The study presented in this paper investigates the role of interpreters in asylum hearings in Austria. It is based on transcripts of authentic asylum hearings which were recorded at the Federal Asylum Office in Graz, Austria, and transcribed and analysed using a discourse analytical approach. In Austria, interpreters in asylum interviews are often faced with conflicting role expectations. Some aspects of the interpreters’ attempts to save their own and/or the other participants’ face will be discussed in this article.