The U Visa (U Nonimmigrant Status)
The U Visa is a nonimmigrant visa for victims of certain crimes who have suffered physical or mental abuse and have cooperated or are cooperating with law enforcement to help arrest or prosecute the criminal.
The U Visa provides nonimmigrant status and a path to permanent residency (a Green Card).
Many immigrant crime victims are afraid to call the police for fear that their unlawful status might lead to them being arrested and ultimately deported from the US. This is especially true in domestic violence situations where a spouse or partner might abuse the immigrant and use the threat of deportation to discourage them from calling the police or telling anyone about the abuse.
The U Visa benefits immigrants by trying to remove their fear of calling the police and instead incentivizing them with potential legal status for reporting criminal activity and assisting law enforcement. It also benefits law enforcement by making it easier to get victims to cooperate with the reporting, investigating, and prosecution of criminal cases.
While the U Visa was created mainly with victims of domestic violence and sexual assault in mind, there are many qualifying crimes.
Eligibility
To be eligible for a U Visa, USCIS requires you to:
- Be the victim of a qualifying criminal activity that occurred inside the US
We already mentioned the main goal of the U Visa was to protect domestic violence and sexual assault victims, but there are many different crimes that can lead to U Visa eligibility such as: felonious assault, abduction, extortion, trafficking, and many more. LINK https://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/victims-of-human-trafficking-and-other-crimes/victims-of-criminal-activity-u-nonimmigrant-status
- Demonstrate substantial physical or mental abuse as a result of having been the victim of a qualifying crime;
The best evidence to show physical abuse is usually medical records but can also include photos, witness statements and police reports.
To show mental abuse, it is best to include a detailed report from a counselor or psychologist.
For both physical and mental abuse cases, you should include a statement explaining the crime that includes a description of what happened, what steps you’ve taken to cooperate with the police, and what harm you suffered.
- Have information about the criminal activity and show that you have cooperated or will cooperate with law enforcement.
You must include Form I-918B with your U Visa application to show that you cooperated with law enforcement. This is a form that must be completed and signed by a certifying law enforcement official. The law enforcement official will certify which qualifying crime you were a victim of and describe the ways you have been assisting the investigation.
- Be admissible to the US or apply for a waiver with Form I-192
The most common reasons for inadmissibility are unlawful presence in the US or a criminal history. If you think you might be inadmissible for any reason, it is best to speak with an immigration lawyer before you apply.
Application Process
The principal applicant can include their spouse and children (unmarried and under 21). If the principal applicant is a minor, they can include parents and unmarried siblings under 18 as derivative applicants.
Once you apply for a U Visa, you can expect to wait 5-6 years before your application is decided. This is because there are only 10,000 U Visas available each year and many more than 10,000 people apply for U Visas every year.
Recently, USCIS took steps to at least issue an employment authorization documents (EAD) to those with pending U Visas so they can work legally while they wait several years for their U Visa to be decided. Some information from USCIS can be found here.
Once the U Visa application is approved, the visa will be valid for four years. After three years of continuous presence in the US with a visa, you will be eligible to apply for your Green Card.
Conclusion
The U Visa encourages cooperation between immigrant crime victims and law enforcement while providing a path to a Green Card for qualifying immigrants. Due to limited availability, the approval process for a U Visa takes 5-6 years but, with recent USCIS changes, applicants should be able to eventually receive a work permit while their application is pending. Many grounds of inadmissibility are automatically waived for U Visa applicants, but a waiver for certain grounds of inadmissibility is still necessary for many applicants.
If you have been the victim of a crime in the US, have been assisting law enforcement, and would like to find out if you’re eligible for a U Visa and eventual Green Card, contact us today to schedule a consultation.