Yes. You can apply for asylum even if you entered the U.S. without a visa or overstayed your status. U.S. law allows anyone physically present in the country to request asylum, regardless of how they arrived.

Yes. Your lack of legal status does not prevent you from applying for asylum. However, you generally must file your asylum application within one year of entering the U.S. If you miss this deadline, you must show “changed circumstances” in your home country or “extraordinary circumstances” in your personal situation that justify the delay.