We remind that from May 11, 2023 new rules for crossing the Mexican-American border are in force. Anyone attempting to cross the US-Mexico land border or adjacent coastal borders without a U.S. visa or entry permit, and who is seeking asylum, must now immediately show solid evidence that they are being persecuted in their home country, and this is true threatens their life or freedom.
How does the border crossing usually take place in such cases?
In the border crossing zone you must hide all phones and electronics in bags. You are allowed to take water with you. Food is usually allowed only to people with children.
Officers at the border can usually communicate in different languages (by themselves or through an interpreter). But if you know English well, will be better to communicate in English.
The officer will take biometric samples: saliva, fingerprints.
They will definitely ask questions about why you flew to the USA, whether you are in the USA for the first time, whether you have citizenship of other countries in addition to the citizenship of your native country or permanent residence, and what exactly is it that threatens you so much in your homeland that you have to apply for asylum.
If you have a sponsor in the United States, be sure to write down all his contacts on paper to quickly provide this information to the officer.
In fact, you are going through a real asylum interview and you need to be very well prepared for it.
An exception to this rule is if you provide proof of entry at the border using the CBP One app to meet with an officer at a predetermined time and place. Then, in the overwhelming majority of cases, they will not conduct interviews with you immediately at the border, but will let them through and send them to court. But still there are cases when interviews are conducted at the border, even if there is a recording through the CBP application. That is, you need to be ready for it in absolutely any case, even if you signed up through the application. Remember that only the on-site officer decides whether to interview you or not.
The main advice that can be given when communicating with an officer is to answer honestly, politely and clearly, to eliminate any ambiguity in the answers.
You should not treat officers on the border with negativity, remember that these are the same people who can also be tired. But it’s not their job to give you trouble. Their main task is to understand on the spot whether your story is true and whether you really fall under the conditions necessary for granting asylum, whether in fact you are in mortal danger in your home country.
Also, do not be critical of the age of the officers, do not think that a young guy or girl is poorly versed in their duties and you can tell a lie or somehow distort information. Always and in any case you must answer only the truth for officers at the border.
There are many men from Russia at the Mexican-American border, who are fleeing the mobilization. But remember that this and the general situation in Russia are absolutely not the reason for obtaining asylum. Therefore, such asylum seekers are always given special attention and many questions. At the border, you will need to prove why and for what exactly you are in danger and persecuted in Russia. You need to explain that you do not just have a fear of persecution in Russia, but that this fear is justified. That is, the reasons why you need to be granted asylum should be strictly individual and specific to you, and not just a general unfavorable situation in the country.
The same applies to Ukrainians. We remind you that a war in a country is not a reason for asylum. For Ukrainians USA offer a separate U4U program. But if you ask for asylum at the border, then you must to prove why the Ukrainian government is persecuting you and what threatens you.
Also remember that you can be kept in the border control zone for any amount of time.
So, do not tempt fate: prepare for interrogation, answer directly to the questions posed, keep evidence with you (summon, military ID, photographs, publications on social networks, etc.).