No past persecution, no problem. Asylum granted based on well-founded fear of future persecution.

We would like to share with you a successful asylum case our team argued in the immigration court. 

Our client came to the United States using a valid B2 tourist visa. After his lawful entry, he was introduced to the Christian faith. Having heard stories of the treatment of Christians in home country, our client filed a Form I-589 application for asylum with USCIS because he feared persecution in his home country due to his Christian religion. He had never been harmed or threatened in the country; however, because he became a Christian after entering the United States, he feared persecution upon his return. 

After his application had been pending for some time, our client’s son joined him in the United States and was added to his asylum application.

After our client was interviewed by USCIS in relation to his asylum application, USCIS issued an NTA charging the applicant with removability under INA section 237(a)(1)(B) and referred his application for asylum to the immigration court. The client then hired the Law Offices of Sabrina Li to assist him in his removal proceedings.

The difficulty in the client’s case was that he had never actually been harmed or threatened in his home country based on his religion. However, our team’s expertise empowered us to argue that despite the fact that our client had not faced persecution in the past, he was still eligible for asylum based on a well-founded fear of future persecution on account of his Christianity. 

On the day of the hearing, our team provided last-minute discovered evidence that the consulate had denied our clients’ passport renewal. We argued this refusal to issue our clients basic identity documents, supported the argument that our client had a well-founded fear of persecution upon his return to his home country.

The Immigration Judge agreed with our position and granted our client and his son’s applications for asylum. 
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If you or someone you know fears returning to their home country, contact our office.