If an asylum officer starts raising their voice or becomes insulting, you don’t have to just sit

Added: 2026-04-29

[00:00:00]If the asylum officer at your asylum interview starts raising their voice or becomes insulting, you don't have to just sit there and take it. I'm going to tell you what to do if the officer crosses the line and how to protect yourself in real time. So, sometimes asylum officers move from being kind of brusque or direct into being hostile and maybe flatout inappropriate. They can raise their voice. We've seen officers make racially insensitive comments, all kinds of stuff. And sometimes they badger you like a hostile interrogator when they're supposed to be a neutral information gatherer and a neutral decision maker. It's unsettling. It can throw you off your story right at the moment when you need to be at your sharpest. Most asylum applicants don't realize that you can stop the interview and ask to speak with what's called the supervisory asylum officer or SAO.

[00:00:47]That's the boss. So the asylum officer conducting your interview. Now, when you ask, the Assam officer has to go get their SAO so that you can explain what's happening and that you're not being treated respectfully. And at that point, you have two options. Okay? First, you can ask the SAO to just go back and talk with the officer to try to make sure that things go better from there. Or second, you can ask to reschedu and come back another day and do your interview with a different officer. The second option is almost always the better play.

[00:01:16]Look, once you've gone over the officer's head, they're probably going to be kind of frustrated, and there's very little chance that they can stay objective in your case. All right?

[00:01:24]There's also a good chance that the SAO will reschedule you with an officer who has a reputation for handling interviews more thoughtfully, let's say. Now, look, this is a hugely consequential interview. You should not have to spend it sparring with an officer or being made to feel bad about yourself. Okay?

[00:01:41]So, don't be afraid to advocate for yourself. And look, one more thing, this is important. Having a lawyer in the room helps tremendously with this. You see, Assam officers, they just behave more professionally when they know there's someone watching. They're held accountable. And I can tell you from the inside based on what I saw from my colleagues when I worked as an asylum officer for USCIS. Officers genuinely act differently when a lawyer is involved. Okay, that alone can be the difference between an interview where you focus on telling your story and one where you're forced to do battle the whole time. If you need help with an asylum case or help getting a loved one out of immigration detention, please send me the word consult in a direct