From 4.3k in 2021 to 41.3k in 2023, tally of Indians seeking US asylum up 855%

AHMEDABAD: The number of Indians seeking asylum in the US has seen a significant jump in the past three years, a trend reflecting the strong lure of living the American dream. From 4,330 in the 2021 US financial year, the applicant numbers surged 855% to 41,330 in FY 2023, shows a US Department of Homeland Security data. Officials in Indian agencies say close to half of these applicants are from Gujarat.

In 2023, Indians were the fifth largest group in seeking defensive asylum and the seventh largest in affirmative asylum applications. That year, 5,340 Indians received asylum, states the 2023 Asylees Annual Flow Report of Department of Homeland Security released in October.


The 4,330 in FY 2021 included both affirmative applications (2,090) submitted to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services and defensive applications (2,240). The next year, the total applicants nearly tripled to 14,570 — 5,370 affirmative and 9,200 defensive. By FY 2023, the number of Indian asylum applications surged to 41,330, nearly three times the previous year’s total.

In FY 2021, as many as 1,330 Indians were granted asylum, including 700 through affirmative applications and 630 through defensive proceedings. In FY 2022, this number more than tripled to 4,260, with 2,180 affirmative and 2,080 defensive grants. The upward trend continued in FY 2023, with 5,340 Indians receiving asylum — 2,710 through affirmative cases and 2,630 through defensive proceedings, making India the fifth leading nationality for defensive asylum grants.