USCIS Form I-589: Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal

Edition date

01/20/25. You can find the edition date at the bottom of the page on the form and instructions.

Where to file

Who May File with USCIS You may file your affirmative Form I-589 with USCIS if you are not a U.S. citizen, are physically present in the United States, and: You have never been issued an A-Number; or You have been issued an A-Number, but you are not currently in Department of Justice Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) proceedings (see below for more information about how to check whether you are in EOIR proceedings); or You are in removal proceedings and are currently, or were previously determined to be, an "unaccompanied alien child" (UAC). You may not file your Form I-589 with USCIS if you are currently in EOIR proceedings, unless you are currently, or were previously determined to be, a UAC as defined in 6 U.S.C. § 279(g)(2).

You must file your Form I-589 with EOIR if you are currently in proceedings before an EOIR immigration judge or before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) and you are not, and were never determined to be, a UAC. These steps will help you determine whether you are in EOIR proceedings: Have you been issued an "Alien Number" (A-Number)?

The A-Number begins with the letter “A” and is followed by 8 or 9 digits (for example, A123456789).

Filing fee

You can find the fees for Form I-589 by visiting our Fee Schedule page. Annual Asylum Fee (AAF): Public Law 119-21 requires the principal alien with a pending Form I-589 to pay an Annual Asylum Fee (AAF) for each calendar year that the application is pending, in addition to any other fee.

The AAF applies to the principal alien only and is in addition to any other fee that may be due. You cannot request a waiver of the AAF.

We will send a notice to each alien who must pay the AAF. Notices will include the amount of the fee, when and how to pay the fee, and the consequences if you do not timely pay.

We will also send notices to any representatives of these aliens listed on Form G-28. If you receive a notice, you should pay the AAF within 30 days.

If you do not pay this fee online within 30 days, we will reject your pending asylum application. If we reject your asylum application and you do not have legal status in the U.S., we will begin removal proceedings.

If we reject an alien’s asylum application, we also will deny any pending Form I-765, Application for Employment Authorization, based on that asylum application.

USCIS filing tips

See our Filing Instructions Tool to determine whether to file your Form I-589 with USCIS online or by mail. General Filing Tips for filing Form I-589 by mail: Review the instructions for eligibility requirements for yourself, spouse, and children.

Use the correct edition of the form. You can find the edition date at the bottom of the page on the form and instructions.

Complete the form in English. This includes explanation fields on the form.

Do not submit passport-style photos, multiple copies of the form, or multiple copies of supporting documentation. If you already have a Form I-589 pending with USCIS, do not submit another Form I-589.

Submitting another Form I-589 will not result in faster processing of your case and may cause additional delays. Once we have accepted your Form I-589 for processing, do not submit additional correspondence or evidence to the Lockbox or the USCIS Asylum Intake Unit.

You must submit these items to the local asylum office where we are processing your case. Required Form Fields: We may reject your Form I-589 if the following form fields are blank: Part A.I., Information About You Complete Last Name (Question 4.) Residence in the U.S.

Special instructions

Applications that Must be Filed with the USCIS Asylum Intake Unit Below are instructions for filing Form I-589 if you cannot file at the locations listed in the Where to File section above because your Form I-589 requires special handling. When you file your Form I-589, you must include a letter explaining why you are filing with the USCIS Asylum Intake Unit and identifying which category below applies to your Form I-589.

If your Form I-589 does not match any of the categories listed below, we will reject it, with instructions to file with the appropriate lockbox. The following Forms I-589 must be filed with the USCIS Asylum Intake Unit: Loss of Derivative Status After Asylum Approval but Before Adjustment of Status (Nunc Pro Tunc): If you are currently a derivative asylee, but you are unable to adjust status to lawful permanent resident due to a loss of derivative relationship, then you may submit a new Form I-589 and request a grant of asylum nunc pro tunc.

In your letter, please provide information about your previous Form I-589 and explain that you are now filing independently as a principal applicant.