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INS Overseas Operations

INS overseas offices are administered by three district offices located in Bangkok, Mexico City, and Rome. The overseas officer corps currently consists of 21 officers in the Bangkok district, including suboffices in New Delhi, Manila, Singapore, Seoul, and Hong Kong; 10 officers in the Mexico City district, including suboffices in Monterrey, Guadalajara, Ciudad Juarez, and Tiajuana; and 20 officers in the Rome district including suboffices in Frankfurt, Vienna, Athens, London, Moscow, and Nairobi.

One of the most important responsibilities of INS' overseas program is refugee processing. The percentage of time each office devotes to this activity depends on the refugee workload, as well as the staffing pattern and priorities within the office. The permanent staff members are augmented by temporary duty personnel from stateside offices, as needed. Moscow operations, for example, have depended on temporary assignments to meet increased interview schedules because of staffing restrictions imposed by personnel ceilings. Circuit rides to other processing posts are arranged by the office having geographic jurisdiction over the post.

INS Role In Refugee Processing

The Eligibility Determination. Eligibility for refugee status is decided on an individual, case-by-case basis. A personal interview of the applicant is held by an INS officer. The interview is non-adversarial and is designed to elicit information about the applicant's claim for refugee status. Questions are asked about the reasons for the applicant's departure from his country, his political or religious

beliefs/activities, problems he may have had or fears having with the authorities in his home country.

A determination of well-founded fear of persecution requires judging both objective and subjective elements of an applicant's claim. Conditions in the country of origin are taken into consideration and the applicant's credibility is assessed.

Persecution is the most difficult element of the refugee definition to analyze and apply. There is no internationally accepted definition of the term "persecution" but it implies a threat to life or freedom. Discrimination in the treatment of various groups is not, per se, persecution but at times an accumulation of discriminatory measures may involve such significant denials of opportunities to participate in society that it constitutes a threat to freedom. Economic hardship is not itself a basis for eligibility for refugee status but persecution may take the form of economic reprisals, such as denial of the opportunity to work.

INS refugee determinations are made according to a uniformly applied worldwide standard. All refugee applicants, regardless of nationality, are subject to the same adjudication criteria.

Recent legislation, however, altered the worldwide standard in certain cases. The so-called Lautenberg Amendment, a provision of the Foreign Operations Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 1990, mandated that the Attorney General identify categories of Soviets, Vietnamese, Lao, and Khmer who are likely targets of persecution. Under this standard, a category applicant is eligible for refugee status if he asserts a fear of persecution and asserts a credible basis for concern about such

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Priority Six. Otherwise of special humanitarian concern: other refugees whose admission is in the national interest.

Priorities Authorized for FY 1991. The authorization to process specific priorities is determined for each individual region in accordance with criteria respecting the situation of refugees in first asylum, the size of the applicant pool relative to the annual admissions ceilings, and the potential magnet effect of refugee admissions processing.

At the beginning of FY 1991, refugees from Albania and the Soviet Union in any of the six processing priorities were eligible to be considered for U.S. resettlement. During the course of the year, Albanian applicants were limited to priorities one through five plus persons with nieces, nephews, uncles, aunts and first cousins in the United States. "Throughout the year, Romanians and Bulgarians were limited to priorities one through five.

For refugees in the first asylum countries of East Asia, U.S. policy since 1982 has been to process priorities one through five. From time to time, specific groups of priority six refugees have been processed when this has been deemed to be beneficial by both the United States and the first asylum countries. At the International Conference on Indochinese Refugees in June 1989, the United States pledged to resettle 40 percent of the roughly 50,000 asylum seekers who had arrived in first asylum camps prior to the cut-off date (mid March 1989 for ASEAN countries; mid June 1988 for Hong Kong) and who were still in camps at the end of June 1989. To fulfill the U.S. commitment, posts in Southeast Asia have been authorized to adjudicate P6 cases (in addition to P1-5 cases) from the pre-cutoff date population. Also, all U.S. linked and non third country linked unaccompanied minors in the pre-cutoff date population are eligible for U.S. resettlement consideration. The Orderly Departure Program follows a modified set of rules, with interview priority given to former reeducation camp detainees, former U.S. Government employees, family reunification immigrant visa cases, and

Amerasians.

In Africa, all priorities were considered in FY 1991 with the exception of the Sudan, where only priorities one through five were processed. African refugees in Europe in priorities one through five were eligible for consideration if they arrived in first asylum prior to July 1, 1988, but exceptions were made for some priority six refugees for humanitarian reasons.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, refugees in the first two priorities were eligible for consideration. In Cuba, the United States also processed priority one and two applicants and their immediate family members. Cuban former political prisoners outside Cuba were considered if they fled Cuba before November 20, 1987. An exception to the latter rule was made for those refugees processed under the Private Sector Initiative, which was not financed by the U.S. Government.

At the beginning of FY 1991, Near Eastern and South Asian refugees who fell within priorities one through four were eligible for consideration. During the course of the year, new Afghan applicants were limited to priority one.

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3. INS Refugee Processing

Section 207(C)(1) of the INA provides that the Attorney General determine whether individuals qualify for admission to the United States as refugees. This responsibility is carried out in the field by officers of the Immigration and Naturalization Service who are assigned to overseas posts. In addition, District offices and the INS Headquarters provide appropriate support.

The Immigration and Naturalization Service has responsibility for both overseas and domestic determinations according to the relevant provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The international definition of refugee, incorporated into law with the Refugee Act of 1980, eliminated previous geographic and ideological limitations and extended the possibility of refugee admission to any person with a well-founded fear of persecution.

INS adjudication of refugee claims, both overseas and in domestic asylum procedures, is conducted according to a uniform worldwide standard. Four equally important components guide adjudication under the worldwide standard: knowledge of national statutory requirements, conditions in countries of origin, current refugee processing guidelines, and U.S. international commitments and treaty obligations. These are then all combined in an in-depth, face-to-face non-adversarial interview of the applicant with the INS adjudicating officer. The INS decision on asylum and refugee applications rests on the statutory definition of refugee and national case law; on evaluation of the facts of a claim to persecution or fear of persecution on account of one of the five enumerated reasons (i.e., race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion); and on international guidance (UNHCR Handbook).

FY 1992 Refugee, Asylum, and Interdiction Developments

FY 1991 saw the continued successful implementation of two major INS initiatives, one overseas and one domestic. The Service completed the second year of Moscow-only processing under the provisions of the Lautenberg Amendment, interviewing approximately 60,000 Soviet refugee applicants by the end of the year. The adjudications standard established by the Lautenberg provisions was reflected in high approval rates. The provisions of the Lautenberg Amendment are scheduled to sunset on September 30, 1992.

Domestically, no challenge in FY 1991 was greater than that presented by the implementation of INS' new asylum regulations which became effective on October 1991. These regulations, published in FY 1990, established not only a specialized corps of asylum officers, but an entirely new organizational structure for processing asylum applicants.

The development of an Asylum Officer Corps was implemented in two phases. Phase I which lasted from October 1 to March 31, 1991 saw the creation of a transitional Designated Asylum Officer Corps composed of 120 INS examiners, working within existing District Offices but under the direct supervision of the Office of Refugees, Asylum, and Parole. As of April 2, the beginning of Phase II, 82 new

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II. PROPOSED PLANS FOR MOVEMENT AND RESETTLEMENT

A. ADMISSIONS PROCEDURES

1. Eligibility Criteria

Applicants for refugee admission into the United States must meet all of the following criteria:

The applicant must meet the definition of a refugee contained in the
Immigration and Nationality Act;

The applicant must be among those refugees determined by the President
to be of special humanitarian concern to the United States;

The applicant must be otherwise admissible under United States law; and

The applicant must not be firmly resettled in any foreign country.

Although a refugee may meet the above criteria, the existence of the U.S. refugee admissions program does not create any entitlement for that person to enter the United States. The admissions program is a legal mechanism for admitting a refugee when the applicant is among those persons of particular interest to the United States.

With respect to persons applying overseas for admission to the United States as refugees, an initial review is performed to evaluate cases based on U.S. national interests, the refugees' situation in temporary asylum, the conditions from which they have fled, and other humanitarian considerations. Applicants who meet the criteria specified above and who fall within the priorities established for the relevant nationality or region, are presented to the INS for determination of eligibility for admíssion under Section 101(a)(42) of the INA.

2. The Worldwide Priorities System

The worldwide priorities system sets guidelines for the orderly management of refugee admissions into the United States within the established annual regional ceilings.

The issue of whether a person is a refugee under U.S. law, and the priority to which a refugee should be assigned for resettlement are separate and distinct. Assignment to a particular priority does not make that individual either more or less a refugee although it may reflect an assessment of the urgency of the need for resettlement. Indeed, refugees could well be qualified for the resettlement program of another country. Just as qualifying for refugee status does not confer a right to resettlement in the United States, assignment to a particular priority does not entitle a person to acceptance into the United States refugee program.

The U.S. refugee priorities system sets guidelines for the orderly management of refugee admissions into the United States within the established annual regional ceilings and is subject to change during the fiscal year.

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Refugee Processing Priorities - FY 1992

Priority One. Compelling concern/interest: exceptional cases of (a) refugees who are in immediate danger of loss of life and for whom there appears to be no alternative to resettlement in the United States, or (b) refugees of compelling concern to the United States such as former or present political prisoners and dissidents.

Priority Two. Former U.S. government employees: refugees employed by the U.S. government for at least one year prior to the claim for refugee status. This category also includes persons who were not official U.S. government employees, but who for at least one year were so integrated into U.S. government offices as to have been in effect and appearance U.S. government employees.

Priority Three. Family reunification: refugees who are spouses, unmarried sons, unmarried daughters, or parents of persons in the United States. (The status of the anchor relative in the United States must be one of the following: U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident alien, refugee, asylee or member of certain groups of public interest parolees).

Priority Four. Other ties to United States: (a) Refugees employed by U.S. foundations, U.S. voluntary agencies or U.S. business firms for at least one year prior to the claim for refugee status; (b) Refugees trained or educated in the United States or abroad under U.S.G. auspices;

Priority Four (Iran and Cuba). In addition to (a) and (b) above: (c) Refugees who have served in positions of leadership or played a conspicuous role within a religious denomination whose members are subjected to discrimination, including the clergy, prominent laymen, those who have served in denominational assemblies, governing bodies or councils; (d) Refugees who because of their minority religious affiliations have been deprived of employment, have been driven from their homes, have had their business confiscated or looted, have been denied educational opportunities available to others similarly situated in the same area, or have been denied pensions that would otherwise be available; and (e) Refugees who have become targets of persecution because of a perceived identification with the United States or the other nations of the West (including Israel).

Priority Four (East Asia). In addition to (a) and (b) above: (f) Persons previously in the civil service or armed forces of the former governments of Indochina who were associated with U.S.G. policies or U.S.-supported programs; (g) Persons who played a meaningful role in the social, economic, political, religious, intellectual, or artistic life of the former societies of Indochina, including such persons as professors, philosophers, monks, or other transmitters of the cultural traditions of these societies.

Priority Five. Additional family reunification: refugees who are: (a) married sons or married daughters of persons in the United States; (b) unmarried siblings of persons in the United States; (c) married siblings of persons in the United States (d) grandparents of persons in the United States (e) grandchildren of persons in the United States (f) more distantly related individuals who are part of the family group and dependent on the family for support. (The status of the anchor relative in the United States must be one of the following: U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident