Don't wait to make your status in the U.S. more secure, if you're an asylee!
If you are a foreign national who has been approved for asylum in the United States (an "asylee"), you are potentially eligible for adjustment of status (AOS, otherwise known as getting a green card) approximately one year after the asylum grant. (That assumes you have also been physically present in the United States for one year's time; if not, you'll have to wait longer.)
It's probably worth applying for AOS as soon as you can do so (which might be even before a year has passed, as discussed below). The longer you wait, the higher the risk that conditions in your home country will normalize; in which case U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) could decide that you no longer need the protection of the United States. It could not only deny the green card but place you into removal proceedings for possible deportation to your home country.
Here, we'll cover:
- the timing of applying to adjust status
- what forms and documents you'll need to submit, and
- what will happen next.
When an Asylee Can Apply to Adjust Status
You don't have to actually wait a full year after asylum approval to submit your AOS application to USCIS. Although USCIS can't approve your application until you've been physically present in the United States for at least one year post-approval, USCIS is incredibly backed up. C
No wonder USCIS amended its policies not long ago to say simply that one year needs to have passed before your case is "adjudicated" (decided on); it no longer says you must wait one year to file. (See USCIS's Policy Manual at Volume 7 - Adjustment of Status, Part M - Asylee Adjustment,
Application Forms and Documents for Asylee Adjustment of Status
The primary application for the purpose of applying for a green card while in the United States ("adjusting status") is USCIS Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. However, the I-485 is just the first item in a packet of forms and documents you will need to submit, which should also include:
- A copy of your official approval for asylum.
- Two identical color photographs of you, passport style and recently taken, with your name written on the back in pencil or felt pen (nothing that will make a heavy mark).
- Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization
- Medical exam results from a USCIS-authorized doctor on USCIS Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record (you might need to catch up on your vaccinations, too).
- Form I-131, Application for Travel Documents, Parole Documents, and Arrival/Departure Records, if you think you might need or want to leave the United States before your adjustment of status interview. You'll want to use this form to request a Refugee Travel Document, which replaces your previous national passport (if you had one). Don't travel back to the country from which you fled, however, or USCIS might decide that you don't really fear going back there and take away your asylum status rather than granting you a green card.
- Proof of your identity, ideally a copy of your birth certificate, with English-language word-for-word translation if it's in another language and a government-issued identity document from your country, also translated if need be.
- Copy of your Form I-94 Arrival/Departure Record (which should have been given to you when you were granted asylum)
- Copies of any pages in your passport showing travel to and from the United States since you received asylum (and take a close look, since the days you were away will be subtracted from your one year when it comes to calculating whether you've met the physical presence requirement).
- Proof of your physical presence in the United States since your asylum approval, such as copies of pay stubs, school enrollment records, and your rental lease.
- Arrest records, if any. Definitely see an attorney if you have any criminal record.
In addition, you will need to pay fees for the applications, unless you qualify for a fee waiver. The latest fee amount can be found on the USCIS fee schedule, and further instructions can be found at on the I-485 page of www.uscis.gov.
Fortunately, as an asylee, you are exempt from the public charge ground of inadmissibility. That means you don't need to prove that your income takes you above the poverty line in the United States. Thus if your income is in fact low, it might be worth applying for a fee waiver, using USCIS Form I-912.
USCIS Processing of Your Adjustment of Status Application
The completed Form I-485 must be filed with the USCIS office having jurisdiction over your place of residence in the United States. You can pay the associated fees with either using a credit card (in which case you must also file Form G-1450) or by making an electronic transfer from a U.S. bank (using Form G-1650, Authorization for ACH Transactions). Owing to a change in USCIS policy, checks, bank drafts, and money orders are no longer accepted.
USCIS will inform you the time and location of your appointment for biometrics (collecting fingerprints, a signature, and so forth).
If your adjustment application is deemed incomplete, USCIS could return the whole packet to you for refiling; or it might follow up with a Request for Evidence (RFE). The RFE will give you a deadline within which to submit whatever USCIS is asking for. Don't miss the deadline, or your case will likely be denied! If you aren't able to submit all that's asked for within the allotted time, send what you have and explain the situation. Also include any documentation showing why a certain item is impossible to obtain.
Next, USCIS will send you an appointment date for a personal interview at a USCIS office. There, an officer will review your Form I-485 and other materials, ask you questions, and finally make a decision on your adjustment of status application. If you filed your application early, before a year had gone by post-approval, be sure to bring proof of your ongoing residence in the United States. After your interview, USCIS might ask for further documents or follow-up, too.
If you're ultimately approved for lawful permanent residency, a green card will be sent to you by mail some weeks later. At that time, you'll be on your way to qualifying for naturalized U.S. citizenship. And, there's good news: one year of your time as an asylee counts as permanent residence in getting to the five years of lawful permanent residence you'll need to quality for U.S. citizenship. (This is a concept called "rollback." If you look at your green card, you should see that your approval date has already been back-dated by one year to reflect this.)
When to See a Legal Expert
If you want to apply for adjustment of status as an asylee, you might wish to consult with an experienced U.S. immigration attorney. That's especially true if your country has been in the news lately, with word of a civil war or conflict having ended or conditions having otherwise improved. The attorney can assist you with the entire immigration application process and accompany you to your adjustment interview at a USCIS office. See, for example, How to Find an Excellent Immigration Lawyer Near Me.
