The T Visa

The T nonimmigrant status is a temporary immigration benefit that enables certain victims of human trafficking to remain in the United States for up to 4 years if they comply with any reasonable request for assistance from law enforcement in the detection, investigation, or prosecution of human trafficking, or if they qualify for an exemption or exception from certain circumstances that prevent them from doing as such.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for a T visa, you must ensure that you:

• Must be a victim of severe human trafficking, which includes situations involving force, fraud, or coercion for the purposes of labor or commercial sex acts. Under federal law, a “severe form of trafficking in persons” is:
  • Sex trafficking: When someone recruits, harbors, transports, provides, solicits, patronizes, or obtains a person for the purpose of a commercial sex act, where the commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or the person being induced to perform such act is under 18 years of age; or
  • Labor trafficking: When someone recruits, harbors, transports, provides, or obtains a person for labor or services through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery.
• Are physically present in the United States, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or at a port of entry due to trafficking.
• Have complied with any reasonable request from a law enforcement agency for assistance in the investigation or prosecution of human trafficking (unless you were under the age of 18 at the time at least one of the acts of trafficking occurred or you are unable to cooperate due to physical or psychological trauma; if either case applies, you may not need to show that you complied with reasonable requests from law enforcement);
• Have demonstrated that you would suffer extreme hardship involving unusual and severe harm if you were removed from the United States; and
• Are admissible to the United States (If you are not admissible, you may be eligible for a waiver of certain grounds of inadmissibility. You may apply for a waiver using Form I-192, Application for Advance Permission to Enter as a Nonimmigrant).

Benefits of a T Visa

If your T visa application is approved, you will receive the following benefits:

• Legal Status: You will be granted legal status in the United States for up to four years.
• Work Authorization: With a T visa, you are eligible to apply for work authorization, allowing you to work lawfully in the United States during the validity of your visa.
• Protection from Deportation: While your T visa is valid, you are protected from deportation and removal proceedings.
• Path to Permanent Residency: After being present in the U.S. for three years under T visa status and meeting other requirements, you may be eligible to apply for lawful permanent residency, commonly known as a green card.

Application Process

The T visa application process involves several steps:

• Form I-914, Application for T Nonimmigrant Status, including a personal statement describing the trafficking you are or were subjected to.
• Evidence to establish that you complied with any reasonable request for assistance from law enforcement, or that you qualify for an exception or exemption. You may submit Form I-914, Supplement B, Declaration of Law Enforcement Officer for Victim of Trafficking in Persons to demonstrate that you are a victim of trafficking and that you have complied with any reasonable request to assist law enforcement. However, you may also choose to submit other evidence instead of or in addition to Form I-914, Supplement B, such as records of your communication with law enforcement, trial transcripts, court documents, police reports, news articles, affidavits, or other relevant credible evidence.
• Evidence to show that you meet all other eligibility requirements.
• Evidence to demonstrate that you are admissible, or Form I-192, Application for Advance Permission to Enter as a Nonimmigrant seeking a waiver of applicable inadmissibility grounds, if you are inadmissible.

Derivative T Visas

Certain family members of the principal T visa applicant may be eligible for derivative T visas. To apply for a qualifying family member, you must file Form I-914, Supplement A, Application for Family Member of T-1 Recipient. You may file Form I-914, Supplement A, at the same time as your Form I-914, or while your application is pending, or while you are in T nonimmigrant status. Which family members qualify for a derivative T visa depends on your age as the principal T Visa holder. You can apply for your spouse, children, parents, and unmarried minor siblings (17 years or younger) if you are under 21 years old. You can apply for your spouse and children if you are 21 years or older.

After You Obtain T Nonimmigrant Status

T nonimmigrant status is generally granted for 4 years. In certain situations, you may be able to extend your T nonimmigrant status by filing Form I-539, Application to Extend/Change Nonimmigrant Status.

Additionally, T nonimmigrants may be eligible for lawful permanent residence (a Green Card) after 3 years of continuous physical presence in the United States since they were first lawfully admitted as T nonimmigrants, or after continuous physical presence in the United States during the investigation or prosecution of the trafficking which is complete, whichever occurs earlier.

Green Cards for T Nonimmigrants

If you have T nonimmigrant status, you may be eligible to become a lawful permanent resident (obtain a Green Card) if you meet all the requirements.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for a Green Card as a principal T-1 nonimmigrant, you must meet the following conditions:

1. You were lawfully admitted to the United States as a T-1 nonimmigrant.
2. You continue to hold T-1 nonimmigrant status at the time of applying for a Green Card.
3. You have maintained continuous physical presence in the United States for either:
   1. A continuous period of at least 3 years since the date when you were first lawfully admitted as a T-1 nonimmigrant; or
   2. A continuous period during the trafficking investigation or prosecution that the U.S. Attorney General has determined is now complete, whichever period of time is shorter (a or b).
4. You have shown good moral character since first being admitted as a T-1 nonimmigrant and during the entire time your Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, is pending; and
5. You meet one of the following:
   1. You have complied with any reasonable request for assistance in the investigation or prosecution of acts of trafficking since first being admitted as a T-1 nonimmigrant and until USCIS makes a decision on your Form I-485.
   2. You would suffer extreme hardship involving unusual and severe harm if you were removed from the United States; or
   3. You were under 18 years of age at the time of the trafficking.

In addition, before you can obtain a Green Card, you must be admissible to the United States as a lawful permanent resident. Otherwise, you must have been granted a waiver by USCIS of any waivable grounds of inadmissibility that apply to you.

Continuous Physical Presence

In order to maintain continuous physical presence, you cannot be outside the United States for more than 90 days at a time or for any periods that add up to more than 180 days, unless you can demonstrate that:

• The absence was necessary to assist in the investigation or prosecution of the acts of trafficking; or
• An official involved in the investigation or prosecution of the acts of trafficking certifies that your absence was otherwise justified.

Unless your absence was excused for either of these reasons, you break your continuous physical presence if you are outside the United States for more than 90 days at a time or for any periods that add up to more than 180 days.

Application Process

To obtain a Green Card, you must file Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status and submit evidence that you meet all of the eligibility requirements.

Qualifying Family Members

If you are a family member who was granted T nonimmigrant status based on your relationship to a principal T-1 nonimmigrant, you may be eligible for a Green Card if

• You were lawfully admitted to the United States in T-2, T-3, T-4, T-5 or T-6 nonimmigrant status and you continue to hold such status at the time you apply for a Green Card;
• The principal T-1 nonimmigrant’s Form I-485:
  • Is currently pending;
  • Is being filed at the same time as your Form I-485; or
  • Was previously approved, and you were initially admitted in derivative T nonimmigrant status before the principal T-1 nonimmigrant became a lawful permanent resident (LPR);
• The principal T-1 nonimmigrant meets all the eligibility requirements for a Green Card; and
• You are admissible to the United States as an LPR or otherwise have been granted a waiver by USCIS of any waivable grounds of admissibility that apply to you at the time you apply to become an LPR.

You do not have to meet the continuous physical presence requirement that applies to principal T-1 nonimmigrants.

Disclaimer: Immigration laws and policies can change, affecting the availability and requirements of the immigration processes mentioned above. Always seek legal advice or consult official U.S. government sources to understand the latest regulations and options available to individuals.