U.S. Department of Justice

Executive Office for Immigration Review

Office of the Director
5107 Leesburg Pike, Suite 2400
Falls Church, Virginia 22041

Contact: Office of Public Affairs

(703)305-0289, Fax: (703) 605-0365

Internet: www.usdoj.gov/eoir

EOIR and INS Lift Conditional Status from Fiscal Year 1998

Asylum Grants Based on Coercive Population Control

Law Limits Asylum in Such Cases to 1,000 Applicants in Each Fiscal Year

The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) recently sent notices to aliens in the United States who had been granted asylum conditionally in fiscal year 1998 (between October 1, 1997, and September 30, 1998), based on their persecution or fear of persecution related to coercive population control in their countries of origin. The notices informed those aliens that they were now fully eligible for all asylum benefits.

Asylum is granted on a conditional basis by Immigration Judges in EOIR or by Asylum Officers in the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) because the law specifically limits the number of applicants who can receive asylum on grounds related to coercive population control to 1,000 for each fiscal year. After the cases are completed, EOIR and INS arrange all conditional asylum grants chronologically, then convert no more than 1,000 to outright grants for any fiscal-year period and notify the grantees.

The notices EOIR recently sent out were for conditional grants made during fiscal year 1998 (October 1, 1997, to September 30, 1998). Conditional grants made during fiscal year 1999 (October 1, 1998, to September 30, 1999) will be arranged chronologically and notices will be sent to qualifying applicants after January 2000.

Any alien who was granted conditional asylum on or before September 30, 1998, by EOIR but who has not received a notice advising that a number is available may check on the status of his or her asylum grant by promptly sending a letter with a copy of the order granting conditional asylum to the office with jurisdiction over the case. The addresses are listed below:

Conditional Grant issued by an Immigration Judge:

The Office of the Chief Immigration Judge
Attn: Mark Pasierb
5107 Leesburg Pike, Suite 2500
Falls Church, VA 22041

Conditional Grant issued by the Board of Immigration Appeals:

Board of Immigration Appeals
The Clerk's Office
Post Office Box 8530
5201 Leesburg Pike, Suite 1300
Falls Church, Virginia 22041 Phone: 703-605-1007

Grants by INS Asylum Officers

The INS Asylum Offices are in the process of removing the conditional grant status and sending out notification letters to aliens granted conditional asylum status by the INS during fiscal year 1998. The letters notify the aliens that they have been granted asylum status.

Aliens who received a recommended approval from the INS in fiscal year 1998 may not necessarily receive a notice of a final grant of asylum at this time, because not all aliens who received recommended approvals were eligible for conditional grants in fiscal year 1998. The INS granted conditional asylum status to aliens only after completion of all required background investigations, such as fingerprint checks by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). If an alien was found eligible for asylum based on persecution or fear of persecution on account of opposition to coercive population control practices, the INS issued the alien a recommended approval pursuant to regular INS asylum procedures, pending completion of the required background investigation. Once the INS received results from the background investigation, the INS would convert the recommended approval to a conditional grant of asylum, pending release of the numbers for fiscal year 1998. Therefore, an alien who was given notification of a recommended asylum approval in fiscal year 1998, may not have been granted conditional asylum in fiscal year 1998, if the results of the background security check were not received on or before September 30, 1998.

Any inquiries regarding removal of the conditional asylum status granted by an INS Asylum Office should be directed to the Asylum Office that issued the recommended approval.

- EOIR -