Asylum/ NGO Meeting
ASYLUM HQ/NGO LIAISON MEETING
March 2, 2010
20 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington, DC
2:00 – 4:00 pm
Asylum Updates
I. New NGO Meeting Format
The Asylum Division thanks Human Rights First (HRF) for organizing the Quarterly Asylum HQ/NGO Liaison meetings in the past. We will be cooperating with the USCIS Office of Public Engagement (OPE) to organize future meetings. The meeting date and time will be advertised on the USCIS website and meetings will be open to the public. The meeting will be advertised only on the USCIS website and meeting invitations will not be sent to any listserv. The advertisement will include instructions on how to submit agenda items and how to RSVP to the meeting. A final agenda will be posted on the website prior to the meeting. We also will attempt to post the regularly provided statistics prior to the meeting. The agenda questions and answers will be posted after the meeting but verbatim minutes will not be posted.
HRF is still discussing internally whether they will gather agenda items and submit them as a group and whether they will continue to take minutes and post.
We have not yet determined whether there will be a call-in number for the meetings. We would like to maintain open dialogue and do not want to inhibit conversation in any way.
The meetings will continue to be held on a quarterly time frame.
II. Memo: Implementation of New Discretionary Exemption under INA Section 212(d)(3)(B)(i) for Activities Related to the INC, KDP, and PUK
Please refer to the attached memorandum. The exemptions are applicable to people from all nationalities, not only Iraqis, because there could be individuals operating with those groups outside of Iraq who are not Iraqi nationals. Similarly, the exemption is not limited to individuals who engaged in operations inside Iraq.
III. Memo: Notification of Ramos v. Holder: Former Gang Membership as a Potential Particular Social Group in the Seventh Circuit
Please refer to the attached memorandum.
Credible Fear/Reasonable Fear and Expedited Removal
IV. Please provide the following statistics:
a. Most recent statistics on Credible Fear Interviews (CFIs) and completions since the last meeting (12.08.09)
i. Since the last meeting, the overall CFI passage rate and by asylum office.
ii. Please provide the number of those referred for a CFI as a result of internal pickups due to the expansion of the expedited removal program.
iii. Top 5 nationalities of those referred for CFIs since the last meeting.
Please refer to the attached statistics.
b. Please provide the same statistics for Reasonable Fear Interviews (RFIs).
Please refer to the attached statistics.
c. Please provide timeframe for completion of CFIs and RFIs in the last quarter and a breakdown of what those timeframes are indicating (referral to interview v. interview to decision v. referral to decision, etc.).
We are unable to provide these statistics at this time. We created a new program to obtain the requested information and while we have preliminary information on these statistics we have not yet ensured the information is correct. After we have ensured the preliminary information is correct we will liaise with CBP and ICE to review the data. This process may take some time.
Asylum Office Workload
Please refer to the attached statistics on asylum office workload.
V. Please provide:
a. Statistics on Afghan and Iraqi adjudications for the last 3 months.
Please refer to the attached statistics.
b. Charts for the last 10 years on Iraqis and Afghan cases bringing it up to date for this fiscal or calendar year.
Please refer to the attached statistics.
c. Statistics on asylum applications filed by Haitians for each of the last 5 years by each asylum office, including percentages approved and referred by office.
Please refer to the attached statistics. Statistics for the first quarter of FY10, broken down by asylum office, are attached. Statistics on asylum applications not broken down by asylum office are also attached. We will provide statistics for the past 5 years shortly. Please note that approval rates are calculated based on cases that are interviewed and decided on the merits. The shaded box contains the office approval rates for all cases, not just Haitians.
Question: Do you compare grant rates by office?
No, we only compare grant rates in a general sense. For example, we know that different offices have different populations and that may impact their grant rates. We find NGO feedback is more helpful because if we hear from advocates that there are perceived inconsistencies or that the offices are not meeting our standards we will follow up with those offices.
d. Statistics on successful Haitian asylum claims, broken down by the five protected grounds (race, religion, nationality, political opinion and membership in a particular social group.)
These statistics are unavailable. The search is complex to set up and run because cases may have more than one ground identified. In addition, our experience shows that these types of statistics do not provide a level of detail that would be helpful in reviewing asylum division procedures.
TRIG (Material Support)
Statistics and questions concerning TRIG will be addressed at a separate meeting. The next TRIG meeting will be held in early June.
Asylum
VI. In December 2009, a group of NGOs, asylum practitioners, and academics sent the Asylum Division a letter providing comments and suggestions to the training module on the one year filing deadline. (Letter attached).
a. What is the Asylum Division’s time frame for revising the training module and addressing the key recommendations provided in the letter?
We are in the process of consolidating all of RAIO’s training into a basic course for the entire Directorate – Refugee Affairs, Asylum, and International Operations – because the branches have much in common. Now, whenever an officer enters on duty for Asylum, RAD, or International Ops the officer will attend a basic RAIO training course followed by specific training. We have a team revising all of the lesson plans and we are optimistic that the lesson plans will be complete in late summer/early fall. The one-year issue is an internal asylum lesson plan and we will be amending this lesson plan as well. The officers who are updating the one-year lesson plan have your letter and will take your suggestions into account.
We are happy to meet with advocates in late spring/early summer to discuss and we hope to provide a draft lesson for your comment at that time. Please feel free to reach out to Locky Nimick if you have any additional comments.
b. When is the next training of Asylum Officers scheduled?
The next training is scheduled for late summer/early fall 2010.
VII. In December 2009, advocates offered edits to a document designed to educate asylum seekers in detention post-credible fear of the eligibility criteria for release from detention on parole.
a. Please provide copies of the final document Asylum Officers are using during these information sessions and an update on how that process, including coordination with ICE, is going.
Please see attached. Coordination with ICE is ongoing. The attached document includes instructions to applicants on how to follow up with ICE officials at their current locations if they do not receive a decision within seven days.
b. In which languages is that document available?
The document has not yet been translated but a telephonic interpreter translates the document and explains the procedures to the asylum seekers in their language. We will not translate the document until we have ensured that we do not need to change or edit the English version. We have not received much feedback on this yet and welcome your comments.
VIII. How is a Palestinian classified in the asylum database in reference to country of birth and nationality?
How a Palestinian is classified depends on his or her country of birth and country of nationality. We do not capture “Palestine” as a country of birth or a country of nationality. The country of birth is based on where the individual is born. If an individual is born in the occupied territories the country of birth likely would be entered as Israel. People that have no country of citizenship are classified as “stateless.” The country of last habitual residence is not tracked in RAPS.
IX. Additional Questions
a. Has anything been done to address the waiting time at ZNK? My client was scheduled for an 8:00 AM appointment but wasn’t called until 4:00 PM.
This is the first we have heard of long wait times at ZNK. Please give us more information on the long wait you experienced at ZNK, including the dates you have experienced a long wait. We would like determine if it is an aberration or a common theme. Any additional information you have will be helpful to us to use to follow up.
b. The new I-485 and I-765 applicants have complicated instructions for where asylees should file the applications. There is a lot of information on the eligible categories but the instructions on where to file are unclear.
Thank you for alerting us to this problem. We will take a look at the instructions for asylees and take appropriate action. We had been in touch with the office producing these forms but due to the snow closures were unable to share our comments on the forms prior to publication. However, most of these comments were technical corrections. We welcome your thoughts and ideas on how to improve these forms.
The next meeting will be held on Tuesday, June 8th. Details will be posted on the OPE website. We will finalize the Questions and Answers from this meeting and they will be posted on the USCIS website along with the statistics and other handouts. Human Rights First will also be posting their meeting minutes.
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