C.F.R. » Title 8 » CHAPTER V—EXECUTIVE OFFICE FOR IMMIGRATION REVIEW, DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE › SUBCHAPTER B—IMMIGRATION REGULATIONS › PART 1208—PROCEDURES FOR ASYLUM AND WITHHOLDING OF REMOVAL › Subpart A—Asylum and Withholding of Removal

8 C.F.R. § 1208.3

Form of application

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(a)(1) Except for applicants described in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, an asylum applicant must file Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal, together with any additional supporting evidence in accordance with the instructions on the form. The applicant's spouse and children shall be listed on the application and may be included in the request for asylum if they are in the United States. One additional copy of the principal applicant's Form I-589 must be submitted for each dependent included in the principal's application.

(2) In proceedings under § 1240.17 of this chapter, the written record of a positive credible fear determination issued in accordance with 8 CFR 208.30(f), and §§ 1003.42 of this chapter and 1208.30, shall be construed as the asylum application and satisfies the application filing requirements and § 1208.4(b). The written record of the positive credible fear determination shall be considered a complete asylum application for purposes of § 1208.4(a), with the date of service of the positive credible fear determination on the alien considered the date of filing and receipt, and shall be subject to the conditions and consequences provided for in paragraph (c) of this section following the applicant's signature at the asylum merits interview before the USCIS asylum officer. The applicant's spouse and children may be included in the request for asylum only if they were included in the credible fear determination pursuant to 8 CFR 208.30(c), or also presently have an application for asylum pending adjudication with USCIS pursuant to 8 CFR 208.2(a)(1)(ii). If USCIS does not grant the applicant's asylum application after an interview conducted in accordance with 8 CFR 208.9 and if a spouse or child who was included in the request for asylum does not separately file an asylum application that is adjudicated by USCIS, the application will be deemed to satisfy the application filing requirements of § 1208.4(b) for a spouse or child who was included in the request for asylum. The asylum applicant may subsequently seek to amend, correct, or supplement the record of proceedings created before the asylum officer or during the credible fear review process as set forth in § 1240.17(g) of this chapter concerning the consideration of documentary evidence and witness testimony.

(b) An asylum application shall be deemed to constitute at the same time an application for withholding of removal, unless adjudicated in deportation or exclusion proceedings commenced prior to April 1, 1997. In such instances, the asylum application shall be deemed to constitute an application for withholding of deportation under section 243(h) of the Act, as that section existed prior to April 1, 1997. Where a determination is made that an applicant is ineligible to apply for asylum under section 208(a)(2) of the Act, an asylum application shall be construed as an application for withholding of removal.

(c) Form I-589 shall be filed under the following conditions and shall have the following consequences:

(1) If the application was filed on or after January 4, 1995, information provided in the application may be used as a basis for the initiation of removal proceedings, or to satisfy any burden of proof in exclusion, deportation, or removal proceedings;

(2) The applicant and anyone other than a spouse, parent, son, or daughter of the applicant who assists the applicant in preparing the application must sign the application under penalty of perjury. The applicant's signature establishes a presumption that the applicant is aware of the contents of the application. A person other than a relative specified in this paragraph who assists the applicant in preparing the application also must provide his or her full mailing address;

(3) An asylum application under paragraph (a)(1) of this section must be properly filed in accordance with the form instructions and with §§ 1003.24, 1003.31(b), and 1103.7(a)(3) of this chapter, including payment of a fee, if any, as explained in the instructions to the application. For purposes of filing with an immigration court, an asylum application is incomplete if it does not include a response to each of the required questions contained in the form, is unsigned, is unaccompanied by the required materials specified in paragraph (a) of this section, is not completed and submitted in accordance with the form instructions, or is unaccompanied by any required fee receipt or other proof of payment as provided in § 1208.4(d)(3). The filing of an incomplete application shall not commence the period after which the applicant may file an application for employment authorization. An application that is incomplete shall be rejected by the immigration court. If an applicant wishes to have his or her application for asylum considered, he or she shall correct the deficiencies in the incomplete application and refile it within 30 days of rejection. Failure to correct the deficiencies in an incomplete application or failure to timely refile the application with the deficiencies corrected, absent exceptional circumstances as defined in § 1003.10(b) of this chapter, shall result in a finding that the alien has abandoned that application and waived the opportunity to file such an application;

(4) Knowing placement of false information on the application may subject the person placing that information on the application to criminal penalties under title 18 of the United States Code and to civil or criminal penalties under section 274C of the Act; and

(5) Knowingly filing a frivolous application on or after April 1, 1997, so long as the applicant has received the notice required by section 208(d)(4) of the Act, shall render the applicant permanently ineligible for any benefits under the Act pursuant to § 1208.20.

[62 FR 10337, Mar. 6, 1997, as amended at 65 FR 76131, Dec. 6, 2000; 85 FR 81750, Dec. 16, 2020; 87 FR 18221, Mar. 29, 2022]
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 119 cases (26 in the last 5 years), 2004–2026 · leading case: Ud Din v. Garland
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
Ud Din v. Garland (2023) ca2 · cites it 4× “See 8 C.F.R. § 1208.3 (c)(2); Niang v. Holder, 762 F.”
Selamawit Zehatye v. Alberto R. Gonzales, Attorney General (2006) ca9 “8 C.F.R. § 1208.3 (b); Ghadessi v. INS, 797 F.”
Liadov v. Mukasey (2008) ca8 · cites it 4× “As all asylum applications are deemed by the agency to include a request for withholding of removal, 8 C.F.R. § 1208.3 (b), it makes little sense to construe § 1158(d)(5)(A)(iv) as a mandatory directive after concluding that Congress in 1990 did not intend to otherwise constrain…”
Wakkary v. Holder (2009) ca9 “…1158 is automatically considered an application for withholding of removal under 8 U.S.C. § 1231 (b)(3) as well. See 8 C.F.R. § 1208.3 (b).”
C-A-R-R (2025) bia · cites it 10× “See 8 C.F.R. § 1208.3 (c)(3) (2020) (“An application returned to the applicant as incomplete shall be resubmitted by the applicant with the additional information if he or she wishes to have the application considered.”
Y-L (2007) bia “” 8 C.F.R. § 1208.3 (c)(2) (2006). The respondent’s first attorney signed the declaration under Part E of the original asylum application verifying that the information in the application “was provided to me by the applicant and that the completed application was read to the…”
Putu Indrawati v. U.S. Attorney General (2015) ca11 “” 8 C.F.R. § 1208.3 (c)(2). 16 . In her notice of appeal from the IJ’s decision, Indrawati presented her arguments as follows: The decision of the Immigration Judge was contrary to the law, the facts, and the evidence.”
Ali v. Holder (2011) ca9 “C. § 1231 (b)(3)(A). The elements of an application for withholding of removal are essentially the same as that of asylum, except the burden of proof is higher.”
Ricardo Blanco v. Attorney General United States (2020) ca3 “8 C.F.R. § 1208.3 (b). The Attorney General must grant withholding of removal to a noncitizen who shows a “clear probability” that his “life or freedom would be threatened” in his home country because of a statutorily protected ground.”
Guled v. Mukasey (2008) ca8 “Since substantial evidence on the record as a whole supports the IJ’s findings he could not prove being a refugee and could not prove a well-founded fear of persecution, we cannot say the IJ’s decision to deny his application for asylum was manifestly contrary to law or an abuse…”
Mamadou Diallo v. John D. Ashcroft (2004) ca7 “Pursuant to 8 C.F.R. § 1208.3 (b)(3), an application for asylum is also considered an application for withholding of removal.”
Ghebrehiwot v. Attorney General of the United States (2006) ca3 “8 C.F.R. § 1208.3 (b). 7 . At the outset of our discussion, we noted that Ghebrehiwot admitted that he had never been subjected to past persecution on account of his Pentecostal religion while in Eritrea.”
Show all 119 citing cases →
— 8 C.F.R. § 1208.3(b) — 1 case
Gurung v. Attorney General United States of America (2014) ca3
— 8 C.F.R. § 1208.3(c)(1) — 2 cases
Singh v. Attorney General of the United States (2006) ca3
Shabani v. Attorney General of United States (2006) ca3
— 8 C.F.R. § 1208.3(c)(2) — 3 cases
S-M-H (2026) bia
De Ye Qiu v. Lynch (2016) ca2
Guo v. Boente (2017) ca2
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