only issue before him to consider was why I did not apply for asylum in Malaysia before moving to the US and asking for asylum here. At the end the court granted my application on the ground that I could not apply for asylum in Malaysia for the simple reason that Malaysia does not accept refuges and asylum seekers.
This is not uncommon – where the judge and the AO disagree on a point of law, and the case is decided quickly in court. Congratulations on the approval! Take care, Jason
What’s the real scenario of asylum outcomes these days ? Somehow I feel a lot of people in the blog are overwhelmingly, if not easily approved…but could it be survivorship bias ?
We have not seen recent data about grant rates. I expect that will be released one of these days. Take care, Jason
Wait, so this policy is still mainly targeting people incoming from the southern border ?
Title 42? This policy excludes people who arrive at the border and does not allow them to seek asylum. It is based on the public health emergency, and it seems to be in full force, at least as far as I can tell. Take care, Jason
Jason, excellent points as usual!
However, with all due respect, like I have always been saying, I am not sure if your recommendation would help/solve the problem at the border. The issue at the border is a long-standing one- one that seemingly haunts almost every modern administration. This issue was there before asylum laws were codified or before the laws became more elaborate and complex.
Furthermore, most of the people trying to get into the U.S. via the border are not familiar with the asylum laws here. In fact, many of them, even if they are aware of any changes made to the asylum law, would not be deterred by the narrower definition of “refugee”, “asylee”, “PSG”… This is because whatever is forcing them to flee is being exacerbated by deteriorating economic conditions caused by climate change, for e.g.- a phenomenon mostly caused by countries with advanced economies such as the U.S.- and political crises/upheavals, usually because of outside interference. A lot of these people don’t even have access to clean drinking water because of climate change! Of course, there is sometimes government corruption, inaction and mismanagement of resources in these countries. I am sure the literature on this topic is rich!
In addition, COVID-19 is, unfortunately, creating more refugees, displacements, and leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. Refugees should not be punished for a global pandemic- one caused by another country that has an advanced economy- that displaces them and further deteriorates their economic conditions, leaving them in abject poverty. If people feel like their existence or lives are threatened, or are at risk, they will flee, regardless of whatever laws are there. This is human beings acting on instincts. Even “lower animals”, in fact, try to flee from threats or persecution. As such, a better approach would be to address the root causes of the some of these “push factors” or the reasons people are fleeing their country.
Refugee crises/issues have historically been challenging, especially when compounded by xenophobia, and so I understand that, in many instances, there is no silver bullet or panacea. I don’t want to profess that I know what the solutions should be (please don’t get me wrong). I quite frankly don’t know. However, I am sick to my stomach, to say the least, when politicians use these issues- especially the ones that are intentionally blown out of proportion- to their advantage. I mean, for Christ’s sake, it’s people! We are acting like they are aliens trying to invade the U.S. or they are some communicable diseases that could wipe us off the face if the earth!
Like I aforesaid, I don’t have the solutions/answers (at least, I don’t know for sure if my recommendations would work in practice); I think that some of the following should be used/implemented:
1. The “G20” or “G30” countries must come together and fight climate change
2. More wealthier countries, which are usually predominantly “White”, need to pool their resources together to help countries that are economically disadvantaged. They can also increase trading with these countries and hire more of their citizens on a temporary basis. Multi-lateral and bi-lateral relations should be strengthened. Perhaps they need to level stricter sanctions (directly and not sanctions that would ultimately hurt the people as this could make things worse) against some of these countries’ leaders. Many of these countries that are sending refugees to the U.S. and other countries in Europe, were colonized by some of these wealthier countries, and some of them continue to be politically influenced, in a bad way, by these wealthier nations.
3. The U.S. and other countries with advanced economies can afford to expand their “benevolence” by offering more temporary protected statuses, in the interim, to some of these migrants. If they are concerned about having these refugees eventually becoming naturalized citizens, they can confer more temporary statuses on these migrants (the ones who would otherwise not qualify for asylum). After things have improved in their countries, they can humanely return them, having given them sufficient notice to leave. This is currently practiced, to some extent, in the U.S. However, it is very limited and doesn’t seem to have a systematic nature. The fact that your case doesn’t fit perfectly into the the current asylum framework or system doesn’t mean that your life is not at risk and you should therefore be thrown out of the country/swiftly repatriated from the border. Besides, as a signatory to the Convention, you are obligated to ensure that your asylum process is fair, efficient, and that your return or removal process is humane and in accordance with the Convention. In fact, every single person, by law, has the right to seek asylum, irrespective of where or how they enter, or whether or not they meet the definition of some ill-defined term.
4. The most obvious one: the government should seriously consider sending more immigration/asylum officers to the border and employing more judges to adjudicate these cases. Obviously if this is done, the backlogs can be cleared up! Again, why are we pretending as if the U.S., the country with the most advanced economy on the planet, is not able to do this? The U.S. IS ABLE; “border crisis” makes better political fodder, I guess. I challenge anyone to convince me that the U.S. government- as democratically elected bunch- care about solving the issue at the border or the so-called broken immigration system.
If making laws could solve such a complex issue, then the asylum approval rate would be at 90-100%, barring any security, criminal, and fraudulent issues, of course. For, if making laws to deter asylum seekers works, it should logically follow, then, that most of the asylum applicants would qualify, and eventually granted asylum, since they are aware that the law qualifies them for asylum.
Even though I don’t think the current definition of “PSG” is the issue, nor will it solve the border issue, I am amenable to the idea of creating a succinct, precise and clear definition of “PSG” or “refugee”, without going out of bounds, so to speak, of international asylum/refugee laws. With a more reasonable and precise definition, there is less room for arbitrariness on the adjudicator’s part. The applicant would also have an idea of where s/he stands in terms of his/her chance getting an approval.
Please disregard any typos/grammatical errors. Tried writing this while at work multitasking.
These are good points as always. I do think the nature of the crisis has changed over the years. In the 1980s and 1990s, it was civil wars in Central America that were causing people to flee. The problem for those people is that we (the US) were supporting the authoritarian governments that were persecuting and killing people. Now the problem is gangs and domestic violence. The problem for these claimants is that they really do not fit into the definition of refugee (or at best, they are round pegs pushed into square holes). We as a nation need to decide what to do about this – if we decided to protect victims of criminal gangs and DV, them we should be mostly letting these people in. If we decide not to protect such people, we should exclude them and eventually, that message will start to effect whether people decide to come here. I do agree that this problem will continue to get worse. Also, unfortunately, I am not feeling optimistic that we will do anything effective to stem climate change, and if things continue, the refugee problem will likely be much worse. If so, I expect that we will close our doors more tightly and also that politicians who exploit xenophobia will become even more empowered. In short, I am a pessimist, and hopefully, I will be wrong on all counts. Take care, Jason
Jason, thank you for your response! Very well said. To be pessimistic in these times in not a bad idea. If you don’t get your hopes up, or better yet, if you remain bereft of hope, then you probably won’t suffer too much psychologically or feel too disappointed when things have hit the lowest possible point. I guess you’d have conditioned your mind for the absolute worst. I think one thing we can agree on is the moral bankruptcy of American politicians and their glaring ineptitude.
When you talk about moral bankruptcy and glaring ineptitude…are you referring to both parties ?
Both parties, yes, but more so the one that starts with the letter “R”. The “R” party… they tend to use fearmongering and misinformation (exploit xenophobia in other words) about asylum seekers and immigrants in general for political gains. The “D” party seemingly has no idea what they are doing. They need better strategies or strategists.
I agree with this analysis – and it has the benefit of being concise. Take care, Jason
I still feel very ambivalent about a lot of things…