ASST began in 1989 as the Auckland Refugee Council Incorporated (ARCI) as a result of seeing the plight of people who sought asylum, families who had escaped life-threatening danger and were desperate for a safe haven. They received no help or support while they waited to be granted refugee status. They had nowhere to go and no-one to speak for them. We saw this neglect, and through advocacy and support, offered them a chance for something better.

In 2015, we adopted the trading name of Asylum Seeker Support Trust (ASST) as a division of the ARCI to reflect our unique position as the only organisation in New Zealand specifically caring for asylum seekers and the convention refugees they become in a successful process. But we still do the same job we've done for more than 25 years – advocating for and supporting asylum seekers and convention refugees, and lobbying for their rights.