Many people stay in a dangerous situation because they believe their immigration status depends on the person hurting them. Often, it does not. There are paths that belong to you alone.
Three kinds of protection
- If you were abused by a spouse, parent, or child who is a U.S. citizen or a green card holder, you may be able to file for yourself. You do not need their permission. You do not need them to sign anything. They are not asked.
- If you were the victim of a serious crime in the United States and you helped, or are willing to help, the police or another authority, there may be a visa for you.
- If you were brought here or held through force, fraud, or threats and made to work or made to do something against your will, there is a separate protection for trafficking survivors.
These are different paths with different rules. Which one fits depends on what happened, who did it, and when.
Your information is protected by law
This is the fear we hear most: if I tell the government, will he find out?
Federal law restricts what the government may share about these cases. The person who harmed you is not notified that you applied, and the government is not supposed to rely on information that person gives about you.
We will also ask how we can safely contact you — which phone, which email, whether it is safe to leave a message, and what to do if someone else answers. Please tell us honestly. We will follow it exactly.
What we will and will not ask of you
We will ask you to tell us what happened. We know that is hard. You can take breaks. You can stop. You can bring someone you trust.
We will never tell you what to say, and we will never add things to your story. What you went through is enough. It does not need to be made worse to count.
You also do not need to have gone to the police for every one of these paths, and you do not need to have papers showing everything. Many people have very little. We work with what exists.
Things worth knowing before you start
- Some of these cases take a long time. We will be honest with you about that.
- Some paths can lead to a work permit while you wait. Whether and when depends on the path.
- If your case is denied, there can be consequences, including being placed in immigration court. We will explain the risk before you file, not after.
If you are in danger right now
If you are not safe at this moment, your safety comes before any immigration question. Call 911. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-800-799-7233 and is free, confidential, and available in many languages.
When you are ready to talk about staying, we are here. Start with a free 15-minute screening call, or call us at (786) 352-8647.