Can I Apply for Asylum as a Defense Against Deportation in Virginia?

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) explains that asylum is a specialized form of immigration protection to people who are entering (or in) the country and who have a credible fear of persecution. Asylum can sometimes be raised as a defense against deportation. Within this article, our Annandale deportation defense attorney explains the key things to know about raising an asylum defense against deportation.

Background: Understanding Asylum Claims

Broadly explained, an asylum claim allows a foreign national to seek lawful immigration status in the United States. To apply successfully, an applicant must qualify as a “refugee” under United States immigration law. Among other things, the definition requires proof of past persecution or a well-founded fear of future persecution tied to a protected ground. There are actually two broad categories of asylum claims:

• Affirmative: An “affirmative” application proceeds through United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
• Defensive: A “defensive” application arises after the Department of Homeland Security initiates removal proceedings.

Asylum is a Defense Against Deportation

Did you or your loved one receive a Notice to Appear (NTA)? That means that you are facing removal from the United States. Still, you have the right to defend yourself. Asylum can be raised as a defense against deportation. How it works from a technical perspective is that a person who has been placed in deportation proceedings may file Form I-589 with the immigration court as a defense to removal. From there, the immigration judge conducts a de novo hearing. Relief is discretionary. Even where statutory eligibility exists, the judge weighs adverse factors such as immigration violations or criminal history. A grant of asylum halts removal and confers status, work authorization, and even a path to lawful permanent residence after one year.

What You Need to Prove to Raise a Successful Asylum Claim

Asylum claims are complicated, especially so in the context of a deportation defense. In order to raise asylum as a successful defense against deportation, you will need to prove all of the following:

• Persecution or Well-Founded Fear of Persecution: To start, an applicant must show past persecution or a forward-looking risk that is both subjectively genuine and objectively reasonable.
• Protected Grounds: The persecution in question must occur “on account of” race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.
• Government Involvement or Government Inability to Protect: An applicant also must establish that the persecutor is the government or a non-state actor the government is unwilling or unable to control.
• Timeliness: Finally, an asylum application raised as a deportation defense must comply with the one-year deadline or fit within a statutory exception to that deadline. 

Contact Our Annandale Deportation Defense Lawyer Today

At Escobar Law Offices, our Virginia deportation defense attorney puts clients first. We explore every viable solution. If you have any questions about deportation defenses, please do not hesitate to contact us for a confidential consultation. We help clients with deportation defenses in Annandale and throughout Northern Virginia.

Source:

uscis.gov/humanitarian/refugees-asylum