what is an asylum seeker

An asylum seeker is a person who leaves their country of residence and enters another country to apply for asylum, which is international protection, in that other country. Asylum seekers are immigrants who claim to have been forcibly displaced and may have fled their home country due to war or other factors harming them or their family. If their case is accepted, they become considered a refugee. Asylum seekers are waiting for a decision on their asylum claim and are not yet legally recognized as a refugee. The terms asylum seeker, refugee, and illegal immigrant are often confused. A person becomes an asylum seeker by making a formal application for the right to remain in another country and keeps that status until the application has been concluded. The relevant immigration authorities of the country of asylum determine whether the asylum seeker will be granted protection and become an officially recognized refugee or whether asylum will be refused and the asylum seeker becomes an illegal immigrant who may be asked to leave the country and may even be deported.