Lawsuit alleges US shared Iranian asylum seekers' files with Tehran
A lawsuit filed in Washington, D.C. alleges that the Trump administration has been disclosing the asylum files of Iranian detainees to the government of Iran — the very government those applicants say they are fleeing. According to the complaint, officials began sharing the information in March 2025 and have since periodically mailed or hand-delivered the immigration files of hundreds of Iranians in U.S. custody to Iranian authorities.
The disclosures allegedly include identifying details, family relationships, political opinions, and the specific reasons applicants fear persecution — such as participation in pro-democracy protests, LGBTQ membership, or conversion to Christianity. Federal law bars sharing the contents of an asylum application, particularly with the country an applicant is escaping; Public Citizen attorney Michael Kirkpatrick called the rule “very clear.” Public Citizen Litigation Group is representing the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund in the case.
If the allegations hold up, the practical stakes are immediate: individuals whose files were handed over could face detention, prosecution, or worse should they be returned to Iran, and the confidentiality that underpins the asylum system would be undercut. The government has not yet responded to the claims in court.