When faith meets legal limbo for Iranian asylum seekers: Mission Network News

By Joanne Khmel

Iran (MNN) — They escape persecution, but often find themselves trapped again.

For many Iranian Christian converts fleeing persecution, the journey doesn’t end when they cross a border. Instead, they find themselves trapped in a new struggle — navigating the broken and often hostile asylum systems in some of the host countries. While their testimonies are powerful and their ministries often continue in exile, their personal lives are marked by deep uncertainty, vulnerability, and survival.

Lana Silk of Transform Iran explains the harsh reality many face:

They don’t have the same rights as the people around them, so there’s a very easy opportunity for unscrupulous people to take advantage of them, whether they are landlords or employers or even people in education or the medical — the healthcare system.

Many asylum systems around the world are overburdened, underfunded, and structurally flawed. As a result, Iranian refugees often find themselves stuck in bureaucratic limbo for years. “These people get stuck in the system for years, even more than 10 years,” Silk says.

Without a reliable legal framework to protect their rights, many are unable to plan for the future. Dreams of marriage, family, and fulfilling careers are put on hold indefinitely. “I better not get married. I better not have children, because we don’t know what the future holds — if we’ll get forced back to Iran, if we’ll ever get to leave — they just don’t know,” Silk adds.

Even after years of waiting and partial integration, many live with the looming fear of sudden deportation.

That’s where ministries like Transform Iran come in. The organization offers critical support through trauma counseling, discipleship, advocacy, and community-building among displaced believers. Their mission is not just survival — but restoration, dignity, and hope. Silk explains:

Like Moses had his arms lifted up in battle — we help each other, strengthen each other in the fight, in our prayer. But at the same time, there’s also a healthy mix of sharing victories. And those victories may not be to do with the asylum situation or the practical circumstances of life, but there are always spiritual victories and ministry-related victories.

Read more about how we help Iranian refugees and persecuted believers

Read more about how we help those who are hurting and in need

So how can you help Iranian believers in these situations?

First and foremost — don’t forget them. Be available. Sometimes just being present for a conversation or prayer can mean the world to someone whose days are filled with painful uncertainty and hope deferred. Pray for real reform in the global asylum system and for better ways to support genuine believers seeking safety and freedom.

“If God is leading you to pray for Iranian people, Iranian refugees, then I would say: get alongside a ministry. So in our case, we have a newsletter that goes once a month, so you just get to know what’s happening and become part of it,” says Silk.

Header photo courtesy of Ibrahim Guetar via Unsplash

Inset photo (dates in a bowl, common Persian treat) courtesy of Mohammad Ramezani via Pexels

Originally published on: Mission Network News