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An "asylum seeker” refers to someone who has fled their country and applied for protection as a refugee, but hasn’t yet been legally recognized as a refugee and is waiting to receive a decision on their
asylum claim. Those who are granted asylum are termed "asylees."
Amnesty
Seeking asylum is a human right. Everyone should be allowed to enter another country to seek asylum.
Amnesty
Globally
There are approximately 5.4 million asylum seekers seeking international protection and awaiting determination of their status. In 2022 alone, almost 2.9 million asylum applications were registered in 162 countries, the highest number of individual asylum applications on record.
World Migration Report
In 2022, the global number of first-instance new individual asylum claims lodged was 2.6 million, an increase of 83% over 2021. The top recipient remained the United States with around 730,400 claims -- a 3-fold increase from the previous year. 2nd was Germany, with 217,800 new claims.
World Migration Report
At the end of 2022, those under 18 years of age constituted around 41% of the overall 35.3 million refugee population. There were an estimated 51,700 unaccompanied and separated children asylum applications in 2022 -- an 89% increase from the
previous year.
World Migration Report
In the U.S.
The United States is obliged to recognize valid claims for asylum under the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol. As a signer to these agreements, the U.S. is further obliged not to return or "refoul" refugees to the place where they would face persecution.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
U.S. law allows asylum seekers to enter the country to make their claim. Applicants must show that they suffered persecution in the past, or have a well-founded fear of future persecution in their country of nationality and permanent residency on account of at least one of the 5 protected grounds: race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
In 2023, the U.S. provided protection to
54,350 asylees.
U.S. Office of Homeland Security
About 80% of asylum claims in the U.S. fail or are rejected in immigration court.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Most resettlement destinations in the U.S. are in large metropolitan areas, with over 70% going to 30 locations. The historical gateways have been California, New York, Illinois, Missouri, Minnesota and Rhode Island. In the last decades of the twentieth century, Virginia, Washington, Oregon and Georgia also provided new gateways for resettled refugees.
Brookings
Between 2012 and 2021, Chinese nationals made up the largest group of asylum seekers from any country, comprising approximately 63,000 people, or more than 20% of total asylees entering the U.S.
USA Facts
Asylum seekers in the U.S. have exactly 1 year to apply for asylum. During that year asylum seekers are responsible for providing their own legal assistance and representation.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Until their cases are approved, and sometimes even after approval and receipt of green cards, asylum seekers are at a constant risk of detention. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has authority to detain any person suspected of violating immigration laws. Detention centers are government-funded facilities modeled after U.S. prisons.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Nearly 38,500 immigrants are being held in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centers across the U.S.
Syracuse University
In 2018, the U.S. Government implemented a policy known as "Zero-tolerance" – which separated almost 4,000 children from their families seeking asylum. 5 years later, more than 1,000 still remained separated.
Women's Refugee Commission
The trauma associated with family separation had significant effects on the mental and physical well-being of these children. Several studies concluded that academic difficulties and mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression were prevalent among the children whose families
were separated.
Science Direct
Backlogs
In 2022, the immigration courts had a backlog of 470,000 asylum cases with an average wait of 1,942 days (over 5 years).
Syracuse University
Gang Violence
In 2018, the U.S. issued a decision in that precluded people fleeing gang violence from qualifying for asylum protections based on that alone.
U.S. Justice Department
Climate Change
Climate change and natural disasters have caused 265 million people to migrate since 2008.
Columbia University Journal of International Affairs
People forced out of their homes and ways of life due to climate change are not recognized and protected under U.S. asylum policy because they do not fit under one of the protected categories
of persecution.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
For more on Refugees, click here.
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