The one-year rule is a requirement of INA § 208(a)(2)(B): an asylum application (Form I-589) must be filed within one year of the date of the applicant's last arrival in the United States. Missing the deadline does not close off protection entirely — the law provides two classes of exceptions, and the one-year deadline does not apply at all to withholding of removal or protection under the Convention Against Torture (CAT).
Status as of July 22, 2026. The rule itself and its exceptions are stable (INA § 208(a)(2), 8 CFR 208.4 and 1208.4). Procedures around asylum, however, have been changing actively since 2025 — how the deadline applies in a given track (affirmative, court, expedited) is checked against the rules in effect at the time of filing.
How the year is counted
The clock runs from the date of the last arrival in the United States. The burden of proving compliance with the one-year deadline is on the applicant: timely filing must be shown by "clear and convincing evidence." The filing date is determined under the applicable rules of USCIS or the immigration court (EOIR), depending on the process in which Form I-589 is filed.
Two classes of exceptions
The regulations (8 CFR 208.4(a)) describe two groups of circumstances under which an application is accepted after the one-year mark.
Changed circumstances — circumstances materially affecting eligibility for asylum: changes in the country of origin; changes in the applicant's own personal circumstances (in practice — religious conversion, openly identifying with a persecuted group, and the like).
Extraordinary circumstances — circumstances directly related to missing the one-year deadline: serious illness or mental or physical disability; legal disability, including being an unaccompanied minor; ineffective assistance of counsel where the established requirements are met; maintaining lawful immigrant or nonimmigrant status, TPS, or parole; the death or serious illness of a close family member or of the representative. Once such circumstances end, the application must be filed within a reasonable period, which is assessed individually.
What remains if the deadline is missed with no exception
The one-year deadline applies only to asylum. Withholding of removal (INA § 241(b)(3)) and CAT protection have no filing deadline — but they carry a higher burden of proof (the threat must be "more likely than not"), no path to a green card, and no derivative status for family members. Filing late narrows the set of available protections; it does not eliminate protection. How the process works overall is covered in the asylum section; the link to work authorization is in the breakdown of the asylum EAD, and the court track in the immigration court and removal section.
What happens if the application is filed after one year with no exception?
Asylum is not granted on such an application, but the same facts are considered for withholding of removal and CAT — those forms of protection have no deadline. In the affirmative track, the case in that situation usually goes to immigration court.
Does being a minor count as an exception?
Yes — the regulations treat legal disability, including the status of an unaccompanied minor, as an extraordinary circumstance; filing is expected within a reasonable period after reaching adulthood.
Does lawful status — for example, student status or TPS — extend the deadline?
Maintaining lawful status until filing is on the list of extraordinary circumstances: an application filed within a reasonable period after (or before) it expires may be accepted past the one-year mark. Assessing a specific combination of timelines is done with a licensed attorney.
Does the one-year rule apply to withholding and CAT?
No. The one-year deadline is set only for asylum; withholding of removal and protection under the Convention Against Torture are sought without this deadline.