Evacuated Afghans face bureaucratic nightmare to stay in U.S.

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Ten months later, Askerzada described their chaotic escape at the southwest Houston apartment where he lives with his wife, three sons and brother-in-law.

“I personally thank every individual American citizen,” Askerzada said. He remembers crying when Americans welcomed him and his family at a Virginia airport after they were evacuated.

Little did he know, Askerzada’s immigration case to stay legally in the United States had just begun.

Askerzada and many of the 5,500 evacuated Afghans resettled in the Houston area — after persisting through a bungled U.S. evacuation and rushed resettlement process — are now staring down the barrel of a tedious and overwhelmed immigration legal bureaucracy.

That’s due to the fact that the vast majority of evacuated Afghans were brought to the U.S. not on visas, but through a temporary designation called “humanitarian parole.”

“People (Afghans) were generally paroled for two years in the U.S.,” said Sunil Varghese, policy director at the International Refugee Assistance Project, which provides legal support to refugees. “There’s no U.S. government program for what happens after the two years.” Further, those who don’t gain legal status within that time period could lose the chance to ever reunite with family left in Afghanistan.

A ticking clock

That two-year clock has already started ticking for Afghans in Houston, and tens of thousands of others across the country, to get their immigration cases straightened away.

If they don’t, and Congress fails to pass immigration protections, they could end up barred from becoming legal permanent residents – or even undocumented, making them vulnerable for deportation.

“It’s really tough. We’re very mindful of the fact that the clock is ticking,” said Shala Gafary, who manages Afghan legal assistance for Human Rights First.

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For evacuated Afghans, the good news is that they have two strong immigration pathways to getting green cards (permanent residency): asylum and a Special Immigrant Visa.

The bad news is these legal processes are complicated, especially for newly arrived families with limited experience with U.S. bureaucracy.

Even though Afghan asylum cases are being fast-tracked and have a nearly 100 percent approval rate, applying requires extensive documentation. The Special Immigrant Visa process has been riddled with complications in the past — and few immigration attorneys in Houston or other parts of the country are familiar with that process, since applications historically were made outside the United States. Afghans can also apply for Temporary Protected Status, though that doesn’t offer any permanent immigration protections.

Askerzada’s family is actually pursuing all three of those immigration options through Houston-area attorney Elizabeth Mendoza, who was connected to the family through her volunteer efforts with arriving Afghans.

“He’s eligible for all three. I’m doing all three and see which one we get first,” said Mendoza, who has nearly three decades of experience working asylum cases and is confident about their chances, especially considering Askerzada’s well-documented experience working with the U.S. military. It’s straightforward proof the family would be persecuted by the Taliban-controlled government if they were to return to Afghanistan.

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But by some measures, Askerzada’s situation is a best-case scenario. He was lucky to be connected by chance with an experienced attorney like Mendoza. Finding attorneys to do time-intensive immigration applications with the Dari and Pashto-speaking population in Houston is no easy task.

Askerzada also spoke English before moving here, making it easier to solidify that connection and communicate about the immigration case.

Many recently arrived Afghans speak only Afghan languages. Mendoza said as a volunteer, she’s noticed some Afghans have limited literacy in their native languages, and may have worked as a janitor or cook at the U.S. military base. They will experience major language and educational barriers to pursuing a legal case, and may not even know their own legal predicament.

Strong asylum cases also require a great deal of paperwork, according to Gafary, including an affidavit explaining what would happen if the person returned to his or her home country, biographical documents and other personal evidence.

“If we take a typical case of an Afghan pilot, let’s say, who was evacuated here, it would be helpful for him to include a copy of his ID badge, maybe an employment letter, maybe photos of him in his pilot gear, sitting in a plane, for example, any diplomas or certificates that he has received.”

Beyond that, many families who are still orienting themselves to a dramatically different life in the United States may not even understand that they are required to pursue an immigration legal case in the first place.

When asked if he knew about his legal situation before his chance meeting with Mendoza, Askerzada said no.

“I didn’t think about it,” he said.

A simple (yet, not-so-simple) solution

A swift act by Congress could make this logistical legal nightmare go away for tens of thousands of Afghans and refugee resettlement agencies, who have had their hands full trying to connect Afghans with housing, medical care, educational services, jobs and transportation and now are looking for ways to support Afghan legal cases.

Afghan allies and advocates — and even President Joe Biden — have asked Congress to pass an Afghan Adjustment Act, legislation that would allow evacuated Afghans to become legal permanent residents after one year in the United States. If passed, the law would essentially eliminate the need for Afghans to go through the complicated asylum or Special Immigrant Visa process, which would also ease the burden on immigration agents already dealing with a long backlog of other cases.

Mendoza said an Afghan Adjustment Act would reduce the time required for a case by more than 90 percent — and an attorney wouldn’t even be necessary to adjust status under this kind of legislation.

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But Congress has so far failed to act, despite a historical precedent for these types of protections for Southeast Asian refugees and Cubans. In 1977, an amendment to the Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act created an expedited pathway for Vietnamese refugees, many who were living (and still live) in Houston, to get green cards after two years in the country.

Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn did not respond to the Houston Chronicle when asked if they support, or would vote for, an Afghan Adjustment Act.

Delagha Askerzada and his family hope to continue their lives in Houston and are already taking steps to adapt to their new lives in in Houston. His wife has added pasta salad to her cooking repertoire and is learning English. His kids are enrolled in school and Askerzada has a job as an interpreter with Catholic Charities.

The summer heat doesn’t bother them — although they could do without the cockroaches.

Their legal future in the country is likely secure, thanks to their personal connection with Mendoza, the immigration attorney. In the likely case they are allotted green cards, it will open up other doors — they could start to petition for other family members to join them in the United States.

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But for the less savvy and connected Afghans, without an Afghan Adjustment Act, if they fail to become legal permanent residents, it may end their chances of ever reuniting with their spouses, children and other family in Afghanistan.

“Unless you file for asylum and in a timely manner, you actually will never be eligible for a green card,” said Gafary, who believes this could end up disproportionately hurting the women and children stuck in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, who were unable to make it on the evacuation planes last August.

“It’ll actually be really devastating, the impact on families,” she said.

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