{"id":2632,"date":"2021-08-20T12:38:06","date_gmt":"2021-08-20T16:38:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/?p=2632"},"modified":"2021-08-20T12:44:52","modified_gmt":"2021-08-20T16:44:52","slug":"immigration-and-policy-resources-for-afghanistan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/immigration-and-policy-resources-for-afghanistan\/","title":{"rendered":"Immigration and Policy Resources for Afghanistan"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"2632\" class=\"elementor elementor-2632\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-5e19a84 elementor-section-stretched elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"5e19a84\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;stretch_section&quot;:&quot;section-stretched&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-fba88f3\" data-id=\"fba88f3\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-57f1947 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"57f1947\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Immigration and Policy Resources for Afghanistan<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-da82a5d elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"da82a5d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">CAIR-Pittsburgh is sharing this resource document prepared by CAIR-California offices.<\/p><p class=\"has-text-align-center\">We thank our colleagues for allowing us to share it.<\/p><hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-background has-palette-color-1-background-color has-palette-color-1-color\" \/><p>We express solidarity with the\u00a0Afghan-American\u00a0community. We call on the Biden Administration to do everything possible to both welcome Afghan refugees to the United States while protecting Afghan civilians in Kabul amid the evacuation of American citizens, permanent residents, and visa holders.\u00a0<\/p><p><strong>If\u00a0you have a family member or friend who is\u00a0in danger in Afghanistan, we recommend that you reach out to your local\u00a0member of Congress.\u00a0You can find your representative here:\u00a0<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.house.gov\/representatives\/find-your-representative\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>https:\/\/www.house.gov\/representatives\/find-your-representative<\/strong><\/a><strong>.\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p><p>Currently, there are few ways to seek safety and assistance\u00a0from the U.S. government. It depends on\u00a0the individual\u2019s\u00a0status. The situation is evolving rapidly, which may affect how up-to-date this information is. Below identifies some options:\u00a0<\/p><p><strong>US citizens, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), individuals in possession of an Immigrant Visa (IV), or the certain individuals who have a pending IV: \u00a0<\/strong><\/p><ul><li style=\"list-style-type: none;\"><ul><li>If you know someone who needs to get out of Afghanistan, they can contact the Afghanistan Task Force at\u00a0<a href=\"mailto:ATF-TF3@state.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ATF-TF3@state.gov<\/a>. Name, contact #\/email, accompanying family members, passport info or national ID.\u00a0This is for anyone: family of USC, women at risk, SIV, activists, etc. You can contact on behalf of someone but add who you are\/if you are in the military so that the Task Force understands where the insight is coming from.<\/li><li>Individuals under this category, seeking assistance to depart Afghanistan, may register to receive assistance from the U.S. Embassy here:<span>\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/forms.office.com\/pages\/responsepage.aspx?id=dFDPZv5a0UimkaErISH0S0jG7jCPVrpAs2b5YumFx6FUOUNBS0lPNFk1SjhEQzBRRDlXS0NXNFM1WCQlQCN0PWcu\"><strong>Repatriation Assistance Request.<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0<\/strong>The form should be completed for each traveler in their group<strong>.<\/strong>\u00a0The form should only be completed once for each traveler and should be completed as soon as possible.<\/li><li>The purpose of the form is to gather names of those who need immigrant visa appointments and those who wish to utilize any repatriation options, including assistance with repatriation flights. The State Department advises not to cancel booked commercial flights as they cannot guarantee charter flights will be available.<\/li><li>Those with pending applications may consider applying for humanitarian parole (see below) which may be faster than waiting for the embassy to issue a visa.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p><strong>For Afghans that have been employed on behalf of the U.S. government, U.S.-based NGOs, and U.S.-based media organizations:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p><ul><li style=\"list-style-type: none;\"><ul><li style=\"list-style-type: none;\"><ul><li>Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) is a type of visa for Afghans that have been employed for a minimum of one year, between October 7, 2001, and December 31, 2023, by the U.S. government. Applicants must also have experienced or be experiencing an ongoing serious threat as a consequence of their employment.<ul><li>Afghan nationals who are eligible for the SIV program who have not yet done so, are encouraged to submit one complete application package to the National Visa Center (<a href=\"mailto:AfghanSIVapplication@state.gov\"><strong>AfghanSIVapplication@state.gov<\/strong><\/a>)\u00a0to facilitate processing in an expeditious manner.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><li>Individuals with approved SIV applications should contact\u00a0<a href=\"mailto:NVCSIV@state.gov\"><strong>NVCSIV@state.gov<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and a\u00a0congressional\u00a0office to seek evacuation assistance.<\/li><li>For more information on SIV applications visit the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/travel.state.gov\/content\/travel\/en\/us-visas\/immigrate\/special-immg-visa-afghans-employed-us-gov.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>State Department<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/support.iraplegalinfo.org\/hc\/en-us\/sections\/360008472712\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>International Refugee Assistance Project<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0(IRAP)\u00a0websites.\u00a0<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>The Afghan P-2 program allows Afghan nationals to be considered for refugee resettlement based on work for U.S. government agencies, U.S.-based NGOs, and U.S.-based media organizations. The P-2 program does not accept applicant self-referrals. Referrals must be made by the senior-most U.S. citizen employee of the media organization\u2019s or NGO\u2019s headquarters in the United States.<ul><li>For more information on the P-2 program please visit\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/support.iraplegalinfo.org\/hc\/en-us\/articles\/4404608797588\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>IRAP<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/u-s-refugee-admissions-program-priority-2-designation-for-afghan-nationals\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>State Department<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0websites.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p><strong>For Afghans that have US citizen, lawful permanent residence, or refugee relatives in the US: \u00a0<\/strong><\/p><ul><li style=\"list-style-type: none;\"><ul><li>If you have an Afghan spouse, parent, sibling, or child and you are a\u00a0U.S. Citizen, Permanent Resident,\u00a0Refugee, or Asylee\u00a0you\u00a0may be able to\u00a0file a\u00a0petition for an\u00a0immigrant visa for your relative.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><li>For more information for U.S. Citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents see\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.uscis.gov\/i-130\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>form I-130<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0For Refugees and Asylees see\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.uscis.gov\/i-730\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>form I-730<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><li>This process can take several months or years, if your relatives are in immediate danger, you may consider requesting Humanitarian Parole (see below).\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><li>Contact our CAIR-CA\u2019s Immigrants\u2019 Right Center or an immigration attorney to get a consultation and more information about this process.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p><strong>For Afghans who fear persecution from the Taliban or any group in Afghanistan:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p><ul><li style=\"list-style-type: none;\"><ul><li>If you suffered or fear serious harm by the Taliban or any group that the government is unable to protect you from based on your race, nationality, religion, political opinion, or particular social group, you should seek safety at the nearest refugee camp and register with a designated Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) or the United Nations (UN) as a refugee.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><li>If you are in the U.S., you may apply for\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.uscis.gov\/humanitarian\/refugees-and-asylum\/asylum\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>asylum<\/strong><\/a>. Contact our CAIR-CA\u2019s Immigrants\u2019 Right Center or an immigration attorney to get a consultation and more information about this process.\u00a0<\/li><li>If you can make it to a port of entry at a U.S. border, you can apply for asylum.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p><strong>For Afghans seeking entry to the U.S. for urgent humanitarian reasons:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p><ul><li style=\"list-style-type: none;\"><ul><li>Humanitarian parole may be an option. Humanitarian Parole can be requested by someone outside of the United States who is seeking temporary entrance to the U.S. for urgent humanitarian reasons. To be eligible, you have to establish 1) that you will go back to Afghanistan when it is safe, or 2) how you plan to regularize status in the US. This could refer to information about a pending or soon-to-be-filed petition by your qualifying family member on your behalf, intentions to apply for asylum, etc.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><li>If you can reach a third country, an application for Humanitarian Parole can be made at the U.S. Embassy. Afghan citizens are eligible for e-visas to Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan, and they may enter the following countries without a visa:<ul><li>Antigua and Barbuda (e-Visa)\u00a0<\/li><li>Benin (e-Visa)\u00a0\u00a0<\/li><li>Cape Verde (Visa on arrival \u2013 3 months)\u00a0<\/li><li>Comoros (Visa on arrival \u2013 45 days)\u00a0<\/li><li>Dominica (Visa-free entry \u2013 21 days)\u00a0<\/li><li>Ethiopia (e-Visa \u2013 90 days)\u00a0<\/li><li>Maldives (Visa on arrival \u2013 30 days)<\/li><li>Qatar (e-Visa)\u00a0<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>More information on the Humanitarian Parole process can be found here:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.uscis.gov\/forms\/explore-my-options\/humanitarian-parole\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>USCIS<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/support.iraplegalinfo.org\/hc\/en-us\/articles\/360057037651\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>IRAP<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0<\/li><li>Contact our CAIR Immigrants\u2019 Right Center or an immigration attorney to get a consultation and more information about this process.<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><p>It is recommended that anyone trying to travel around Afghanistan wipe their phones so that they have no social media or other files that would provoke the Taliban. Travelers should travel light, with just what they need for kids (food) and medicines. Lines are extremely long at airports.\u00a0<\/p><hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-background has-palette-color-1-background-color has-palette-color-1-color\" \/><p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Should you need\u00a0more information, please contact:\u00a0<a href=\"mailto:atekelioglu@cair.com\">cmohamed@cair.com<\/a><span>\u00a0<\/span>at CAIR-Pittsburgh who will then connect you with additional resources.<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Immigration and Policy Resources for Afghanistan CAIR-Pittsburgh is sharing this resource document prepared by CAIR-California offices. We thank our colleagues for allowing us to share it. We express solidarity with the\u00a0Afghan-American\u00a0community. We call on the Biden Administration to do everything possible to both welcome Afghan refugees to the United States [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":1575,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_price":"","_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"0","_ticket_start_date":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":false,"_tribe_ticket_use_global_stock":"","_tribe_ticket_global_stock_level":"","_global_stock_mode":"","_global_stock_cap":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_going_count":"","_tribe_ticket_not_going_count":"","_tribe_tickets_list":"[]","_tribe_ticket_has_attendee_info_fields":false,"footnotes":"","_tec_slr_enabled":"","_tec_slr_layout":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2632","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community"],"ticketed":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2632","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2632"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2632\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2635,"href":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2632\/revisions\/2635"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1575"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2632"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2632"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pa.cair.com\/pitt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2632"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}