HOW TO APPLY FOR ASYLUM - The Florence Project

Although it is important to include many details in the forms and in your declaration, it is more important not to
state facts you are not absolutely sure about. If you do not remember if something happened in June or in July,
but you do know it happened during the summer, put that it happened during the summer. If you do not know
the distance in kilometers between your town and the capital, but you do know that it takes a full day by foot,
put that. If there were between 4 and 6 men, do not put 5, put "between 4 and 6." If you think something
happened in 1992, but it is also possible that it was 1991, put "1991 or 1992." If a certain date is your best
guess, put "approximately," even on the forms. In addition, make sure that whatever fact you put in your
declaration is the same as what you say at your hearing.
Many people have these problems for cultural reasons. People in the United States think in order of what
happened, that is, first this happened, then this, and then that. In your culture, it may be that this order is not as
important. But you have to explain your case to a judge in the United States, and for this reason, you have to
force yourself to think like him or her. So, try to be precise. Even if you can not remember the year something
happened, try to remember if it was before or after some other event and to put the events in order and always
tell them in this order. It may help you to make a list that you keep for yourself in which you put in order each
event that you want to put in your declaration. For example: 1) I was born in 1962; 2) My family moved to San
Marcos; 3) There was a massacre in the town of Santa Lucía, etc.
> Mistakes in translation <
When translating from one language to another, it is easy to make mistakes. If someone translated your
declaration into English for you, ask the person to read it back to you slowly in your own language so that you
can be sure there are not any mistakes. It is important to review everything in your application form and
declaration very carefully.
Some Questions in Part B
Remember to write “Please see declaration” at the end of each question in Part B if you plan to do a longer
declaration as we have suggested.
Question 1 asks why you are applying for asylum. You should check one or more of the boxes (Race,
Religion, etc.) that apply to you because there may be more than one reason that someone mistreated or
wants to mistreat you. For example, it is possible to be persecuted because of your race and membership in a
social group, or because of your membership in a social group and your political opinion.
You should explain why you are afraid to return to your country and why you left your country in questions
1.A. and 1.B. Many people make the mistake of saying that they came to the United States because they want to
work and get ahead. Others say they came to reunite with their family members. Remember that the purpose of
asylum is not to protect poor people who want to work, nor to reunite families. Its purpose is to protect people
who are persecuted for one of the five reasons discussed above. So, while you do have to tell the truth, you do
not have to mention every single reason you came to the U.S., unless it relates to a fear of persecution due to
one of the five grounds or a fear of torture. If you are applying for protection under theCAT, you should include
in your answer to this question why you fear you will be tortured if returned to your country.
Question I. A. asks if you, your family, or close friends or colleagues have ever experienced harm or
mistreatment or threats in the past by anyone. If you answer "no," it would appear that you may not qualify
for protection, and you will need to explain why you think you would be mistreated or threatened in the
future if you have not been in the past. If you check, "yes," you should explain in detail what happened,
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FIRRP- last update June 2007