Catch-22: a dilemma or difficult circumstance from which there is no escape because of mutually conflicting or dependent conditions.
Example 1
Son: Dad, I'm going to apply for a job at the ice cream store downtown.
Dad: Why? What happened to your last three interviews with the New York Times, Newsweek, and Vogue Magazine? Don't you still want to be a journalist?
Son: Yeah I do... But they all said that they're not going to hire me because I don't have any experience.
Dad: Well, how do they expect you to have any experience if they don't give you a chance?!
Son: You're right, it's a catch-22.
The son tried to apply for a job in journalism but no company would hire him because he doesn't have any experience. But he can't get any experience because no one would hire him. There are two problems that are dependent on one another and there seems to be no way out.
Example 2
Jason: I had a disappointing visit to the bank today.
June: Oh no, tell me what happened.
Jason: I tried to apply for a mortgage loan but the bank rejected the application because I still had debt from student loans. They said that they'll let me borrow money only if I don't have any existing debt.
June: That's ridiculous, the reason why you need the bank's help in the first place is because you don't have enough money.
Jason: Yeah, I guess I'm stuck in this catch-22.
Jason tried to borrow money from the bank to buy a house but the bank will not help him because he still owes money from student loans. In conclusion, the bank doesn't allow Jason to borrow money because he doesn't have enough money. The two problems are tied together and there seems to be no solution.
https://languagesystems.edu/
