Update

Every year people come to the United States seeking protection because they have suffered persecution or fear that they will suffer persecution due to:

• Race
• Religion
• Nationality
• Membership in a particular social group
• Political opinion

You may only file this application if you are physically present in the United States, and you are not a U.S. citizen.

At this time, the option to file an online Form I-589 is only available for certain affirmative asylum applicants. Affirmative asylum applicants may not file an online Form I-589 if they:

• Are in proceedings in immigration court or before the Board of Immigration Appeals;
• Are an unaccompanied alien child as defined in 6 U.S.C. § 279(g) and are in removal proceedings;
• Are among the categories of applicants who must currently file by mail with the Asylum Vetting Center as outlined in the Special Instructions section of our Form I-589 webpage; or
• Already submitted a Form I-589, which is still pending with USCIS.

If you are eligible for asylum you may be permitted to remain in the United States. To apply for asylum affirmatively or defensively, file a Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal, within 1 year of your arrival to the United States. Visit our Obtaining Asylum in the United States page for more information on affirmative and defensive filings. There is no fee to apply for asylum.

You may include your spouse and children who are physically present in the United States as dependents on your affirmative or defensive asylum application at the time you file or at any time until a final decision is made on your application. To include your child as a dependent on your application, the child must be under 21 years old and unmarried. For more information see our Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal page.

If you were placed in expedited removal proceedings, you received a positive credible fear determination, and USCIS retained your asylum application for further consideration in an Asylum Merits Interview, please visit our Asylum Merits Interview with USCIS: Processing After a Positive Credible Fear Determination page.

If you have an asylum application pending with us, you can check the status of your application at Case Status Online. You will need the receipt number that we provided you after you filed your application.

Based on a Pending Asylum Application:

To apply for an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) based on your pending asylum application under the (c)(8) category, you may file a Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, 150 days after you file your asylum application. You are not eligible to receive an EAD until your asylum application has been pending for at least another 30 days, for a total of 180 days, commonly referred to as the 180-Day Asylum EAD Clock.

Delays that you request or cause while your asylum application is pending with an asylum office or with the Executive Office for Immigration Review do not count toward the 150-day waiting period or the 180-day eligibility period.

Delays you may request or cause may include:

• Asking to transfer a case to a new asylum office or interview location, including when the transfer is based on your change of address;
• Asking to reschedule an interview for a later date;
• Failing to appear at an interview or biometrics appointment;
• Failing to provide a competent interpreter at an interview (if required);
• Asking to provide additional evidence at or after an interview;
• Submitting large volumes of evidence immediately before an interview that requires a reschedule; or
• Failing to receive and acknowledge an asylum decision in person (if required).

If you are required to receive and acknowledge your asylum decision at an asylum office but you fail to appear, your 180-Day Asylum EAD Clock will stop, and you may be ineligible to receive employment authorization. If your case has been referred to an Immigration Court, your 180-Day Asylum EAD Clock will not start again until your first hearing with an immigration judge.

If you fail to appear for a scheduled asylum interview without good cause, or fail without good cause to provide a competent interpreter if you are required to do so, we may refer your Form I-589 to an immigration judge, and you will be ineligible for employment authorization based on your pending Form I-589. For additional information about establishing good cause, please review Establishing Good Cause or Exceptional Circumstances .

For more information regarding employment authorization and applicant-caused delays, see The 180-Day Asylum EAD Clock Notice (PDF, 612.26 KB). If we approve your application for employment authorization based on your pending asylum application, your EAD will be valid for up to 2 years.

After the Asylum Application is Adjudicated:

If you are granted asylum, you are immediately authorized to work. (Some asylees choose to obtain EADs for convenience or identification purposes, but an EAD is not necessary to work if you are an asylee.)

If you are denied asylum, your employment authorization will terminate when your EAD expires or 60 days after your asylum application was denied, whichever is later. If you are not in lawful immigration status (or do not have parole), and an asylum officer “refers” your asylum application to an immigration judge for further consideration, your EAD remains valid through the date of expiration, unless you renew it. If an immigration judge denies your asylum application, your employment authorization will terminate on the expiration date printed on your EAD, unless you appeal the immigration judge’s decision to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) or, after BIA review, you appeal the BIA’s decision to a federal circuit court. You may be otherwise eligible for employment authorization if you are a valid immigrant or nonimmigrant or have parole or temporary protected status.

ALERT: If you are applying for your initial (first) employment authorization based on having a pending asylum application, you may be a member of the class action case, Rosario v. USCIS, Case No. C15-0813JLR (W.D. Wash. July 26, 2018). To learn more, visit the Rosario Class Action page.

On Sept. 26, USCIS automatically extended the validity of Permanent Resident Cards (also known as Green Cards) to 24 months for lawful permanent residents who file Form I-90. We are in the process of sending out amended receipt notices for individuals with a pending Form I-90.

On Sept. 26, USCIS automatically extended the validity of Permanent Resident Cards (also known as Green Cards) to 24 months for lawful permanent residents who file Form I-90. We are in the process of sending out amended receipt notices for individuals with a pending Form I-90. You can present an amended receipt notice with an expired Green Card as evidence of continued status. By presenting your amended receipt notice with your expired Green Card, you remain authorized to work and travel for 24 months from the expiration date on the front of your expired Green Card.

It will take some time to send out all of the amended receipt notices. If you are in urgent need of evidence of status while you wait for your amended receipt notice or your replacement Green Card, or if you need another in-person service, you may call the USCIS Contact Center to request an appointment. We encourage you to wait for your amended receipt notice instead of scheduling an appointment that you may not need.

If you are a U.S. citizen, you can file a petition for your foreign-born spouse and, under certain situations, the children of your spouse.

To petition for your spouse’s children, they must be unmarried, under 21 years old, and have been under the age of 18 at the time of your marriage to your spouse. You must file a separate Form I-130 for each child.

No. On June 10, 2022, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas vacated nationwide DHS Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas’ September 30, 2021 memorandum, Guidelines for the Enforcement of Civil Immigration Law (Mayorkas Memorandum) that set-forth DHS’ civil immigration enforcement priorities. See Texas v. United States, No. 6:21-00016 (S.D. Tex. June 10, 2022). The District Court’s order became effective Saturday, June 25, 2022, at 12:00 a.m. CDT.

OPLA attorneys are no longer applying the Mayorkas Memorandum or sections of Principal Legal Advisor Kerry E. Doyle’s memorandum, Guidance to OPLA Attorneys Regarding the Enforcement of Civil Immigration Laws and the Exercise of Prosecutorial Discretion (April 3, 2022), that rely on the priority enforcement framework established by the Mayorkas Memorandum when making prosecutorial discretion determinations or for any other purpose.

OPLA attorneys, however, may—consistent with longstanding practice—exercise their inherent prosecutorial discretion on a case-by-case basis during the course of their review and handling of cases.

PD is the longstanding authority of a law enforcement agency, and an indispensable feature of any functioning legal system, that can be used to preserve limited government resources necessary to achieve just and fair outcomes in individual cases. As the exclusive representative of DHS in immigration removal proceedings before the U.S. Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), OPLA attorneys have the inherent authority to exercise PD on a case-by-case basis in the handling and litigation of removal cases.

In practice, PD allows OPLA attorneys to decide on which cases to focus their finite resources and how to proceed in individual cases in light of the facts and applicable law, including, for example, agreeing to dismissal or administrative closure or entering into stipulations on legal or factual issues as well as relief, bond, and continuances. PD is an inherent authority of a law enforcement agency and does not create a right or entitlement for any noncitizen.

This page addresses many of the common questions that noncitizens in removal proceedings and their legal representatives may have regarding PD.

OPLA attorneys are entrusted to use their professional judgment to ensure justice in each individual case while adhering to the enduring principles that apply to all of their activities: upholding the rule of law; discharging duties ethically in accordance with the law and professional standards of conduct; following the guidelines and strategic directives of senior leadership; and exercising considered judgment in individual cases, particularly mindful of OPLA’s limited resources.

OPLA attorneys will independently evaluate cases to determine whether to exercise PD, which may include unilaterally moving to dismiss or administratively close cases; agreeing to stipulations on issues such as relief, bond, or continuances; waiving appeal; or joining in motions to reopen proceedings. You (or your legal representative) may also submit requests for PD to OPLA.

OPLA attorneys will review cases during the normal course of business to determine whether and how to exercise PD. Consequently, you are not required to submit a PD request for OPLA to exercise PD in your case.

If you would like to submit a request for PD, however, you (or your legal representative) should follow the guidance below.  Any requests for OPLA to exercise PD in your case should be submitted as early in the removal process as possible.