Asylum seekers are ordinary people with lives, plans and dreams for their future. But war, violence and persecution have forced them to leave everything behind for a chance at safety for themselves and their children.
More than 6.9 million people around the world were waiting for a decision on their asylum claims at the end of last year. That’s millions of people waiting in limbo for the opportunity to build safe, new lives for themselves and their families. As the United States prepares for its upcoming presidential election, asylum and border policies—and the millions of individuals whom these decisions impact—are being discussed more widely than ever before. But how much of the way asylum seekers are portrayed in the news is true?
Below are eight common misconceptions about asylum seekers and facts and figures about the truth behind the asylum process.
Myth: Asylum seekers are looking for easy ways to enter the United States without following proper immigration procedures
Fact:
Seeking asylum is a human right and every person in the world has the legal right to apply for asylum if they are fleeing conflict or persecution, as determined by the 1951 Refugee Convention. International human rights law dictates that asylum seekers must not be expelled or returned to situations where their lives or freedoms would be in danger.
Once asylum seekers arrive, they are screened to determine if they face a credible fear of persecution were they to return home. Asylum seekers then wait to have their cases heard before an immigration judge, who will determine if they will be granted protection.
The process can sometimes take years before asylum seekers have their cases reviewed, and many are held under harsh prison-like conditions in immigration detention while they wait. As the immigration backlog grows, the average wait time is 1,572 days, or 4.3 years, from the time the process reaches the court until it receives a hearing.
Myth: Asylum seekers can freely work and live in the United States
Fact: While federal laws protect the right of asylum seekers to work in the United States, the process can be lengthy and complicated. Asylum seekers must wait at least 180 days after filing their asylum applications to receive a work permit.
When people seeking asylum arrive in the United States, they aim to support themselves and their families rather than depend on humanitarian aid. The current waiting period restricts asylum seekers’ ability to provide for themselves and their families, increasing their risk of exploitation or other abusive situations.Providing work opportunities would benefit the U.S. workforce, as asylum seekers help to fill critical labor market gaps and labor shortages.
Asylum seekers also generally receive limited government support in finding other temporary housing, forcing them to rely on nonprofits like CWS, who help to connect individuals with shelters or find long-term housing solutions.
Myth: Asylum seekers are a burden on the U.S. economy
Fact: When asylum seekers arrive in the United States, the services they receive are limited, and over time, the economic contributions asylum seekers make surpasses the government assistance they receive upon arrival.
In fact, a new U.S. Department of Health and Human Services study recently found a nearly $124 billion positive fiscal impact of refugees and asylum seekers on the U.S. economy over a 15-year period. When the United States supports asylum seekers and other newcomers to integrate into their communities, the benefits are immense. Asylum seekers continue to contribute to the U.S. economy the longer they are living in the country, and on a per capita basis, the report shows that asylees have a comparable positive fiscal impact as the total U.S. population.
Overall, the socioeconomic impacts of welcoming our neighbors in search of safety is positive.
Myth: It is easy to qualify for asylum protection
Fact: In order to qualify for asylum protection in the United States, individuals must prove that they have a credible fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion if returned to your country.
The asylum application process is rigorous, and after a lengthy waiting period, many cases are not approved. Between June 2023-June 2024, of the 661,308 individuals represented in immigration court, only 314,862 (or 47.6%) had their asylum cases granted.
Securing asylum protection in the United States is a complex and challenging process, with stringent requirements and significant hurdles. Less than half of asylum cases are approved, underscoring the difficulty that many individuals face in obtaining this vital protection.
Myth: Asylum seekers choose to migrate to high-income countries like the United States to benefit from services and take jobs
Fact: Asylum seekers do not choose to migrate. War, gangs, pervasive harassment or discrimination, corruption and violence are just a few reasons why millions of people around the world are forced to leave their homes each year in search of safety for themselves or their children.
Those who are forced to flee struggle to leave their homes behind, and the majority of those individuals are internally displaced. As of June 2024, more than 68.3 million people, or approximately 58% of the world’s displaced population, live within the borders of their home country. In total, 75% of the world’s displaced people seek protection in low-income countries, with the minority finding safety in countries like the United States.
Myth: After arriving in the United States, asylum seekers do not show up to their immigration court hearings
Fact: Regardless of whether asylum seekers have legal representation, research has shown that the majority of individuals appear for all of their court hearings.
In 2019, a TRAC analysis found that 98.7% of non-detained asylum seekers showed up for every court hearing, and a 2021 American Immigration Council report showed that, of the 2,797,437 immigration court removal proceedings between 2008 and 2018, an overwhelming 83% of immigrants attended their hearings. Those who did fail to appear in court rarely received notice or faced hardship in getting to court.
As research shows, asylum seekers want to attend their immigration court hearings so they have the opportunity to thrive in their new communities in the United States.
Myth: Asylum seekers are a threat to the safety of our communities
Fact: Asylum seekers undergo rigorous screening, including both biometric and biographic checks, which occur at multiple stages throughout the process, and are less likely than U.S.-born citizens to be convicted for a crime.
In a recent Stanford study, research showed that first-generation immigrants have not been more likely to be imprisoned than people born in the United States since 1880, regardless of their legal status. Researchers at the CATO Institute also found that undocumented immigrants were 37.1% less likely to be convicted of a crime in Texas than U.S.-born citizens. In 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice found that, relative to undocumented immigrants, U.S.-born citizens are more than twice as likely to be arrested for violent crimes, 2.5 times more likely to be arrested for drug crimes and over four times more likely to be arrested for property crimes.
Regardless of an individual’s immigration status or the types of crime surveyed, immigrants are up to 60% less likely to be incarcerated for crimes than people born in the United States.
Myth: The United States welcomes the greatest number of people seeking safety
Fact: The 
majority of people—69% as of June 2024—in need of international protection live in countries neighboring their countries of origin. Collectively, Colombia, Germany, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Pakistan and Türkiye host 39% of individuals seeking safety.
The United States has a long history of welcoming our neighbors. As we consider the facts about those arriving in search of safe, new lives for themselves and their families, we have an opportunity to reestablish our legacy of welcome.
What can you do to support asylum seekers? Take action to contact your representatives against harmful and unlawful asylum restrictions or donate to help CWS provide critical support for refugees and asylum seekers around the world.