Basics of an Asylum Claim (Part 6)
Author: Joseph P. Murphy, Esq., Allegheny Immigration Group
Release Date: 12/25/2019 (YouTube)
Author’s Statement:
This is part 6 of a transcription of my video on asylum which you can see here. If you or someone you care about is, or is in contact with someone who may have a legitimate asylum claim, please call my office at (412)521-2000 or my cell at (412)973-3442. You can also email me at jmurphy@jmurphyfirm.com. Please visit, like and share the Allegheny Immigration Group Facebook page and the Allegheny Immigration Group Youtube Channel.
The Asylum InterviewBefore the officer interview you, he or she will ask you for identification, your passport, whatever immigration document you have. If your lawyer is with you, they will have to show their identification too. Their attorney’s ID card and so on. The officer is going to have the photocopy of those and keep the copy in the file. It will be the physical proof that he has personally interviewed you. It is a nice practice if you have those photocopies made in advance. You present the original document and the photocopy both to the asylum officer. He will have a look at them and if it matches in his expectations that he will keep the photocopy and return you the original one. You will be able to save this person some time. Simple kindness, courtesies and insights can often go a long way in interpersonal interactions in a much professional way. Now, if the officer suspects that the documents that you have handed them over are a forgery, then they will keep the original too and send it for the forensic. So, don’t fool around down there. If you don’t hand the documents, then don’t repost to forgery.
Next, they are going to verify your last date of entry in the United States that will be on the i-94. They don’t issue this anymore. In the past they issued i-94 to some who are still carrying that with them. It is a small white card tucked into your passport. It is all online which you can look up for. You just need to put in your date of entry, full name and your passport number and they will show you all your entries and exists in and from the United States listed where you did it, what class of admission, and so on. If you are a student, you will either be a i-20. Make sure that you have the document of the sponsoring educational institution with you. Collect them fast if you still have a good relation with them. Biometry can be a problem as those expire. I don’t remember what the fingerprinting schedule is. However, I have seen in these situations, people are scheduled for new biometrics for a week before their asylum interview. There is not enough time for the Arlington Office to know whether you have complied or not with the print order. So, when you go down for the biometrics appointment, the officers will take your point of the ASC appointment notice. They will give a stamp on the back which will prove that you have complied by the regulations. Take that with you. There can be a chance that the Arlington Office did not have the chance or time to verify with the information that you have complied. Or worse, someone must have forgotten to put the information in the computer. So, it is better if you have a recently dated biometric compliance. Showing it will result in them stamping on the back with a red ink along with the date of compliance.
