Federal Agencies, Agency Memos & Announcements
Asylum Lesson Plans
As part of asylum officers’ training, USCIS provides lesson plans containing guidance on matters of law and policy as well as on interviews and adjudications. Many of these lesson plans are linked to in the below table.
| Name | Topic | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affirmative Asylum | This lesson provides an overview of the affinnative asylum adjudication process. The lesson explains the jurisdiction of the asylum program, describes the application process, and explains who may be included as a dependent to an asylum application. The lesson provides basic information on each step of the affirmative asylum process from time of filing an application through adjudication. | March 31, 2021 | RAIO |
| Core Values and Guiding Principles for RAIO Employees | This module provides an overview of the RAIO Directorate, its structure, mission, core values, and guiding principles. | October 21, 2019 | RAIO |
| Firm Resettlement | This module provides an overview of the firm resettlement bars for asylum and refugee resettlement. | January 17, 2019 | RAIO |
| International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) and Religious Persecution | USCIS provided its RAIO Combined Training Course on the International Religious Freedom Act and the responsibilities that the Act creates for adjudicating protection claims. | January 17, 2019 | RAIO |
| Refugee Definition | USCIS provided its RAIO Combined Training Course on refugee definition. This module discusses the definition of a refugee as codifed in the INA and its interpretation in administrative and judicial case law. | January 17, 2019 | RAIO |
| Well-Founded Fear | This module provides guidance on how to determine whether an applicant has established a reasonable possibility of suffering future harm in the country of nationality or last habitual residence. | January 17, 2019 | RAIO |
| Nexus and the Protected Grounds | Course on the five protected grounds for refugees and their interpretation in administrative and judicial case law and how to determine whether an applicant has established harm on account of one of the five protected grounds. | June 13, 2018 | RAIO |
| Sources of Authority | This module describes the legal sources that provide officers in the RAIO Directorate with the authority to make case decisions and determinations. | June 13, 2018 | RAIO |
| Decision Writing Part I: Overview and Components | This lesson introduces asylum officers to the standard format for written asylum decisions. | December 14, 2017 | ADOTC |
| Children’s Claims | This course instructs asylum officers on how to adjudicate children’s claims, including guidelines for child-sensitive interview techniques and considerations for the legal analysis of claims involving child applicants. | May 11, 2017 | RAIO |
| UACs and Asylum | Review TVPRA jurisdiction; UAC determination; child interviewing skills | April 20, 2017 | Interal powerpoint |
| Interviewing - Introduction to the Non-Adversarial Interview | This module describes the main components of an interview for all RAIO adjudications. | March 24, 2017 | RAIO |
| Children’s Claims | Internal RAIO powerpoint on assessing children's claims. Topics include international guidance, cultural and developmental factors, interview considerations, and legal analysis. | February 24, 2017 | RAIO |
| Gender-Related Claims | Internal training Powerpoint on gender-related asylum claims, including types of gender-based harm, factors related to gender that must be considered, factors that may inhibit an applicant's ability to present a gender-related claim, and effective interviewing techniques. | February 22, 2017 | Internal Powerpoint |
| Credible Fear of Persecution and Torture Determinations | Revised CFI training | February 13, 2017 | ADOTC |
| Reasonable Fear of Persecution and Torture Determinations | This lesson explains when reasonable fear screenings are conducted and how to determine whether an individual has a reasonable fear of persecution or torture using the appropriate standard. | February 13, 2017 | ADOTC |
| Credibility | Officer learns to assess credibility and articulate reasons for decision | June 20, 2016 | RAIO |
| Detecting Possible Victims of Trafficking | Issues addressed include indicators that may demonstrate an individual is a victim, specific assistance and benefits available to victims, as well as guidelines for sensitive interview techniques. | November 27, 2015 | RAIO |
| Affirmative Asylum Procedures Manual | USCIS Affirmative Asylum Procedures Manual (AAPM) from the Asylum Division, updated and revised as of May 2016, provides instruction for asylum office personnel on how to process affirmative asylum applications. | May 2016 | RAIO |
| Note-Taking | This module outlines the importance of taking clear and comprehensive notes during the interview, the characteristics of proper notes, and procedures for proper note-taking. | November 25, 2015 | RAIO |
| Interviewing - Eliciting Testimony | This training module instructs students on how to elicit information from an interviewee in a non-adversarial manner. | November 25, 2015 | RAIO |
| Interviewing - Working with an Interpreter | The module describes the role and responsibilities of an interpreter, and how officers can communicate effectively through an interpreter. | November 25, 2015 | RAIO |
| Interviewing Survivors of Torture and Other Severe Trauma | This lesson focuses primarily on the effects of torture and severe trauma and how these effects can affect the interview process. | November 25, 2015 | RAIO |
| Cross-Cultural Communication and Other Factors That May Impede Communication at an Interview | This module describes how cultural differences may create barriers to effective communication and provides techniques for recognizing and overcoming those barriers. | November 23, 2015 | RAIO combined course |
| Researching and Using Country of Origin Information in RAIO Adjudications | This module provides guidelines on the use of Country of Origin Information in adjudicating immigration benefits, petitions, protection determinations, and other immigration-related requests. | November 23, 2015 | RAIO combined course |
| Decision Making | This module describes the general factual, legal and analytical considerations involved in constructing legally sufficient decisions. | November 23, 2015 | RAIO |
| Discretion | This module provides guidelines for adjudicating immigration benefits or requests that are subject to DHS's discretion. The module addresses the basis for determining when discretion is warranted and for performing legal analysis. | November 23, 2015 | RAIO |
| Guidance for Adjudication Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex LGBTI Claims | Very helpful OYFD exception examples | November 6, 2015 | RAIO |
| Nexus - Particular Social Group | This module discusses membership in a particular social group and examines its interpretation in administrative and judicial case law. | July 27, 2015 | RAIO |
| Definition of Persecution and Eligibility Based on Past Persecution | This module discusses the definition of persecution and the determination as to whether an act constitutes persecution. | June 12, 2015 | RAIO |
| Reading and Using Case Law | This module provides basic information on how to read cases from the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), the Attorney General (AG), and the U.S. federal courts. It includes guidance on how to identify the relevant components of a case, how to read and understand a case, and how to analyze and apply case law to make a decision or determination. | January 20, 2015 | RAIO combined course |
| Refugee Definition and Persecution | Internal training Powerpoint on legal definitions of refugee and persecution. | 2015 | RAIO internal Powerpoint; undated |
| Credible Fear | February 28, 2014 | ADOTC | |
| Affirmative Asylum Procedure Manual | USCIS Affirmative Asylum Procedures Manual from the Asylum Division, updated and revised as of November 2013, provides instruction for asylum office personnel on how to process affirmative asylum applications. | November 2013 | Not a lesson plan; procedural manual |
| Updated Procedures for Determination of Initial Jurisdiction over Asylum Applications Filed by Unaccompanied Children | Memo from Ted Kim | May 28, 2013 | FOIA Response |
| Gender-Related Claims | This module instructs asylum officers on gender-related factors to be considered when interviewing and adjudicating claims related to gender, including claims based on violations of societal norms associated with gender. | May 16, 2013 | RAIO |
| Corps Values and Goals | This lesson describes the values that guide the USCIS Asylum Program. | May 9, 2013 | RAIO/ADOTC |
| Suspension of Deportation and Special Rule Cancellation of Removal under NACARA | This lesson instructs officers on how to apply appropriate law to determine whether an applicant is eligible for suspension of deportation or special rule cancellation of removal under NACARA. | May 9, 2013 | ADOTC |
| One-Year Filing Deadline | This lesson describes the statutory bar to applying for asylum more than one year after an alien’s date of last arrival. | May 6, 2013 | ADOTC/AOBTC |
| International Human Rights Law | Introduction to fundamentals of international human rights law | September 12, 2012 | RAIO |
| USCIS Basic Training - Terrorist-related Inadmissibility Grounds | This course reviews the grounds under INA §212(a)(3)(B)(i), the applications to which such grounds apply, and the currently available exemptions to the inadmissibility grounds. | June 2012 | AOBTC |
| Adjudicating Children’s Asylum Claims: Particular Social Groups | Internal USCIS Power Point | January 24, 2011 | Not sure of source; date comes from file name |
| Guidelines for Children’s Asylum Claims | This lesson addresses interviewing and procedural considerations when working with child asylum applicants, as well as considerations for the legal analysis of their claims. | September 1, 2009 | AOBTC |
| Interviewing Part II: Note-Taking | This lesson informs asylum officers of the importance of taking clearly written and comprehensive notes during the interview and the characteristics of proper notes and proper note-taking. | August 10, 2009 | AOBTC |
| Mandatory Bars to Asylum and Discretion | This lesson describes prohibitions on applying for asylum, exceptions to those prohibitions, and the circumstances that require denial or referral of an asylum application, even when an applicant establishes that he or she is a refugee. This lesson also describes the circumstances under which it is appropriate to use discretion to refer or deny a request for asylum. | March 25, 2009 | AOBTC |
| Asylum Eligibility Part II: Well-Founded Fear | The primary focus of this lesson is the determination as to whether an applicant has established a reasonable possibility of suffering future harm in the country of nationality. | March 13, 2009 | AOBTC |
| Asylum Eligibility Part III: Nexus and the Five Protected Characteristics | The primary focus of this lesson is the determination as to whether an applicant has established that past harm suffered or future harm feared is on account of one of the five protected characteristics. | March 12, 2009 | AOBTC |
| Female Asylum Applicants and Gender-Related Claims | This lesson provides guidance on special factors asylum officers must consider in interviewing women and evaluating their asylum claims related to gender. | March 12, 2009 | AOBTC |
| The International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) and Religious Persecution Claims | This lesson introduces asylum officers to the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) and the particular responsibilities the Act creates with regard to the adjudication of asylum claims. | March 12, 2009 | AOBTC |
| Asylum Eligibility Part I: Definition of Refugee; Definition of Persecution; Eligibility Based on Past Persecution | This lesson plan discusses the definition of a refugee as codified in the INA and its interpretation in administrative and judicial caselaw. The primary focus of this lesson is the determination as to whether an act constitutes past persecution. | March 6, 2009 | AOBTC |
| Material Support Bars | Internal memo on material support to terrorist organizations bars | May 24, 2007 | Interoffice Memo |
| Asylum Eligibility Part IV: Burden of Proof, Standards of Proof and Evidence | This lesson describes the various standards of proof that are required in adjudicating affirmative asylum and credible fear cases. The lesson also explains the operation of the burden of proof in the affirmative asylum process. | September 14, 2006 | AOBTC |
| Interviewing Part I: Overview of Nonadversarial Asylum Interview | This lesson provides basic information on the nature of the affirmative asylum interview. | September 14, 2006 | AOBTC |
| Interviewing Part VI: Working with an Interpreter | This lesson explains who can serve as an interpreter, the role and responsibilities of an interpreter, factors that affect accuracy of interpretation, and how to facilitate communication through an interpreter. | September 14, 2006 | AOBTC |
| Corps Values and Goals | Explains asylum corps values to new officers | September 13, 2006 | AOBTC |
| Decision Writing Part 2: Legal Analysis | This lesson explains the legal analysis component of an assessment or Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID), the components of the analysis itself, and how to correctly write a legal analysis. | January 9, 2006 | AOBTC |
| Interviewing Part III: Eliciting Testimony | This lesson provides instruction on how to elicit information from an asylum applicant in a nonadversarial manner. | March 3, 2005 | AOBTC |
| Introduction to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and Concepts of International Protection | This lesson describes the development of international protection of refugees, explains the role of the UNHCR and other international actors, and other elements of international protection. | March 1, 2005 | AOBTC |
| Decision Writing Part I: Overview and Components, Focusing on 1st Three Components | This lesson introduces standard format for written decisions. | June 21, 2004 | AOBTC |
| Interviewing Part V: Interviewing Survivors | This lesson provides instruction to asylum officers on effective interviewing techniques and the effects of secondary trauma. | June 21, 2004 | AOBTC |
| Interviewing Part IV: Inter-Cultural Communication and Other Factors That May Impede Communication at an Asylum Interview | This lesson describes how cultural differences may create barriers to effective communication and provides techniques for recognizing and overcoming those barriers. | December 5, 2002 | AOBTC |
| Making an Asylum Decision | This lesson addresses general considerations involved in decision-making in the asylum context, legal issues to consider, and how to apply the law to the facts in order to decide whether to grant, deny, or refer a request for asylum. | December 5, 2002 | AOBTC |