Since the advent of the Trump Administration, it has been getting more and more difficult to win asylum. Decision-makers in court and at the Asylum Office are more suspicious of fraud, have higher expectations for evidence, and are looking for sneaky ways to deny applications. They are also less forgiving of inconsistencies and innocent mistakes. Add to that an overall environment where non-citizens are under threat, and the asylum process has become much more fraught. How then can you best prepare an asylum application during these challenging times?
Here and in part 2, we’ll examine some common problems faced by asylum seekers and how they can be overcome.
One change that we have seen this year is that decision-makers have become more demanding in terms of evidence. It seems like no matter how much evidence we submit, the decision-maker can always find something that is missing. Under the law, an asylum seeker should submit evidence about every claim in the application, and if you cannot get evidence on a certain point, you should be prepared to explain why not. So for example, if you were a member of a political party, you can submit photos at party events, membership documents, receipts for donations, a letter from party leadership, letters from people who know you were in the political party, and your social media posts supporting the party. I wrote here about the types of evidence that are helpful for an asylum case.
A separate word is in order about country condition evidence. I wrote recently about how the U.S. Department of State has dramatically scaled back its human rights reports, and these days, you cannot rely solely on DOS reports. There are many alternative sources of information that you can use for your case, and I suggest some ideas here (near the end of the article).
Letters from witnesses can help support an asylum claim, but decision-makers are getting stricter in terms of the format. Letters should include the name and contact information of the writer, they should be signed, and should include a statement swearing or affirming that the content of the letter is true. Letters should be written by the witnesses themselves, and not by you (or your lawyer). Letters that are all in the same format or that use similar language will look suspicious to the decision-maker. If the writer does not speak English, the letter should be in the person’s native language and you should include a translation and certificate of translation. I wrote more about the content of witness letters here.
Speaking of translations, if you yourself do not speak fluent English, you should include a copy of your affidavit in your native language plus the English translation and certificate of translation. Earlier this year, I had a client’s affidavit excluded from court because we only submitted an English version when he did not speak English; this despite the presence of his interpreter who testified that the whole affidavit was read to the client in his native language (miraculously, we won the case anyway).
These days, translations are more frequently called into question, so make sure to submit accurate and complete translations and to include a certificate of translation. I wrote about translations here.
One important piece of evidence is the passport. In the past, we could get away with submitting only relevant pages of an applicant’s passport, but now, we are seeing more examples where the decision-maker wants a copy of the entire passport for the principal and any dependents (this is technically required under the rules, but at least in my experience, such rules were rarely enforced). This includes the current passport and any expired passports. If you do not have a passport, you should submit as much identity information as possible: birth certificate, marriage certificate, national and state ID documents, school records, work records, etc.
If you’ve spent time in a third country, you need evidence that you do not have permanent status there. If the judge or Asylum Officer concludes that you have the right to live permanently in a third country, or if that country offered you a permanent status, it could bar you from asylum. It’s not always easy to prove a negative: that you don’t have status in a third country. But you can submit visas, residency documents, letters from attorneys, and country condition evidence to show that you do not have permanent status or that you cannot safely live there.
If the persecutor in your case is not the government, you should submit evidence that the government is unable or unwilling to protect you, and that you cannot safely live in another part of your country. Evidence that you tried to obtain government protection, such as police reports, is helpful in this situation. As is evidence that you attempted to relocate within the country. General country condition evidence can also help support these points.
Finally, make sure you bring all original documents to the asylum office or court. For you and any spouse or child, that should include all passports (including expired passports), birth certificates, marriage certificates, divorce documents, and death certificates. If you submitted a copy of a document, bring the original to the Asylum Office or court. If originals were mailed to you from overseas, bring originals plus the mailing envelopes.
Evidentiary standards have become higher, but they are not impossible. If you make the effort to gather as much evidence as possible, it will increase the likelihood that your case will be granted.
Next time, we’ll discuss some old and new ways the government is trying to block asylum seekers, and what you can do about it. Stay tuned…
Dear Jason,
I hope this message finds you well.
My name is tarek and I entered the United States as a refugee from Nairobi, Kenya. I am now planning to file Form I-730 (Refugee/Asylee Relative Petition) for my wife, who is currently not a refugee and she is a kenyan citizen.
Before I proceed, I would like to kindly ask for your guidance:
Has USCIS stopped or suspended the processing of Form I-730 petitions? I have heard some information about changes in the process and would like to confirm if it is still possible to apply for my husband at this time.
I would be very grateful for your clarification or any advice on how to move forward.
Thank you for your time and assistance.
I have not heard about the I-730 process being suspended. Some people have been having difficulty with the process, as the embassies seem more resistant, but I have only seen that for a few cases from Afghanistan and Pakistan, so hopefully, it will not be an issue for you. I think you can file the I-730 and hopefully, it will process normally. Take care, Jason
[…] time, we discussed how standards of evidence have become more challenging under the Trump Administration. Here, […]
Hi Jason,
If an asylee signed a contract with a lawyer to represent them in both the master and final hearings and they paid some part of the lawyer fees and the lawyer already handled the master hearing while the client was free — but then the asylee was later detained, is the lawyer still required to represent them for the hearings that take place inside detention? Or does the agreement not cover that? Can the lawyer refuses to do so under the prertext that the asylee is no longer able to pay the remaining installments?
I suppose it depends on the specifics of the contract. A lawyer can’t just walk away from a case, but many contracts indicate that if the person does not pay, the lawyer will not do the work. If the lawyer wants to leave the case, the lawyer needs to request permission from the judge. Sometimes the judges allow this and sometimes they do not. The problem is that “forcing” a lawyer to do a case that the lawyer does not want to do, or cannot do, is not a recipe for success in the case. Here, it might be wise to talk to the lawyer to see if there is a mutually agreeable path forward, or to at least know the lawyer’s reasons for wanting to leave the case. Take care, Jason
Hi,I am a green card holder through asylum. I now have a valid Refugee Travel Document. I want to apply for Reentry permit, do I need to send back my RTD to USCIS.
The more proper document is the RTD, and I do not know that a Re-Entry Permit would be accepted by other countries like a passport. That said, I know of no rule that prevents you from applying for the Re-Entry Permit or that requires you to send back the RTD when you do that (if you apply for a new RTD while the old RTD is valid, you are supposed to send in the old RTD). Take care, Jason
Hi Sir, i wish to thank you for always using your write up to make us feel better. i applied for asylum in March 2017, was referred to Court where i was granted in April 2025. When can i apply for green card?
Based on a new rule from February 2023, you can apply any time after asylum is granted, assuming you meet all the other eligibility requirements (such as no criminal issues, no long absences from the US). Most lawyers, including me, recommend that asylees wait at least 6 months after receiving asylum before they file for the GC. I explain the reasoning in a post dated February 8, 2023. Take care, Jason
Has anyone with pending affirmative asylum case recently travelled to a red state via air? Is it safe? I have my real id and my 5 year work permit. When i flew from California to NYC recently things were fine – no questions asked but both of these states are very liberal. I may need to go to Texas for work and i am wondering if there is a risk or any data to what happens to affirmative asylum seekers if ICE stops them.
I have not heard about anyone having problems traveling domestically. I have had clients travel to red states without incident. I would have access to your asylum receipt and work permit, just in case you need to show those. Take care, Jason
Which one of these two has a better chance of beating the incumbent vp as the republican nominee ?
I appreciate some thoughts
Hi Jason
Thank you so much for having this platform for people like who has no help whatsoever.
I wanted to know ask you a question, is it possible to know once you receive a letter to pay the annual fee how long until you have to pay it ? is it 30 days? Also once you pay and you dont want the attend the interview now can you postpone it ?Is it easy to ask for another interview date closer?
We received the letter in the mail on 10th we received an email on 6th does this mean we have 30 days from either dates? please let me know thank you.
The time frame to pay and the consequences of not paying are not very clear. I do think you should pay as soon as possible. I wrote an article on October 8, 2025 with a link to the USCIS payment portal. If you do not pay, it is possible that the case will be dismissed and you will be sent to immigration court. In terms of postponing the interview, that is nearly impossible, at least in the offices where I have my cases. Maybe if you have a major medical issue or are giving birth to a baby on the interview date, you can get it postponed (after much difficulty communicating with the asylum office), but it really is quite difficult and for the most part, they will not postpone. For that reason, it is a good idea to gather all your evidence and be ready, just in case you get scheduled for an interview. Take care, Jason
This is directly from the INS website
“If you need to reschedule your interview, you must either mail a letter to the asylum office where your interview is scheduled to be held or go to that asylum office and complete a Request to Reschedule Asylum Interview in person. The addresses for the 8 asylum offices can be found using the Asylum Office Locator. A request to reschedule an asylum interview must include the reason for the request and any relevant evidence. The asylum office will reschedule an interview if it is the applicant’s first request for rescheduling and the request is received before the interview date.”
So my understanding is that, as long as it’s the applicant’s 1) first request and 2) request is receive before the interview date…then the asylum office “will” reschedule an interview ?
And it’s updated 05/21/2025…Has the rescheduling practice changed ?
The asylum offices I deal with make it almost impossible to reschedule. I suppose you can try quoting this language if you need to reschedule, but I doubt it will help. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason,
Thank you for everything you doing for asylum community I have a concern my husband had an interview at the U.S Embassy for the I-730 family joint the consul kept the passport after the interview still we haven’t heard anything from the Embassy we checked the status shows visa refuse and is in administrative process and concern we didn’t file the DS-260 because the page couldn’t open we tried to open the DS-260 page with no success. What will happen in this situation .thanks
A DS-260 should not be needed for this process. The State Department has a website about the process here: travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/follow-to-join-refugees-and-asylees.html. At the bottom, there are links to inquire about the status of the application. There is also a link that discusses “administrative processing” and maybe this will help guide you. Depending how long they have had the passport, it may be worthwhile to inquire through the State Department website. You can also try Googling the embassy and often times you can find an email address to contact them that way. I am not sure how the government shutdown is affecting the follow-to-join process, but I know the State Department has furloughed many workers, so maybe the shutdown is a reason for the delay. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason,
A client of mine has a really strong case. After she filed the asylum application, she married a guy of dual Malaysian/Taiwanese citizenship. During the interview, the AO grilled her and her husband on how come the husband has not yet filed for permanent resident status for her in Taiwan or Malaysia. The husband cited certain bars and inconveniences, including the fact that the wife dared not have her passport renewed by the gov she sought asylum from, and she could not apply for TW residency without first landing in TW. Still, the asylum application got denied. I briefly discussed the facts with an AO whether safe third country bar would apply. He said he did not think so. Now the case is at the court. I guess I cannot find any guidance from the judge or stipulate to any thing before the indiv hearing.
For a person to seek asylum in the world, there are 190+ options…It makes sense for people to choose the next rational choice. Like a neighboring country or a relative country. It doesn’t have to be the US.
If a person insists on seeking asylum specifically in the US while other options which have more ties are available, then of course it will raise questions.
In your client’s case, Malaysia and Taiwan are both geographically close to your client’s home country. You kind of have to explain why she forgoes these options, instead seek asylum in another hemisphere. Her motive seems to be immigrate to US as primary, seeking asylum is secondary, which may make AO question whether she really needs asylum. A true, genuine asylum seeker will place asylum first and grab the first opportunity en route available.
Taiwan and Malaysia do not have a formal refugee law and both countries have not signed the 1951 Refugee Convention, so they do not formally accept asylum seekers. I was born in Afghanistan and I did live in Malaysia for few years in a student visa before coming to the U.S…initially my asylum application was denied by the AO and the reason for denial was because I didn’t seek asylum in Malaysia while I was living there…however my attorney provided documentation to the court proving that Malaysia is one of the few countries that do not accept asylum applications…the court granted my application…
You can try to talk to DHS prior to the Individual Hearing. It is often difficult to communicate with them, but sometimes they respond and that can help narrow the issues. I think if the case was denied due to the fact that the client could potentially obtain status in a third country, that is generally improper, though maybe the AO denied as a matter of discretion since the AO believed the client could live in a third country. Maybe you can get evidence about why the person cannot live there, whether it is for legal reasons, practical reasons (language barrier, discrimination against foreigners, etc) or any other reasons so you have that for the Individual Hearing in order to refute this issue. Having the ability to potentially get status in a third country is not a bar to asylum, but again, it may be a discretionary factor. Take care, Jason
I want to ask about this…
If an asylum application is denied based on discretionary factor…then the applicant cannot even appeal to a higher court right ? Because I am under the impression that ins officer has broad discretion in granting or denying immigration benefits…
Discretionary denials in Immigration Court can be appealed to the BIA. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason,
If I have a lawyer assist me in applying for my green card after approval, does USCIS send the green card directly to me or to my lawyer? I do have legal representation but I am concerned because of a mistake they made in the application and when I try to get a copy of the corrected copy they are not sending it to me.
You can list a mailing address on the form I-485 and that is where USCIS should send all documents. There is also a box on form G-28 (the form that your lawyer uses to indicate that they are your lawyer) that indicates that all originals should be sent to the lawyer. I think if the case is already filed a pending, the best thing you can do is file a change of address to a safe address, such as a PO box. You can do that through the USCIS portal or with form AR-11, available at http://www.uscis.gov. Maybe the lawyer could file a new G-28 indicating that documents should go to the lawyer, but I am not sure how well that will work. Take care, Jason
Hello Jason, thank you for the help you provided. I have a question regarding this annual fee, as both the reason for it and the rules are unclear to me. My father and I received notices in October and paid the fee. I am glad that we have received confirmation that the payments were made. My father applied for asylum in January, and I applied in August. It is not clear at all when my father and I will need to pay this fee again. Does my father have to pay again in January, even though only 2.5 months have passed since the previous payment?
Thank you very much for your assistance.
It is not clear to you because it is not clear. As I understand it, you will get a notice about the next payment, and that should be in a year, but we will have to see what happens and pay attention to announcements from USCIS about this. Take care, Jason
I recently mailed a letter to the USCIS Asylum Office about 2–3 weeks ago to request the withdrawal of my asylum application. However, I haven’t received any update yet — the only thing I’ve gotten is a notice asking me to pay the new Asylum Annual Fee.
I had no idea this fee existed, so I looked it up on the USCIS website and found that applicants who filed after October 1, 2024 are required to pay it. But I originally applied back in 2017, and now I’m trying to withdraw my case within this year.
Does anyone know if I still need to pay this new fee? And what should I do next to complete the withdrawal process? TIA
The message about October 1, 2024 is confusing, as the Big Beautiful Bill (the law that implemented the new fee) makes it clear that everyone needs to pay, and USCIS is sending notices to everyone. There is no indication yet that a case will be dismissed for failing to pay, but we don’t really know, and failing to pay could potentially result in you being referred to court, which would create additional problems and expense. The safest choice is to just pay, even though you are trying to withdraw. Hopefully, you are withdrawing because you now have a permanent status in the US or because you left the US; otherwise, withdrawing could result in you (and any dependents) being sent to immigration court. Also, I have found that the best way to withdraw is to contact the asylum office by email. You can find their email address if you follow the link under Resources called Asylum Office Locator. I also wrote about withdrawing on December 7, 2022 and that may help. Take care, Jason
I don’t have permanent residency yet but I filed for adjustment of status based on marriage so that’s why I file for withdrawal Thanks
I think it is a bad idea to withdraw until you actually have the green card. If you don’t have the GC yet and you withdraw, the asylum office can send your case to Immigration Court, which creates a much more difficult situation. You may want to talk to a lawyer about the specific situation here, but I would try to cancel the withdrawal notice until you actually have the GC. Take care, Jason
Respected Jason,
My asylum case is still pending in immigration court, and MCH is scheduled for February 2026. As of today, I haven’t received any letter or email from EOIR regarding the asylum fees.
My question is, do I have to pay an annual fee OR an initial fee? What is the last date to pay the asylum fee?
Please advise. I highly appreciate your help. Thank you very much.
It is all very unclear, but it has very recently become possible to pay the annual fee in court (see epay.eoir.justice.gov/), and I would guess that the safest bet is to just pay the fee since the situation is so unclear and you don’t want the judge or DHS to use your failure to pay to try to dismiss the asylum case. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason. Quick question, if I were to be called on the interview one day, and my case would be denied, can I ask IJ to pause the deportation proceedings until ai have a valid TPS? How does this process work?
If you have TPS already, you can ask the IJ to postpone or dismiss the case, but I think the judge is very unlikely to do that these days. However, what is not so clear to me is whether a person with TPS gets sent to court if the asylum office denies the case. I have seen it happen where the person is sent to court, and I have also seen it where the asylum case is denied and the person is not sent to court. My guess is that now, a person with TPS who is denied at the asylum office will be sent to court. Most likely, the person would have to do their case, and if they were ordered deported, the deportation would be delayed until TPS ends. I am not certain about this whole process, and some judges may put the case on hold while you have TPS, but others will not. Take care, Jason
Thank you for your quick response Jason, I really appreciate that.
I only have one follow-up:
“..if they were ordered deported, the deportation would be delayed until TPS ends”.Does that mean I will be held in the ICE detention facility since, if denied, I will have a deportation order? (Affirmative asylum, entered legally). Can I still go to BIA if I have been denied in such case? Thank you.
You can still appeal to the BIA. I don’t know that you would be detained, as I have not seen that in a person with valid TPS who does not have criminal issues, but I guess that is theoretically possible. Take care, Jason
Hello sir uscis case status still shows application is pending. It doesnt show anymore next step is an interview. I paid my annual asylum fee to uscis already. Is it normal. Do you see that for your clients too thanks
I don’t pay much attention to the online messages, as they don’t have a lot of meaning at this stage of the process (unless it states that the interview has been scheduled and that they sent a notice). I do not think the message you received is unusual. I do think it is a good idea to make sure you have all your evidence, in case they schedule an interview, since the timing of interviews is very unpredictable. Take care, Jason
Hi Jason hope you’re doing well, it’s been 30 days since I received my RTD but my husband is still waiting for RTD to be produced, I got mine a day before government shutdown, is there any way except waiting? because we need to apply for a visa which takes time and the RTD has 6 months validation considering that one month passed because of the delay, is this normal?
It is normal for family members to apply at the same time and get their response at different times. I am not sure there is much you can do about it, and supposedly USCIS is moving more slowly due to the shutdown (the agency is fee funded, but some aspects of its work are apparently affected by the shutdown). You can try to expedite the case – I wrote about that on January 29, 2020. It is probably not going to be easy, but there is no harm in trying. That said, cases are still being processed, and so hopefully, even if you cannot expedite, he will get his RTD soon. Take care, Jason
Great article Jason. When you say “Since the advent of the Trump Administration, it has been getting more and more difficult to win asylum” I understand that you are being based on your vast experience as an asylum attorney which is very valuable. But is there any official and less subjective evidence that winning asylum became more difficult after Trump like the asylum approval rates being in decline in both courts and Asylum Offices?
Also, you mentioned “They are also less forgiving of inconsistencies and innocent mistakes.”. What do you mean by that? Have you experience that recently with your clients?
There is only data for courts and not for asylum offices. Denial rates have been climbing since the late Biden Administration and have gone up significantly since Trump took office. I wrote about this most recently on May 21, 2025. We do not have data about the asylum offices, at least I have not seen any. In terms of my statement about inconsistencies, that has always been true to a degree. Innocent mistakes are used to conclude that applicants are not credible. Obviously, some people are not credible, but other case that seems quite obviously credible to me have been deemed not credible based on misunderstandings and bad memories. I do not have data on this, but it seems pretty clear in how clients are questioned in court and at the asylum office. To be fair, though, at least for my cases, denials based on credibility have been rare. I just think decision-makers are looking for reasons to deny and even if they find a person credible, they may justify a denial on other bases in their own mind (and make themselves feel better) by reasoning that the person is not truthful, even if they do not have enough evidence to expose the lie. Take care, Jason
Re: IJ Brooks, Mark K
Hi Jason,
Have you worked with IJ Brooks? If so, please shed some light on how he is, since I cannot find any data on him at https://www.mobilepathways.org or https://tracreports.org/
I am having a merit hearing with him in early Dec. The Respondent was arrested multiples times for religious belief, which is corroborated by legal papers and media report, but the respondent himself is an extremely inarticulate witness. Got me worried.
I don’t remember having a case with him, sorry. I suppose he is a newer judge, in which case there would be no data available about him. If you are on a local lawyer list serve, you can ask there, as some people will probably know him. Take care, Jason
It seems to me that there is no checks and balances regarding grand immigration policies. If one day, the govt outlaw asylum, what should asylum seekers do ?
The asylum advocates, from the description, seem to be very powerless. Basically, we have to fully accept the negative changes and using that as a starting point, develop measures to respond to that.
I wonder if it’s ever possible for asylum community to push back the negative policies and to revert them back to previous admin’s policies…I am afraid that if we don’t push back…They will be inspired to continuously restrict asylum, and it will really be detrimental to the situations of the asylum seekers…I am worried such full-scale acceptance of the negative law change…could it be signaling to govt “we have no power, you can do whatever you wish to us”…the govt will not stop restricting simply because the asylum community acquiesce all these harmful policies…
When Republicans control Congress and the White House, they can largely make the laws. But there has been pushback – the No Kings rally for one, and also many lawsuits that are restricting the President, at least to some degree. Take care, Jason
You have a good point