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Find Resources for Assisting Afghan Clients
The situation in Afghanistan is constantly changing and the information provided below could be outdated. AILA recommends that individuals consult with an attorney for further information and guidance.
AILA members: this document is accessible to the public and can be shared with clients and the community who may need access to resources.
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Evacuate Our Allies
Is a coalition of trusted human rights, religious and refugee organizations working alongside veterans and frontline civilians to evacuate at-risk Afghan allies to safety.Table of Contents:
AILA Tools
- AILA Provides One-Pagers Related to Immigration Options for Afghan Nationals
- Help Afghans Find You Online
- AILA GMS Analytics Subcommittee Afghanistan Project
- Report a Trend to AILA’s Afghan Response Task Force
- FAQs for Afghan Clients and Representatives During Ongoing Crisis in Afghanistan
- AILA Practice Pointer: Assistance for Afghan IV Holders and Certain Pending IV Applicants
- AILA provides a practice pointer with information and guidance for assisting Afghan immigrant visa holders and certain Afghan immigrant visa applicants, including information on DOS’s Repatriation Assistance Request form, potential humanitarian options for other Afghan clients, and other resources.
- DOS: Afghanistan Inquiries
Practice Resources for Afghans Once They are In the United States
Special Immigrant Visas (SIV)
- For Attorneys
- Practice Alert: Medical Exam Waiver for Certain Afghan Special Immigrant Visa Applicants
- AILA’s DOS Liaison Committee provides a practice alert on DOS and DHS joint issuance of a blanket waiver of the requirement to undergo a medical exam prior to immigrant visa issuance or admission to the United States for certain Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) applicants.
- CLINIC Practice Pointer: Age-Out Rules for Afghan SIV Derivative Children
- Resources from the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP)
- IRAP-VECINA training course for legal practitioners on SIVs
- Resources for attorneys assisting Afghans in SIV and other humanitarian processes
- This online resource provides an overview of the SIV process, detailed recommendations on specific steps and issues, downloadable templates, and links to additional resources.
- Ask-an-Expert portal for questions from attorneys assisting Afghan SIV applicants
- Practice Alert: Medical Exam Waiver for Certain Afghan Special Immigrant Visa Applicants
- For Afghans
- Resources from the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP)
- IRAP has compiled resources for Afghans, their friends, and colleagues who may be looking for information about immigration options. Comprehensive information for refugees can be found on IRAP’s legal information page, which is also available in Pashto and Dari.
- Resources from the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP)
Asylum
- For Attorneys
- ABA’s Afghanistan Response Project
- VECINA: Representing Afghan Nationals in Affirmative Asylum Proceedings
- This is a comprehensive course on affirmative asylum representation for Afghans after the fall of the Taliban in August 2021. In this course, you will learn everything from where to send the paperwork, to how to craft a particular social group.
- U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Migration and Refugee Services/CLINIC Webinar - TPS for Afghans and the One-Year Asylum Filing Deadline: Webinar recording and PowerPoint slides - June 10, 2022
- USCIS Guidance on One-Year Asylum Application Deadline for OAR/OAW Afghans
- The Immigration Justice Campaign offers resources to assist attorneys representing Afghan nationals in asylum proceedings
- AILA Provides Translated Forms in Pashto and Dari
- For Afghans
- DOS Provides Videos about the Asylum Process
- ABA COI/HIAS Resources
- To assist all Afghan asylum seekers who plan to pursue their asylum claims pro se, ABA COI /HIAS developed a comprehensive Pro Se Asylum toolkit, which has been translated into Dari and Pashto.
- Immigrant Rights Legal Defense Program for San Diego – Flyer for Detained Immigrants or Those Individuals in Alternative to Detention Status
TPS
- For Attorneys
- DHS Notice of Designation of Afghanistan for TPS (87 FR 30976, 5/20/22)
- DHS Notice of Special Student Relief for Afghanistan (87 FR 30971, 5/20/22)
- Frequently Asked Questions: Temporary Protected Status for Afghans
- This CLINIC FAQ describes the basic eligibility criteria for and bars to TPS as well as considerations for determining whether to seek TPS for Afghan clients, including the intersection of TPS, asylum and the SIV process.
Evacuation Resources
- #AfghanEvac - DOS Flight Manifest Eligibility Chart
- #AfghanEvac - Tools and Resources for Afghans in Need
- Evacuate Our Allies Ops Center: Evacuee Current Updates
- UNHCR's Help pages
Humanitarian and Conditional Parole
- For Attorneys
- United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Migration and Refugee Services and CLINIC: Assisting Afghans Paroled at the U.S.-Mexico Border: Guide for Resettlement Agencies and Legal Service Providers
- All About Parole Practice Advisory
- The Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc., CLINIC, provides this practice advisory on parole. Appendix A of the Advisory includes a template letter to USCIS to request humanitarian parole.
- Practice Pointer: Best Practices for Preparing and Filing Form I-912, Request for Fee Waiver – October 21, 2021
- Agency Failures Make Obtaining Humanitarian Parole Almost Impossible for Afghans – March 16, 2023
- Key Takeaways from Operation Allies Welcome Liaison Meeting on Humanitarian Parole – December 17, 2021
- Practice Pointer: USCIS Processing of Humanitarian Parole Applications for Afghan Nationals
- Practice Pointer: Humanitarian Parole for Afghan Nationals in Third Countries
- Resources for Assisting Afghans: Humanitarian Parole - October 22, 2021
- Common Questions When Filing a Humanitarian Parole Application - August 22, 2021 (Special thanks to Khanbabai Immigration Law Firm)
- Humanitarian Parole Application Checklist for Afghans - August 22, 2021 (Special thanks to Khanbabai Immigration Law Firm)
- LIRS: Afghan Parolee Support Program FAQs
- For Afghans
- Know Your Rights: Parole and Beyond for Afghan Nationals – August 30, 2021
Agency Resources Related to Parole
- USCIS Announces Parolees Can Now File Form I-765 Online
- USCIS: Guidance on Evidence for Certain Types of Humanitarian or Significant Public Benefit Parole Requests
- USCIS: Information for Afghan Nationals on Parole into the United States
- USCIS: Auto-Reply from the USCIS Humanitarian Parole Branch with information about parole processing, including expedite requests.
- USCIS: Afghan Parolee Vaccination Status | USCIS
- Employment Information Regarding Afghan Special Immigrant Visa Holders and Parolees - October 29, 2021
- Guidance on Parole for Certain Afghan Nationals into the U.S. – August 23, 2021
- CBP: Afghan Parole Information
- USCIS International Operations Officer Training: Humanitarian and Significant Public Benefit Parole - March 8, 2017
- MOU between USCIS, ICE, and CBP Regarding Parole Authority – September 10, 2008
Resources Related to Parole from Military Bases
- Afghan parolees departing military installations information sheet and an SIV attachment
- Resources Shared by Retired Lieutenant Colonel Margaret Stock
Refugee and Resettlement Information
- For Attorneys
- For Afghans
- IRAP: Am I eligible for the new Afghan refugee program?
- Cultural Orientation Resource Exchange (CORE), a technical assistance program, that connects and supports refugee resettlement staff, provides resources
- U.S. Laws Video (English, Dari and Pashto): This short video covers basic foundational knowledge about U.S. laws that can be used as a primer to share more in-depth details about other specific U.S. laws. CORE providers can share video with Afghan arrivals and use this video with other U.S. law activities.
- CRS: Afghan Eligibility for Selected Benefits Based on Immigration Status – October 27, 2021
- DOS Press Statement: Launch of the Sponsor Circle Program which will enable groups of individuals to form sponsor circles to provide initial resettlement assistance to Afghans – October 25, 2021
Operation Allies
- For Attorneys
- Best Practices and Resources for Representing Operation Allies Welcome Parolees and Afghan Nationals
- USCIS Reminds Afghan Nationals under OAW to Notify USCIS of Address Changes
- USCIS Will Conduct Selected Interviews for OAW Asylum Applicants at Local Field Offices
- USCIS Guidance on One-Year Asylum Application Deadline for OAR/OAW Afghans
- Key Takeaways from Operation Allies Welcome Liaison Meeting on Humanitarian Parole - December 17, 2021
- Liaison Update: Key Takeaways from Stakeholder Engagements with DHS Operation Allies Welcome Leadership
- For Afghans
Other Resources
- Steps to Protect Your Online Identity from the Taliban: Digital History and Evading Biometrics Abuses
- Human Rights First provides fact sheets in English, Pashto, and Dari about how to evade the misuse of biometric data, as well as fact sheets in English and Pashto about how to delete your digital history.
- Human Rights First: Phone Security for Clients in Afghanistan
- Human Rights First provides short guide to help human rights activists erase their digital footprints.
- Human Rights First’s Project Afghan Legal Assistance Dropbox of Resources, which includes resources related to asylum, special immigrant visas, family reunification, public benefits and social services, screenings and trainings, translations, templates and sample affidavits, and more.
- Tarjimly Interpretation Resources:
- Archived Afghan Country Conditions Updates (10/22/21 to present) from Vecina/VIISTA
- Terrorism Bars to Asylum and the Taliban (Free Recording, November 16, 2021)
- DOS Provides Diversity Visa Reassignment Procedures for Kabul and Baghdad – January 5, 2022