Under U.S. law, the primary legislative framework for refugee protection is the Refugee Act of 1980, which amended the Immigration and Nationality Act to incorporate the United Nations definition of “refugee” and established many elements of US immigration laws which relate to refugees and asylum-seekers.   

There are two paths to claim asylum in the U.S.: affirmative and defensive. A person who is not in removal proceedings may proactively apply for asylum (“affirmative”) through the U.S. government, with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), a division of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). If the USCIS asylum officer does not grant the asylum application, the applicant is referred to removal proceedings, where he or she may renew the request for asylum through the defensive process and appear before an immigration judge.  

A person who is in removal proceedings may apply for asylum defensively by filing the application with an immigration judge at the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) in the Department of Justice. In this context, asylum is applied for “as a defence against removal from the U.S.”  A denial of the claim may be appealed to the federal courts, with the right to seek a stay of removal during the appeal process, which may or may not be granted. The U.S. can enforce removal of individuals whose asylum claim has been denied (and who are not granted a stay of removal). 

The U.S. legal framework includes admissibility procedures (“expedited removal”) for certain individuals seeking asylum in the interior and at the border. A Safe Third Country Agreement with Canada restricts asylum eligibility for those requesting asylum along the northern border. Executive Orders and regulations may also impact access to asylum.  

The United States resettles refugees through its Refugee Admissions Program, admitting individuals who have been identified overseas as unable or unwilling to return to their countries of origin due to a well-founded fear of persecution. The number and profile of those resettled to the United States can change annually. Upon arrival, refugees are supported by a long-standing public private partnership that serves to support self-reliance. Those who are granted refugee status have a pathway to citizenship.  

Stateless persons are managed under general immigration and nationality laws, as the United States has not acceded to the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons nor to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness. Stateless individuals residing in the United States often do not have a secure legal status, which may impede access to identity documentation, lawful employment, and public services.