If you have an affirmative asylum interview scheduled and you cannot do it in English, there is one requirement that surprises almost everybody:
USCIS will not give you an interpreter. You have to bring your own.
Not a phone line, not someone provided at the door. Your interpreter, arranged by you, at your expense, sitting beside you for the whole interview.
We are Verbatim Interpreting LLC. We have been interpreting in New York since 1998, and we have worked asylum interviews at the Bethpage asylum office and at the Queens Field Office in Long Island City.
Call (718) 496-9129 or email inquiries@interpret.agency, 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM, seven days a week.
We are interpreters, not attorneys. Nothing on this page is legal advice — for your case, speak to your lawyer. Everything below is procedure, sourced from USCIS.
The rule, in plain terms
Since 13 September 2023, USCIS has not provided interpreters for affirmative asylum interviews. If you cannot proceed in English, you must bring a competent interpreter, at no expense to USCIS. The regulation is 8 CFR 208.9(g).
The only exception is sign language, which USCIS still provides as a disability accommodation. Follow the instructions on your interview notice to request it. We do not provide ASL.
Your interpreter must
- be fluent in English and a language you speak fluently, and
- be at least 18 years old.
Your interpreter cannot be
- your attorney or accredited representative;
- a witness testifying on your behalf;
- a representative or employee of the government of your country of nationality — or of last habitual residence, if you are stateless; or
- someone with a pending asylum application who has not yet been interviewed.
That final rule disqualifies the person most applicants think of first: the friend who applied last year, speaks the language, and knows the process. They are barred. Nothing to do with their character — the rule is categorical.
→ Full USCIS interpreter requirements, including Form G-1256
What happens if you get this wrong
USCIS is direct about it. If you need an interpreter and do not bring one, or your interpreter is not fluent in English and your language, and you cannot establish good cause, USCIS may treat it as a failure to appear. They may then dismiss your asylum application, or refer it to an immigration judge.
There is a second consequence, and it is the one people do not see coming. A cancelled interview counts as a delay you caused. USCIS states that where applicant-caused delays are outstanding, they will deny your Form I-765 — your employment authorisation.
So the interpreter question is not really about interpreting. It is about whether you keep your interview date, your application, and your permission to work.
Someone is listening to your interpreter
USCIS does not supply your interpreter. It does, however, put a contract interpreter on the line to monitor the interview by telephone. We have sat in the room with that device running.
USCIS describes their role as monitoring your interpreter, and says they may be expected to occasionally interject if your interpreter fails to provide adequate, accurate, and neutral interpretation.
Adequate, accurate, neutral. A relative who loves you and wants you to be safe is not neutral, and it is audible within minutes — the softened word, the condensed answer, the small helpful clarification you never said. A trained monitor hears every one.
The officer also has the authority to deny permission for your interpreter to participate. And your interpreter is placed under oath, the same as you, promising to interpret accurately and truthfully.
Where your interview will be
Three locations serve this region. Your interview notice is the authority — go by the address printed on it.
| Location | Address | Who it serves |
|---|---|---|
| New York Asylum Office | 1065 Stewart Avenue, Bethpage NY | Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, lower Hudson Valley |
| Newark Asylum Office | 100 Mulberry Street, Newark NJ — plus a Manhattan branch at 201 Varick Street | Manhattan, the Bronx, New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware, Pennsylvania, upstate New York |
| Queens Field Office | 31-00 47th Avenue, Long Island City | Not listed by USCIS as an asylum office — but asylum interviews are held there. We have worked one. |
Note what that table shows: Manhattan and the Bronx are served by Newark, not Bethpage. Two people living twenty minutes apart can be sent to different states.
How long the day really takes — and why the fee is what it is
People picture an hour. It is not an hour.
Security is run like an airport — screening line, bags scanned, pockets emptied. Then you wait. At both Bethpage and Long Island City, we have seen roughly an hour and a half from arriving to being called in. The interview itself is at least an hour, often longer. Add travel at both ends and three to four hours is an ordinary day.
Do not schedule anything afterwards. No work shift, no school pickup, no second appointment.
And this is the honest answer when the fee looks high. You are not buying an hour of talking. You are holding a professional for most of a day — screening, waiting, interview and travel — during which they cannot take other work. Measured against “one interview,” any professional rate looks steep. Measured against what it actually is, it is ordinary.
Measured against a dismissed application and a denied work permit, it is not a close call at all.
→ What to expect at your asylum interview, start to finish
Why Verbatim
Since 1998. Interpreting in New York courts, depositions, hearings and interviews.
NAJIT member. The National Association of Judiciary Interpreters and Translators.
We have worked these rooms. Asylum interviews at Bethpage and at the Queens Field Office in Long Island City. We know the buildings, the screening and the waiting, so we are not learning them on your interview day.
More than 40 languages. Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Russian, Haitian Creole, Arabic, French, Korean, Portuguese, Polish, Ukrainian, Albanian, Punjabi, Hindi, Wolof, Uzbek, Croatian, Soninke and more.
The standard we work to is the one the monitor is listening for: complete, literal, neutral. Everything you say, and only what you say. No summarising, no helping, no smoothing the hard parts. Your words are the evidence — our job is to move them across intact.
Coverage: the five boroughs, Nassau and Suffolk, New Jersey and Connecticut.
How to book
- Call (718) 496-9129 or email inquiries@interpret.agency — 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM, seven days a week.
- Tell us the language, the date and time on your interview notice, and the address printed on it.
- Payment in full reserves your interpreter for that date. The final fee depends on location, time and case type.
- We confirm in writing, and we arrive early.
Book as soon as your notice arrives. Interview dates are difficult to move, and rescheduling carries its own consequences.
Book an interpreter for your asylum interview →
Most of our asylum work is in Spanish. See all languages we cover.
En español
¿Tiene una entrevista de asilo? USCIS no le proporciona intérprete — usted tiene que llevar el suyo. Somos intérpretes profesionales en Nueva York desde 1998, y hemos trabajado entrevistas de asilo en Bethpage y en Long Island City.
Llámenos al (718) 496-9129, de 8:00 AM a 8:00 PM, los siete días de la semana. Hablamos español.
Common questions
Can my husband, wife, sister or friend interpret for me?
If they are 18 or over, fluent in both languages, and not in one of the four barred categories, they are permitted. Whether it is wise is a different question — asylum interviews use legal and medical vocabulary under real emotional pressure, a USCIS monitor is listening, and the officer can stop your interpreter from continuing. Interpretation judged inadequate can be treated as a failure to appear.
My friend also applied for asylum. Can they interpret?
No — not if their application is pending and they have not yet been interviewed. That is expressly barred.
Can my lawyer interpret?
No. Your attorney or accredited representative cannot serve as your interpreter. They attend as your representative once Form G-28 is filed. Note that since 18 May 2026 they must attend in person — remote participation is no longer permitted except in limited circumstances.
Does USCIS provide a telephone interpreter?
Not for spoken languages. That was a temporary COVID-era rule which ended on 12 September 2023. The contract interpreters USCIS uses today only monitor your interpreter.
What if I am deaf or hard of hearing?
USCIS provides sign language interpreters as a disability accommodation — follow the instructions on your interview notice. Verbatim does not provide ASL.
How much does it cost?
It depends on location, time and case type. Payment in full reserves the date. Call (718) 496-9129 and we will give you a straight number.
How far in advance should I book?
As soon as your interview notice arrives. Good interpreters in less common languages get booked, and your date is hard to change.
Sources: USCIS — Preparing for Your Affirmative Asylum Interview · USCIS — Affirmative Asylum Applicants Must Provide Interpreters · USCIS — Form G-1256 · USCIS — New York Asylum Office · USCIS — Newark Asylum Office · 8 CFR 208.9(g), 8 CFR 208.6. Last checked 18 August 2026.
Find your office
Check the address printed on your appointment notice, then read what to expect at that building.