Job opening: Asylum Officer
Salary: $114 044 - 148 255 per year
Published at: Dec 05 2023
Employment Type: Full-time
This position is located with Refugee, Asylum and International Operations, Asylum Division, Los Angeles Asylum Office, in Tustin, CA.
As an Asylum Officer, you will adjudicate complex asylum applications, provide guidance to lower-graded officers and analysts who adjudicate or screen applications for immigration benefits, and make recommendations on local policy and procedures.
Duties
As an Asylum Officer you are a crucial member of the Department of Homeland Security team tasked with defending our
nation’s citizenship and immigration system. Typical assignments include:
Mentor Asylum Officers, providing critical technical assistance, guidance and advice for meeting or exceeding goals, standards and objectives.
Adjudicate complex asylum cases including those involving national security and egregious public safety concerns, high profile cases, cases involving novel or unsettled areas of law, and cases involving specific vulnerable populations.
Write legal decisions on novel cases and test cases to clarify or address new aspects of USCIS policies and procedures.
Work closely with USCIS Fraud Detection and National Security (FDNS) Officers, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) attorneys and agents, and other legal, law enforcement, and intelligence officials.
Qualifications
The qualifications for this position must be met by 11:59 PM (Eastern Time) on 12/14/2023.
Current Federal employees must have served 52 weeks at the lower grade or equivalent grade band in the Federal service. The Time-in-Grade requirement must be met by 11:59 PM (Eastern Time) on 12/14/2023.
The Asylum Division within USCIS is responsible for making determinations that impact the lives of those seeking asylum in the United States to escape persecution due to race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. These determinations are made while protecting national security, combating fraud, and protecting the legal immigration system through careful screening, vigilant interviews, and sound adjudications. Every day, Asylum Officers change lives while ensuring the integrity of our country's immigration system. Ideal Asylum Officer candidates have strong verbal, written, interpersonal, and critical thinking and analytical skills, as well as a steadfast commitment to administer and uphold laws and regulations.
GS-13: You qualify at the GS-13 level if you possess one (1) year of specialized experience, which is equivalent to at least the GS-12 level in the federal government, that equipped you with the skills needed to successfully perform the duties of the position. You must have experience performing the following duties:
Making final determinations on complex and sensitive immigration benefits cases that are discretionary and potentially precedent-setting;
Analyzing and evaluating immigration adjudications processes with regard to production, quality, and service to the public;
Providing guidance, direction, and support on policy matters for immigration services;
Reviewing decisions on asylum, suspension of deportation, or other immigration benefits drafted by field officers to ensure proper application of all relevant guidance.
Please read the following important information to ensure you submit everything we need to consider your application: It is your responsibility to ensure that you submit your responses and appropriate documentation prior to 12/14/2023. Your resume will be used to determine your qualifications for the position advertised in this announcement. Therefore, your resume must highlight your most relevant, significant experience related to the requirements found in the qualification section of this announcement, as well as any applicable education. USCIS will only review the first 5 pages of your resume to determine your initial eligibility/qualifications for a position. As such, please be sure to include content to support your eligibility/qualifications for this position within the first 5 pages. Please note that your full resume will be made available to the hiring manager if you are referred. Be clear and specific when describing your work history since Human Resources cannot make assumptions regarding your experience. Your application will be rated and ranked based on your responses to the online questions.
Please ensure EACH work history includes ALL of the following information:
Job Title (include series and grade if Federal Job)
Duties (be specific in describing your duties)
Employer's name and address
Supervisor name and phone number
Start and end dates including month, day and year (e.g. June 18 2007 to April 05 2008)
Start and end dates for each grade/pay level if you've held a federal position.
Full-time or part-time status (include hours worked per week)
Salary
Determining length of General or Specialized Experience is dependent on the above information and failure to provide the above information may result in a finding of ineligible.
Note: Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration.
Federal Experience: If you are using current or prior federal experience as a basis for qualifying for this position, the grade levels and length of employment (mm/dd/year) at each grade level must be listed in your work history. This information will be further validated if selected for this position.
National Service Experience (i.e., volunteer experience): Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build criteria competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer service. Please provide the dates and amount of time/hours worked earning this experience.
Education
EDUCATIONAL SUBSTITUTION: There is no educational substitution at this grade level.
Training: If you have not already done so, you will be required to attend the residential, paid RAIO Combined Training course and the Division-specific course(s), that relate to this position, at a USCIS training facility. Depending on the position, the courses may last up to nine weeks, including six weeks of residential training and three weeks of online training. In addition, if you have not already done so, you will be required to attend the residential, paid BASIC Immigration Officer training program, lasting six weeks, at a USCIS training facility. The trainings must be completed successfully according to the standards of the agency. Failure to do so will be grounds for mandatory removal from the position. Such failure will result in either reassignment to a different position, demotion, or separation by appropriate procedures.
Paid Internship Experience: Applicant's work as part of a paid internship, for which course credit is not received, may be evaluated as work experience. It is the applicant's responsibility to clearly identify in their resume any paid internship that would qualify for consideration. The applicant must provide their transcript for verification purposes.
Veterans and law enforcement professionals are encouraged to apply for an exciting career with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
Map
