Kurniawan Salim v. Loretta E. Lynch

Kurniawan Salim (“Salim”), a native and citizen of Indonesia, petitions for review from the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) denial of his motion to reopen his asylum and withholding of removal proceedings. Salim is a practicing Catholic, and brings his motion to reopen due to changes in country conditions for Christians in Indonesia since- his initial hearing before an Immigration Judge (“IJ”) in 2006. We conclude that the BIA abused its discretion when it denied Salim’s motion to reopen as untimely. Substantial evidence supports his claim of changed country conditions, and he has presented sufficient evidence of individualized risk to establish a prima facie case for the relief sought. We therefore grant the petition for review and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

I. Factual and Procedural Background

Salim arrived in the United States on a tourist visa on January 22, 2001. He and his wife are the parents of two children, ages six and twelve, both of whom were born in the United States and are American citizens. Salim has no criminal record, and since 2004 has worked as a restaurant manager in .California.

In 2003, the Department of…