How to Prepare for your Immigration Psychological Evaluation Interview

I know that you may be a bit nervous about your upcoming appointment with a therapist for your immigration psychological evaluation interview. To help alleviate some of your anxiety, here are a few things to keep in mind in preparation for the appointment.

1. It’s VERY important to be honest with the therapist. Your therapist will look for signs that what you are saying is true. If there is reason to believe that you are claiming to have symptoms that you don’t actually have or are making your story sound worse than it really is, your therapist may state in the report that what you stated in the interview was untrue, or he or she may even end the interview.

2. Don’t view the therapist as someone who is “out to get you”. While it’s the job of the therapist conducting the interview to thoroughly observe you, they are not going into the interview desiring to invalidate your claims. Their role is to be neutral and to report the facts and their unbiased clinical opinions.

3. Don’t view the therapist as someone who is there to treat your therapeutic concerns. Although the therapist is trained to provide clinical support, it’s important to understand that when it comes to immigration evaluations, their job is to strictly gather information that is relevant to the evaluation. If they feel that you may benefit from therapy, they will recommend therapy in the report. They may even provide you with a list of therapists so that you have someone to contact if you would like to schedule therapy appointments.

4. Ask your attorney which aspects of your case they want the therapist to focus on. What type of visa are you pursuing? Why does your attorney think an evaluation might help your case? The answers to these questions will to be helpful to share with the therapist.

5. Send the therapist relevant documentation before the interview. The therapist may have asked you to complete paperwork prior the appointment. Make sure to complete this paperwork thoroughly. If you have supporting documentation like a police report, notes from doctors, a signed statement that you gave to your attorney, photos that demonstrate physical injuries, or anything else that will give the therapist a solid understanding of your case, it would be a good idea to send this to the therapist as well.

6. Gather dates and spellings of individuals relevant to your case. For example, depending on your case, it’s helpful to have a list of birthdates, dates of meeting your spouse or marrying your partner, the date of the traumatic event (or at least the year in which it occurred), spellings of family members’ names, and any other piece of information that you don’t normally remember easily.

7. If you normally have your child with, set aside childcare (unless they’re also being interviewed). Because you will likely be talking about sensitive topics, it’s not a good idea to have your child in the room with you during the interview. Things will be discussed that your child should not hear. Also keep in mind that if your child is very young, therapy waiting rooms are usually not equipped with childcare. And if there is a reception area, it should not be treated as childcare. Your therapist will let you know if you will be going to an office that does offer childcare.