Claiming asylum has never been the most popular means of entering or remaining in the US. Nevertheless, about 100,000 people apply for asylum in the US every year, representing an increase of at least 1,700 percent over 2007. The percentage of claims that are approved have decreased for the last several years, even as the percentage of claims dismissed as frivolous has risen.
The sobering reality is that most asylum claims are rejected, and the rejection rate has been increasing for a number of years now. To win your claim, you are going to have to exert your best efforts to ensure that your application is considerably more persuasive than the average asylum application is.
To win your US asylum claim, you are going to have to prove that you were persecuted in your home country, or that you have a credible fear of persecution if you return. Furthermore, you must have been selected for persecution based on your race, religion, nationality, political views, or membership in a social group.
Asylum is a US immigration status that is based on humanitarian concerns for people who have good reason to fear that harm will come to them if they return to their home countries. If you receive it, you will be allowed you to live and work in the US for an indefinite period of time. Asylum is granted only to people who are present in the US, however. If you are located abroad, you should apply for refugee status, which offers equivalent benefits.
