Asylum Access
Asylum Access is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2005 that provides free legal empowerment, policy advocacy, and direct funding to refugees through national offices in Malaysia, Mexico, and Thailand and a global advocacy footprint spanning 7 countries.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersOakland, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Asylum Access does
Asylum Access is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2005 and headquartered in Oakland, California, that provides legal empowerment, policy advocacy, and direct funding services to refugees and asylum seekers. The organization operates national offices in Malaysia, Mexico, and Thailand, supported by a global team of approximately 100 staff across 7 countries and 14 locations in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Its core service is free legal representation and community-based legal empowerment — one-on-one consultations, public workshops, and training of refugee community members as paralegals and interpreters — delivered alongside policy reform advocacy targeting national governments, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, and the UN Human Rights Council. The organization's product portfolio also includes the Refugee Work Rights Campaign (launched 2013 with CGI and Refugees International), the Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative (RRLI) — a coalition funding mechanism for refugee-led organizations — and the Equitable Partnerships Accountability Toolkit (EPAT v2.0, released August 2024) co-developed with Lighthouse Partnerships.
Underlying the service delivery is a methodology-driven technology stack rather than a productized software platform: the Asylum Access Refugee Rights Toolkit serves as a replicable blueprint for advocacy models, and EPAT provides practical assessment tools (360 ReACT, Lite ReACT) for organizational partnerships. Operational infrastructure is standard nonprofit tooling — Salesforce for donor CRM, Classy.org and Stripe for donation processing, Google Analytics for web insights — with no public-facing API, no proprietary software product, and no documented AI/ML capabilities. Revenue is generated entirely through donations and grants from individuals, foundations, and institutional partners, with documented major gifts from MacKenzie Scott ($4M, November 2022), the Larsen Lam ICONIQ Impact Award via Lever for Change ($10M, May 2021), and Google Corporate Giving Council via Tides Foundation ($100,000, 2010). All services are provided free of charge to refugee clients; the organization reported supporting 157,079 refugee clients and impacting over 1,000,000 lives through combined legal empowerment and policy change.
Asylum Access firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Asylum Access
- Legal name
- Asylum Access
- Website
- https://asylumaccess.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Asylum Access is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2005 that provides free legal empowerment, policy advocacy, and direct funding to refugees through national offices in Malaysia, Mexico, and Thailand and a global advocacy footprint spanning 7 countries.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Asylum Access industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Humanitarian Legal Services
- NAICS
- Individual and Family Services (6241)
- SIC
- Services-Legal Services (8111), Services-Social Services (8300)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Migrant & Refugee Legal Aid and Documentation Services (BPADAHAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Immigrant & Refugee Rights Advocacy (BPAGAFAG), Integration & Inclusion Services (Housing, Education, Employment) (BPADAHAI), Asylum & Refugee Status Determination (RSD) Support (BPADAHAB)
Keywords
Where Asylum Access is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Oakland
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Asylum Access business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Donations and Grants: Asylum Access is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that relies on donations from individuals, foundations, and corporate partners. Revenue comes through one-time and monthly donation subscriptions processed via Classy.org platform.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Monthly | Free legal empowerment services for refugees |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels10 records
Asylum Access product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Asylum Access provides free legal empowerment services to refugees and asylum seekers through direct representation, community-based paralegal training, and legal literacy programs delivered via national offices in Malaysia, Mexico, and Thailand. The organization also pursues systemic change through policy advocacy at national and international bodies, strategic litigation, and direct funding to refugee-led organizations via the Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative.
Product overview
Asylum Access is a nonprofit organization providing a portfolio of legal empowerment, policy advocacy, and capacity-building services for refugees. The core offerings include direct legal aid and empowerment services delivered through three national offices (Malaysia, Thailand, Mexico), policy change advocacy at national and international levels, and the Refugee Work Rights Campaign with its interactive website. Additionally, Asylum Access offers the Equitable Partnerships Accountability Toolkit (EPAT) for external organizations seeking to build equitable partnerships, and the Toolkit Site providing resources to replicate the Asylum Access model. The organization also leads the Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative to direct funding to refugee-led organizations globally.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Refugee Work Rights Campaign: Campaign launched in 2013 to build support for refugees having access to opportunity, entrepreneurship and a fair chance at a new life. Includes the interactive website refugeeworkrights.org.
- Equitable Partnerships Accountability Toolkit (EPAT)
Products and services
- Legal Empowerment Services
- Policy Change Advocacy
- Refugee Work Rights Campaign
- Equitable Partnerships Accountability Toolkit (EPAT)
- Asylum Access Refugee Rights Toolkit
- Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative (RRLI)
Quantifiable outcome
- 1,000,000+ lives impacted through legal empowerment and policy change
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Asylum Access
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Asylum Access technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration4 records
Feature2 records
Asylum Access partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and major.
- Lighthouse PartnershipscoreIndependent consultants who facilitated the co-design process for the EPAT toolkit, working with Asylum Access and cohort members to develop practical tools for equitable partnerships. Kaius Clark and Katrina Munir-Asen led the facilitation.
- Local Engagement Refugee Research NetworkminorParticipated in the EPAT toolkit pilot cohort for co-development of equitable partnership assessment tools.
- Independent DiplomatminorCampaign partner for 'Refugees Lead' coalition supporting refugee-led organizations.
- Xavier ProjectminorCampaign partner for 'Refugees Lead' coalition supporting refugee-led organizations.
- Basmeh & ZeitoonehcoreRefugee-led organization in Lebanon and member of the Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative coalition, working to build power and resilience in refugee communities.
- Refugiados UnidoscoreRefugee-led organization in Colombia and member of the Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative coalition.
- Refugees & Asylum seekers Information Centre (RAIC)coreRefugee-led organization in Indonesia and member of the Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative coalition.
- St. Andrew's Refugee Services (StARS)coreRefugee-led organization in Egypt and member of the Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative coalition.
- Young African Refugees for Integral Development (YARID)coreRefugee-led organization in Uganda and member of the Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative coalition.
- NeedsListcoreOnline platform hosting the 'Refugees Lead' campaign where individuals and institutions can directly support grassroots refugee-led organizations.
- Amnesty InternationalmajorCampaign partner for the 'Refugees Lead' coalition supporting frontline refugee-led organizations responding to COVID-19.
- Oxfam InternationalmajorCampaign partner advocating for direct support to refugee-led organizations.
- Lever for ChangecoreSponsor of the Larsen Lam ICONIQ Impact Award, providing $10 million to the Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative.
- Clifford ChancemajorLaw firm partnering with Asylum Access for refugees' access to justice worldwide through legal expertise and support.
- CGImajorPartner in publishing the 2022 Global Refugee Work Rights Report with Refugees International and Asylum Access.
- Refugees InternationalmajorPartner in publishing the 2022 Global Refugee Work Rights Report with CGI and Asylum Access.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Asylum Access competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- HIAS: Global Jewish nonprofit providing refugee resettlement, legal services, and policy advocacy across multiple host countries. HIAS is a direct peer in refugee legal aid and resettlement services, operating a comparable service-plus-advocacy model internationally.
- International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP): Organization providing direct legal representation and policy advocacy for refugees and displaced people globally. Closely comparable in mission, legal-empowerment methodology, and global footprint.
- Refugees International: Advocacy organization producing influential reports on refugee policy and direct funding to frontline groups. Co-publisher of the Global Refugee Work Rights Report with Asylum Access, making it a tightly overlapping policy peer.
- Kids in Need of Defense (KIND): Nonprofit providing pro bono legal representation to unaccompanied refugee and immigrant children. Closely comparable in the refugee legal-empowerment niche, particularly relevant given Asylum Access's work ending migrant-child detention.
- National Immigration Law Center: US-based advocacy and legal organization defending immigrant and refugee rights through litigation, policy, and communications. Direct peer in the legal-advocacy model for migrant populations.
- International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC): International organization providing migration and refugee services, resettlement assistance, and humanitarian response globally. Operates with a comparable legal-services-plus-advocacy model for displaced populations.
- Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS): International Catholic organization accompanying, serving, and advocating for the rights of refugees and forcibly displaced people. Comparable in combining direct service delivery with rights-based advocacy across multiple host countries.
Broad incumbents
- International Rescue Committee (IRC): Large established humanitarian organization providing refugee resettlement, legal aid, and emergency response globally. A much larger broad-incumbent peer offering overlapping legal and resettlement services as part of a broader portfolio.
- Amnesty International: Global human rights organization conducting advocacy and litigation on refugee rights as part of a broader portfolio. Coalition partner on the 'Refugees Lead' campaign and a broad-incumbent peer in human-rights-driven refugee work.
- Oxfam International: Global humanitarian and development organization addressing forced displacement through advocacy and programming. Coalition partner and broader humanitarian peer operating overlapping refugee-rights initiatives.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Asylum Access social profiles
Digital presenceAsylum Access compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Asylum Access financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Asylum Access leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles17 records
Asylum Access subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries3 records
Asylum Access funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Asylum Access M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Asylum Access
What does Asylum Access do?
Asylum Access provides free legal empowerment services to refugees and asylum seekers through direct representation, community-based paralegal training, and legal literacy programs delivered via national offices in Malaysia, Mexico, and Thailand. The organization also pursues systemic change through policy advocacy at national and international bodies, strategic litigation, and direct funding to refugee-led organizations via the Resourcing Refugee Leadership Initiative.
Is Asylum Access a public or private company?
Asylum Access is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Asylum Access founded?
Asylum Access was founded in 2005. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Asylum Access based?
Asylum Access is headquartered in Oakland, United States, in the North America region.
How does Asylum Access make money?
One revenue line is on record: donations and Grants.
Who are Asylum Access's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are HIAS, International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), Refugees International, Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), National Immigration Law Center, International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) and Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS). Broad incumbents are International Rescue Committee (IRC), Amnesty International and Oxfam International.
Does Asylum Access have an API?
No public API is recorded for Asylum Access.
What industry is Asylum Access in?
Asylum Access's product category is Humanitarian Legal Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPADAHAE, Migrant & Refugee Legal Aid and Documentation Services, with a secondary code of BPAGAFAG, Immigrant & Refugee Rights Advocacy. Its NAICS code is 6241 and its SIC code is 8111.