POLITICAL ASYLUM

Political asylum is available to people already in the United States who fear returning to their home country due to actual persecution or have a well-founded fear of actual persecution because of:

• Race
• Religion
• Nationality
• Membership in a particular social group
• Political opinion
  
  

ELIGIBILITY FOR ASYLUM

In order to get asylum in the United States, you must ask for it at a port of entry (such as an airport or border crossing) or file an application within one year of arriving in the United States. Exceptions to the one-year rule might be if conditions in your home country have changed, or if your personal circumstances have changed and those changes affect your eligibility for asylum. The time you spend in the United States with a valid visa isn't counted as part of the one-year period.

You may not be eligible for asylum if you yourself have participated in persecution of others, or if you've "firmly resettled" in a country other than your home country (for example, by obtaining permanent residency in a country other than your home country or the United States). And fear of poverty or random violence isn't of itself enough to qualify you for asylum.

There is no limit on how many people may be granted political asylum each year in the United States.