To see our website filtered by a specific destination, select the country: You are viewing content related to . To view a specific destination, . To view a specific destination, click here

What is the U Nonimmigrant Visa for Victims of Crime?

By Ella Bergquist February 20, 2018 (Updated July 5, 2021) 4 min. read
victim

Oftentimes, immigrants in the United States illegally avoid contacting law enforcement officials out of fear they will be deported. This holds true even in cases where the illegal immigrant is the victim of a serious crime, such as domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, etc. The U Visa exists to protect these individuals, allowing them to report crime without fear of repercussions, as well as to assist law enforcement authorities with their investigations.

The U Visa was introduced in 2000 as part of the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act to encourage undocumented immigrants to report serious crimes rather than living in fear that doing so will lead to their own deportation. Instead, they would be given the option of this 4-year visa by assisting in law enforcement. It is important to know that this visa is not automatically given. The U visa petition requires certification by a law enforcement agency, such as police, prosecutor, or judge, that the victim was significantly helpful in the investigation or prosecution of the qualifying crime at hand. This, along with proof that the victim was, in fact, a victim of the crime, will determine the individual’s eligibility. Such proof is partially established by a personal statement describing the criminal activity that victimized the individual.

U Visa Requirements

You may be eligible for a U visa in the United States if:

Family Member Eligibility for the U Visa

Certain family members will qualify for a derivative U visa, depending on their relationship to the primary visa applicant. The principal applicant must first have their visa approved, however, in order for family members to obtain theirs. Eligible family members include spouse and children if the primary applicant is over age 21. If the primary applicant is under the age of 21, they may be eligible to petition for spouse, children, parents, and unmarried siblings under age 18.

How to Apply

To apply for a U nonimmigrant status, you must submit:

U Visa Cap

According to USCIS, each year 10,000 U visas are available for victims of certain qualifying crimes who have suffered substantial mental or physical abuse and are willing to help law enforcement authorities investigate or prosecute those crimes. Some argue that this cap will discourage undocumented immigrants from reporting such crimes once the cap has been filled, as they may be deterred by the looming waitlist. This begs the question, would lifting this cap encourage the report of more crimes? Would it assist law enforcement in catching criminals?

Currently, USCIS provides work authorization and deferred action to those on the waitlist who are likely eligible and are just waiting for visa availability. Family members of the victim are also eligible for work authorization, but are not automatically granted it and must apply. Perhaps the option of a waitlist, therefore, could be enough to encourage undocumented immigrants to report crimes of which they are a victim.

U Visa Qualifying Crimes

If any of the following crimes have happened involving you, you may be eligible for a U non-immigrant status:

Are You a Victim of Criminal Activity Seeking to Obtain U Nonimmigrant Status?

If so, Contact VisaPlace today. All our cases are handled by competent and experienced immigration professionals who are affiliated with VisaPlace. These professionals consist of lawyers, licensed paralegals, and consultants who work for VisaPlace Legal an award-winning immigration firm that adheres to the highest standards of client service.

Ready for the next step? Book your 1 on 1 consultation now or call us at 1-877-296-0874.

Have a Question related to your Immigration Needs?

Fill out the FREE Immigration Assessment form and get a response within 24 hours to see if you’re eligible.

The assessment form should take approximately 5-7 minutes to complete. We will get back to you within one business day to let you know if we are able to help.

Rodlin Paul Avatar

Rodlin Paul

Let me express all my gratitude to all the team for your guidance and support throughout my permanent residency application process.
Your expertise and thorough attention to detail have been invaluable, ensuring that each step of the application was handled with the utmost professionalism….
You’re the best 👌 ❤️❤️❤️✨️💖

Tom Cameron Avatar

Tom Cameron

Bansuri was very helpful in helping me setup my consultation. She was able to confirm my appointment right away and develop a profile to make the process streamlined. There is a reason why my wife and I have used visa place in twice in the past!

Tristan Johnston Avatar

Tristan Johnston

Visaplace was very accommodating to all my questions and emails, and walked me through everything step by step. After many months and a lot of paperwork, I successfully became a permanent resident of Canada and am now living with my wife, the love of my life. They’re not terribly expensive compared to other immigration lawyers either.

Krunal Panchal Avatar

Krunal Panchal

I had a great experience speaking with Bansuri Pandya from VisaPlace. She was incredibly helpful in understanding my case and clearly explained the next steps. Bansuri was professional, knowledgeable, and empathetic, making the process much easier to navigate. She even assisted in booking my consultation quickly. Highly recommend her services for anyone needing immigration advice!

Christine Rodriguez Avatar

Christine Rodriguez

Hi everyone just wanna thank Visa Place for my Permanent Residency with my two children through Common Law.My case is very complicated and it tooks 30months to get our Pr inside Canada application.Today Nov 13, 2024 we finally received our PR cards.Thank you to Miss Reena Sandhu and to her team for helping us out our immigration matters. They are really not always updating you time to time because they are nothing to update. But everytime they have something to update to the clients they asap update you and tell everything what you need to do and to be done…So all in all im very satisfied and happy to this firm…Thank you again and keep up the good work…God bless you all

Juwel Patil Avatar

Juwel Patil

Our 3 PR cases (Self, Spouse and Son) were processed very professionally via all detailed documentation and other mandates by Felicita (Visa Palace). Her excellent support and guidance, I would strongly recommend for other aspirants. Thank you Felicita !!

Jade Arnold Avatar

Jade Arnold

Our company needed to fast-track some documents to retain skilled international talent. After shopping around, we settled on partnering with VisaPlace to accomplish this as quickly and efficiently as possible, and they held up their end of the agreement quite well. We will use them again should the need arise.