After A-B- and L-E-A- came back: domestic violence and family asylum claims

If your asylum claim is based on violence by a partner, or on harm aimed at your family, the law you are facing changed in the last year. It became more demanding. That does not mean these claims cannot succeed. It means the claim has to be framed with care, and the evidence has to answer questions that were easier to leave open before.

What changed in 2025 and 2026

Asylum protects people persecuted because of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group, under INA 101(a)(42)(A). Domestic violence and family-based claims usually rely on the last ground, the "particular social group."

Four recent decisions shape those claims.

The 2025 decisions undid 2021 vacaturs, so a claim that was evaluated under the 2021 approach needs a fresh look. If your case was prepared before September 2025, ask whether the social group theory still fits.

Framing the social group

The social group is the part of these cases most likely to fail, and the part most within your control before the hearing.

• Define the group apart from the harm. After V-A-B-, a group such as "women who were beaten by their partners" risks being circular. The group has to exist in society independently of the persecution.
• Prove countrywide recognition. After S-E-M-Z-, local evidence is not enough to show social distinction. A letter from a neighbor proves what happened to you. It does not prove that your country as a whole sees your group as distinct. That calls for national reporting, human rights findings that cover the whole country, State Department material and, where needed, an expert declaration.
• For a family group, show why the family matters to society. After S-E-M-Z- and L-E-A- II, it is not enough that a family is a family and the persecutor went after it. The record has to address how society treats that family.
• Do not rely on what the persecutor said. A persecutor who named the group out loud has not, by that alone, shown that society recognizes it.

Nexus: at least one central reason

A valid group is only half the claim. You also have to show the harm happened because of the protected ground. Under INA 208(b)(1)(B)(i), the ground must be "at least one central reason" for the persecution, and the burden is on you.

In domestic violence cases this is often where the claim is contested. The evidence should show why the person harmed you, not only that they did. What they said, when the violence started or got worse, how they treated others, and what happened when you sought help all bear on the reason.

Check the other grounds too. Political opinion and religion are separate grounds. Under INS v. Elias-Zacarias, 502 U.S. 478 (1992), a political opinion claim looks at the victim's own opinion. If the facts support another ground, it belongs in the case.

Backup theories: withholding and CAT

Every one of these cases should be built with more than one form of protection in mind. Our post on asylum, withholding and CAT compares them in full. In short:

• Withholding of removal, under INA 241(b)(3), uses the same protected grounds, but the standard is higher: it must be more likely than not that your life or freedom would be threatened. If you meet it, the government may not remove you to that country.
• Convention Against Torture protection, under 8 C.F.R. 208.16 to 208.18, does not require a protected ground at all. It requires that torture be more likely than not. Torture requires specific intent. Where a private person is the abuser, the government must have acquiesced, which means officials were aware beforehand and breached a legal responsibility to intervene.

Both are country-specific. They bar removal to the country of danger, not to a third country. CAT deferral does not give any lawful or permanent status and can be ended. These are real protections, but they are narrower than asylum.

There is one more practical point. Under Matter of L-F-R-, 29 I&N Dec. 787 (BIA 2026), the Annual Asylum Fee and the consequences of not paying it do not extend to withholding or CAT. See our post on the annual fee.

The evidence that matters most

• A detailed declaration covering what happened, when, who did it, why you believe they did it, and what happened when you asked police or others for help.
• Police, medical and court records, or a written explanation of why they do not exist or cannot be obtained.
• Countrywide evidence about how society recognizes the group and how the state responds.
• Evidence on whether you could safely relocate within your country. If the persecutor is a private person and there was no past persecution, the burden on relocation is yours.

These claims are harder than they were, and each one turns on its own facts. If your claim involves domestic violence or harm to your family, talk to an immigration lawyer about how your own case should be framed and what your record needs before the hearing.