Asylum / Withholding / CAT

Community explainer from the National Immigration Project describing the July 28, 2026 USCIS Interim Final Rule on “pretermission” of asylum applications at the Asylum Office, explaining how the rule may impact asylum seekers, and providing possible next steps. Available in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole. Published August 12, 2026.

USCIS Refugee, Asylum, and International Operations Directorate (RAIO)’s Asylum Division Officer Training Course on the One-Year Filing Deadline. The lesson explains the one-year bar to applying for asylum, including statute and implementing regulations, the standard of proof, and exceptions, with examples. Revised May 6, 2013.

Initial guidance from Human Rights First discussing the new Interim Final Rule (IFR) published by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on July 28, 2026. The IFR authorizes the Asylum Office to refer certain affirmative asylum applications into removal proceedings in immigration court without ever conducting an interview. This guidance provides an overview of the […]

List of general direct examination questions that may be pertinent to ask a psychological or psychiatric evaluator providing expert testimony in support of an asylum case in immigration court.

List of general direct examination questions that may be pertinent to ask the respondent in an asylum case in immigration court.

Redacted sample direct examination of a country conditions expert witness in immigration court. The sample is based on a case in which the respondent, from Jamaica, sought asylum based on his sexual orientation.

Redacted sample direct examination of a country conditions expert witness in immigration court. The sample is based on a case in which the respondent, from Guatemala, sought asylum based on her K’iche’ Mayan ethnicity; political opinions in support of feminism and indigenous rights; and membership in the particular social groups of “Guatemalan K’iche’ Mayan women” […]

Redacted sample direct examination of an asylum-seeking respondent in immigration court. The sample is based on a case in which the respondent, from Guatemala, sought asylum based on her K’iche’ Mayan ethnicity; political opinions in support of feminism and indigenous rights; and membership in the particular social groups of “Guatemalan K’iche’ Mayan women” and “witnesses […]