This document is written for people who want to urgently leave their home countries, countries where they are citizens, because of conflict, dire economic conditions or lack of safety. HOWEVER, this is NOT an official document from any official government agency.
The person writing this document has NO official affiliation with any agency that is responsible for helping people become a refugee.
Do NOT contact the author of this document for any further advice - she does not have any. She absolutely cannot help you with migration of any kind, legal or not.
This document is not mean to talk any person out of trying to become a refugee, an asylum seeker, or other migrant.
This document is meant to counter the many myths about trying to become a refugee, an asylum seeker, or other migrant. It is meant to give people who want to leave their countries a much more clear understanding of the substantial challenges and hardships they will face if they try to leave as an asylum seeker or refugee. It is to help people be better informed.
This document may, unintentionally, have incorrect information in it. Research official government web sites for clear answers.
This document often has a USA-perspective. Laws regarding migrants vary hugely from country to country. Research official government web sites for clear answers.
If you want to translate this document into another language and post it on your own web site, feel free - however, please do not use the author's name anywhere on the site.
A refugee is a person who has fled their country of origin and is unable or unwilling to return to that country because of a fear of being persecuted because of their race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion. A refugee is not in his or her home country, the country where he or she has citizenship.
An asylum seeker is also someone who is seeking international protection in another country from dangers in his or her home country. However, asylum seekers must apply for protection in the country of destination—meaning an asylum seeker must arrive at or cross a border on the country where asylum is desired in order to apply for asylum.
An economic migrant is different from a legally-recognized refugee or asylum seeker. An economic migrant is someone who leaves his or her country of origin purely for financial or economic reasons, not because they are being targeted for violence. Economic migrants choose to move in order to find a better life and they do not flee because of persecution. There is no legal designation or status as “economic asylum” – therefore, people who are seeking a better life because of extreme poverty in their countries do not fall within the criteria for legal refugee status in most countries and are not therefore often not granted international protection.
Most countries have legal, established processes for people seeking status as a refugee or asylum seeker, and these are detailed on the official web sites of those governments. If you want to migrate to Spain, look at the official web site of the Spanish government and read the information carefully and repeatedly. If you want to migrate to Canada, look at the official web site of the Canadian government and read the information carefully and repeatedly. If you want to migrate to the USA, look at the official web site of the USA government and read the information carefully and repeatedly. If you want to migrate to Germany, look at the official web site of the German government and read the information carefully and repeatedly. Do this for any country where you want to migrate to.
However, countries do NOT have legal processes for people seeking status as an economic migrant. Chronic unemployment or chronic economic hardship, including famine, is not enough to achieve legal refugee or asylum status in most countries.
Obtaining official refugee status, asylum status, or
immigration status is a long process.
It is emotionally exhausting. It is stressful. You will experience
hardships in the process. It is NEVER a fast process. It is often
full of many disappointments, even if you make it to the country
where you want to go and live.
For refugee status, your first step is to be out of your
country.
To obtain refugee or asylum status, you cannot be in the country
that you want to flee - you have to have already fled, and it is
most likely that the country where you want to flee to will NOT
help you get out of your country. It is useless to fill out any
forms for refugee or asylum status until you are out of your
country. Once you are out of your home country, you go to the UNHCR office in the country
where you are located at that time and begin filling out the
paperwork to become a refugee. And you will be in this situation,
this refugee status, in another country that is probably not where
you want to stay, for at least 18 months - many refugees wait
years before they get to go to a country with official refugee
status. UNHCR determines
whether a person meets the definition of a refugee, and they have
very strict criteria for deciding this. It is not decided based on
your feelings of fear - you have to prove that you, specifically,
are in physical danger.
For refugee or asylum status, you have to PROVE you are in
danger.
You have to have evidence that you have a genuine, verifiable fear
of being persecuted because of your race, religion, nationality,
membership of a particular social group or political opinion. You
have to have evidence that shows how you are explicitly and
specifically in immediate, specific danger. For instance, all
women and girls are in danger now in Afghanistan, but for the USA
and other western governments, this blanket situation is not
enough for a woman or girl to qualify for asylum or refugee
status. Do you have a letter or text message from a gang that
threatens you? Do you have a video that shows neighbors gathering
and saying they will kill you, or anyone like you: someone of your
religion, or ethnicity, or member of a social group, etc.? Do you
have examples of government documents that proclaim that the
government will imprison or harm anyone like you: someone of your
religion, or ethnicity, or member of a social group, etc.? You
need to have have this proof in paper or digital form to present
to UNHCR once you are able to begin an asylum claim, as well as to
present to appropriate government officials.
All Forms & Info You Need Is On Official Web Sites.
There is not one special form that a person can fill out and
thereby become a refugee, an asylum seeker or an immigrant. There
is not one special person in a government office that decides in
just a few minutes that someone is going to get refugee status or
asylum status. Most countries have complete information how legal
immigration works to enter their country on their web site. Most
countries have information on their official government web site
about how they work with UNHCR.
If someone tells you that you can migrate to another country
easily by filling out one particular form or contacting one
particular office, they are wrong. There are MANY forms to fill
out, and a lengthy process to follow, and complete information is
on the web site of the country where you want to migrate to.
Fees.
You are expected to pay all application fees yourself when you
submit forms to governments. Do not expect a nonprofit or sponsor
to pay for them.
You do NOT need a lawyer at the very start of the process.
You do NOT need a lawyer to obtain any of the official forms on
other country's web sites - the USA, Australia, Canada, Germany,
etc. - or to read guidance information. All of this information is
freely available on these country's web sites.
You may have to live in a refugee camp for a very long time.
The process of obtaining refugee status can last for years. Also,
refugees are not permitted to enter their destination country
until their application has been accepted and they have been
cleared for travel. To do so before they have legal status can
result in their immediate deportation and a ban on any attempt to
be a refugee or legal migrant in the future.
Some refugee camps have dangerous living conditions.
Even in "rich" countries like Australia and the USA, official
refugee camps can have substandard sanitation, little or no
Internet access, and only dormitory housing. Unofficial refugee
camps can be dangerous, especially to women and girls, and the
country where those camps are located may not help with any
adverse security situations, thefts, assaults, etc. You may have
to live in such camps for many months, even years.
You are going to be the target of exploitation and violence
because of your desperate state.
Unscrupulous people are going to target you because you are
desperate to leave your home country or to get to the country
where you want to go. There are people who will tell you that if
you pay them hundreds or thousands of dollars, they will transport
you over a border, or get you refugee status, or get you a job in
a "rich" country. All of these people just want your money. You
will not get what you paid for. Be very careful of trusting
anyone. Do not give money to someone just because they have a
convincing story.
If you make it to the country you want to go to as a legal
refugee, find nonprofits that might help.
Any public library will have Internet access in most countries. On
the Internet, you type in the name of the city and state where you
are, or the nearest large city if you are in a small town, along
with these words: help refugees. These nonprofits will
help you find places to live, but they will not give you money for
rent or to purchase a home. They will help you learn about your
host country and what entry-level jobs are available. They may
help you connect with language classes. They may help you find
free, used furniture and other items that others have donated,
like bed frames, mattresses, dishes, utensils, couches, chairs,
etc. They may also be able to help you find donated clothes.
If you make it to the country you want to go to as a legal
refugee, do not expect financial help.
When you arrive in the country where you want to migrate to, the
government of that country may tell you that you have to pay for
the flight that evacuated you from your country. That government
will not give you a house or an apartment for free. You will have
to fill out a lot of paperwork in order to get any government
assistance and in most country's you will have to go through the
same process that citizens of that country have to go through if
they want any government help - and it is a long process.
There are small nonprofit groups made up mostly of volunteers in many countries who will try to help you with filling out the forms you need for assistance, but particularly in the USA, they will strongly encourage you to get a job as soon as possible, and they will not give you financial help (whereas in some countries, like Germany, asylum seekers aren't allowed to work). These nonprofits may help you and your family find an apartment but you have to pay rent yourself - you may get help from the government for part of your rent, but not all of it. You will not be given any help to buy a car. You will not receive any help to go to college (but children under 18 will be able to go to school for free, just like any citizens).
How do you get money to pay for all you need? In most countries, you are expected to find a job and earn that money. Do not believe in the myth of a financial sponsor. There are stories all over the Internet about this myth - people thing that there are sponsors ready to help refugees financially with thousands of dollars (or whatever currency). There are not.
Jobs.
If you make it to the country where you want to live as a legal
refugee or asylum seeker, do not expect to have a good paying job
quickly, or even in your first years. Consider this: Sayed Sadaat
is an Afghan. He served as minister of communications in
Afghanistan from 2016 to 2018. As a dual Afghan-British citizen,
he decided to move to Germany at the end of 2020 before Brexit
made it no longer possible for Britons to obtain residency in the
EU without conditions such as an offer of employment. His job now
in Germany? Riding a bicycle, delivering pizzas for a German
courier service.
Most host countries expect refugees, asylum seekers and migrants to seek employment quickly and to understand that their employment, at least for the first few years, may not be at an office: it may involve heavy labor, long hours, standing on one's feet for many hours, cleaning up after others, etc.
Education.
If you make it to the country where you want to live, your
children under 18 will be able to go to school without paying a
fee, at least in most countries (the USA, Canada, Australia, all
European countries, etc.). However, going to university costs a
great deal of money, and the government of the country where you
are living will NOT pay for it. If you want to go to university,
or you want your children to go to university, you and/or they
will need to learn the local language quickly, get excellent
grades in grade school, and either work after school to make
enough money to attend a university they can afford or apply for
scholarships (and there are not many scholarships - the majority
of university students do not have scholarships of any kind).
Your standard of living may worsen as a refugee or asylee.
Many refugees are shocked to find that, in their new countries,
even after they are granted refugee or asylum status, that they
live in a crowded, small apartment for many years rather than a
bigger apartment or house like they are used to. They are shocked
that they may have a worse economic status than they had in their
home country. They sometimes feel that in return for greater
safety and security, they have given up economic prosperity and
other factors that help with quality of life. Know that, in
exchange for safety, you and your family will probably take a very
big financial hit to become a refugee.
You may face discrimination and hostility.
Many people do not like people that are different from themselves,
especially if they are foreign. They may say cruel things to you
or your children because of your religion, how you dress, your
accent or your skin color. You need to be emotionally strong
enough to withstand this, and not get violent. If you are
threatened with violence, you need to contact the police. Use your
phone to take a video of anyone that is saying hurtful things to
you if you feel safe enough to do so - this can help when
contacting the police to show the danger you are facing.
Asylum Seekers and Refugees Have Different Rights From Each
Other.
Asylum seekers and people who are granted asylum do not have the
same rights as refugees in many countries, including in the USA.
For instance, in the USA, asylum seekers cannot apply for
permission to work in the USA at the same time they apply for
asylum. They can, however, apply for employment authorization 365
calendar days after filing a complete asylum application – a full
year without the legal right to work and provide for their loved
ones. Additionally, most asylees and asylum seekers in the USA
aren’t eligible for federally funded benefits, so they do not
commonly have access to programs such as food stamps and Medicaid
(health care).
Asylum seekers are expected to go back to their countries when the security situation improves there. In the USA, that includes people who are accepted into the humanitarian parole program.
You must follow the laws in the country where you are living.
Every country has different laws. You may not like some of the
laws in the country where you have chosen to live. However, you
endanger your legal status if you do not follow those laws - and
that means you could be deported.
Deportation.
Asylum seekers can be deported while seeking protection if they do
things that disqualify themselves. A person can be disqualified
for committing a crime, such as an aggravated felony. Once granted
legal status, asylees generally are shielded from deportation.
However, the threat of deportation is still a possibility. In
August 2020, the Trump administration issued guidance to U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that would allow
authorities to terminate asylum status when asylees apply to
adjust status to legal permanent residency (i.e. a green
card).
Networking and integration are essential to success in a new country.
Patience and persistence is also key to your success and
happiness.
It is going to take a very long time for you to achieve the
security and prosperity you are looking for. It will not happen in
just a few months. There may even be times when you think you
would have been better off not leaving your country, because your
life as a refugee is not what you expected. Only you can decide if
you made the correct decision. But remember that you also have the
power to make the decision that you made the right one.
This document is written for people who want to urgently leave their home countries, countries where they are citizens, because of conflict, dire economic conditions or lack of safety. HOWEVER, this is NOT an official document from any official government agency.
The person writing this document has NO official affiliation with any agency that is responsible for helping people become a refugee.
Do NOT contact the author of this document for any further advice - she does not have any. She absolutely cannot help you with migration of any kind, legal or not.
This document is not mean to talk any person out of trying to become a refugee, an asylum seeker, or other migrant.
This document is meant to counter the many myths about trying to become a refugee, an asylum seeker, or other migrant. It is meant to give people who want to leave their countries a much more clear understanding of the substantial challenges and hardships they will face if they try to leave as an asylum seeker or refugee. It is to help people be better informed.
This document may, unintentionally, have incorrect information in it.
If you want to translate this document into another language and
post it on your own web site, feel free - however, please do not
use the author's name anywhere on the site.
If you want to be a refugee or asylum seeker DO NOT WRITE ME.
Here is all the
advice I have for you if you are seeking asylum or refugee
status or want to study abroad.
Here's all the advice I have if you want to work abroad. DO NOT
WRITE ME FOR MORE.
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