Canadian immigration consultant Nicholas Avramis has warned some Afrikaners against applying for asylum in the United States (US).
In February, US President Donald Trump stated that Afrikaners could be admitted as refugees in the US because they are “victims of unjust racial discrimination.” The South African Chamber of Commerce in the US announced that 67 042 people have registered on Saccusa’s website as they seek to take Trump’s offer.
Speaking to NewZroom Afrika, Avramis said the Afrikaner community have been inquiring about asylum policies in the US.
“Recently, we have been receiving calls from members of predominantly the Afrikaner community asking questions about this new refugee and asylum policy that the US has come up with,” he said.
“Refugee and asylum claims are part of immigration in any country are governed by the 1951 Convention Act, which allows individuals to make asylum claims if they fear prosecution or serious harm.”
Close to 70 000 Afrikaners looking to move to the US
He said, however, that when you seek refugee status in another country can have long-term implications.
“But one thing people don’t understand is that when you make this claim or seek refugee status in a country. It will follow you for life when you go to make an application for a visitor visa to the UK or a study permit to Australia.
“Officials are going to ask if you have applied for refugee status and usually the threshold for immigration officers is to check if you’re to abide by your temporary visa status or whether you’re going to return to your home country (South Africa), you plan to never return. It’s something you will always have to explain during your travels,” Avramis.
Avramis said no programmes have been announced and it’s unclear if the Afrikaners moving to the United States will get a green card or US citizenship.
“Look, we’ve all seen that things in the United Stated change every four years; new government comes in, the policy changes, the tenor changes and again, we see this all the time in our practice. People get rejected for visas in Canada because they failed to note that they were refused for a visa before or they did apply for refugee status and they take that stuff seriously” he said.
Canadian immigration consultant says applicants should be aware of changes in the USA
Avramis said the Afrikaners should understand the immigration policies before moving to the US.
“When you make this type of claim especially for a family that has young children, this will also be on the children’s record. You have to be careful in terms of making these claims and down the road, you will have to answer for them and if you fail to answer for them, specifically in a country like Canada, you will get banned for five years.”
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