Cape Town – Canadian immigration consultant Nicholas Avramis has cautioned Afrikaners against applying for asylum in the US, warning of potential long-term consequences.
This follows US President Donald Trump’s statement in February that Afrikaners could be admitted as refugees due to “unjust racial discrimination”
The South African Chamber of Commerce in the US reported that almost 70,000 people have registered interest in Trump’s offer.
Avramis recently told NewZroom Afrika that many Afrikaners have inquired about US asylum policies.
“It’s a bit weird… 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. Which is quite interesting for us,” he said.
A Canadian immigration consultant has warned some members of the Afrikaans community against applying for asylum in the United States. Nicholas Avramis says making a refugee claim to the US or any other country impacts future application to other countries, including
Canada,… pic.twitter.com/LJqNQBDHIU— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) March 6, 2025
Avramis explained that asylum claims are governed by international conventions, but applicants must be aware that seeking refugee status can affect future visa applications for other countries, such as the UK or Australia.
“But you know, refugee and asylum claims are part of immigration in any country and they are really governed by the 1951 Convention Act, which allows individuals to make asylum claims if they fear prosecution or serious harm,” he said.
“One thing people don’t understand is that when you make this claim or seek refugee status in any country, this will follow you for life. What does that mean? Well, when you go to make an application for a visitor visa to visit the UK or a study permit to Australia, immigration officials are going to ask you ‘have you been denied a visa?, have you applied for refugee status? And usually the threshold for immigration officers is to determine whether you gonna abide by your temporary visa status, whether you plan to return to your home country.
“But if you’ve made a refugee claim, you have declared that you wanna leave your country (in this case, South Africa) and you plan to never return. So it’s something that is going to follow you and something that you always have to explain during your travels.”
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
