HOW TO APPLY FOR ASYLUM - The Florence Project

Citizenship and Immigration Services.
After you turn in the application form all filled out, the court will send it to the United States Department of
State in Washington. The Department of State will read the application and may write a letter with its opinion
of the case or send the court information about your country. (It declines to comment in many cases.) You and
the DHS lawyer will be given a copy of what the Department of State sends to the court.
After that, you will have what is called an individual or “Merits” hearing. This is the final hearing in your case
when the judge listens to your story and asks you and your witnesses, if any, questions about your application
and anything else you turn in for the judge to look at.
• TO APPLY FOR ASYLUM, WITHHOLDING OF REMOVAL, OR CAT
PROTECTION, WHAT FORMS DO I FILL OUT AND HOW
To apply for asylum or withholding, you need to fill out, copy and file a form called an “I-589.”
The form you need is called a “Form I-589” or an “Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal.”
Fill out the form using a typewriter or pen. Ask DHS or the Immigration Judge for the form.
Do not use pencil. Also, you must either fill out the form in English or get someone to help you fill it out
in English.
The form has a page at the end that says at the top, “Supplement B Form.” This page is for you to use in case
you run out of room on the main part of the form. It is important to answer the questions completely and in
detail, so we recommend making a few copies of the “Supplement B Form” before you write on it. Or, you can
make one yourself. Just take a blank piece of paper and write your name, your “A number” (alien number), and
the date at the top. You should also sign each piece of paper you attach to your application.
At the front of the form is a long explanation of how to fill it out. It says that, in addition to the I-589
application form, you need to provide DHS with your biometrics (digital photograph and fingerprints)
and have a photograph taken. If you are in custody, you must ask DHS to help you with this. If you get out
of custody before you file your application or if you are including family members in your application, you
do need photographs and fingerprints taken, so we will talk about this more later. You must comply with the
DHS biometrics and fingerprint requirements otherwise the Immigration Judge may find that you have
abandoned your application unless you have a good reason for any failure to comply.
Make (or ask an officer to make) four copies of everything you turn in to the Court. Give the originals
and 2 copies to the Immigration Judge. Give ICE 1 copy of everything you give the judge. The other copy
is for you to keep. Note: Except for the I-589 application form, you should keep your original documents
and you should copies of these documents to the judge and ICE. If you give original documents such as
your birth certificate or passports to the government, you may not be able to get these original
documents back.
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FIRRP- last update June 2007