The T-Visa is for survivors of human trafficking who have been compelled to provide labor or sex. Trafficking is more common than you may think, and most applicants have no idea they were even trafficked until they share their story with an immigration attorney.
What is labor trafficking?
Generally, labor trafficking occurs when a person is induced to work through force, fraud or coercion. This can occur in a variety of circumstances. Human trafficking can occur even if a person voluntarily accepts a job and even if the victim is being paid for some of their work. A victim may be living in their own home and traveling daily to their job and still be in a forced labor scenario. Even if the trafficking happened many years ago, the survivor may still be eligible to apply now. In fact, most of our clients do not apply for their T-Visa until many years later, since they did not realize they had been trafficked.
Survivors often believe that the prior labor abuse was simply a condition they had to deal with in order to get started in America, particularly if they were undocumented. This myth prevents many surviving immigrants from sharing their story and obtaining the help that is available to them. Here are some examples that can occur in labor trafficking cases*:
What is sex trafficking?
Sex trafficking may occur where a person is used for a sex act and something of value is given or received by any person in connection with the sex act. To meet the federal definition for adult victims, the sex act must be induced by force, fraud or coercion. Minor victims under the age of 18 do not need to prove force, fraud or coercion. Thus, any paid sex activity involving a minor equates to human trafficking.
Sex trafficking is not limited to the environments of sex work and prostitution. Sex trafficking can occur within a person’s home and can be perpetrated by a family member, spouse or other individual. Here are some examples that can occur in sex trafficking cases*:
Filing for a T-Visa is very challenging for the survivor, as it requires facing the trauma of the past and detailing it in the application. On the positive side, T-Visa applicants can apply for a waiver of past immigration violations, including previous deportation orders, false claims to U.S. citizenship and the permanent bar. T-Visa applicants may also include their family members in the application, including a spouse, parent, adult and minor children and grandchildren and unmarried minor siblings. If approved for a T-Visa, the survivor and their approved family members can apply for a green card in three years or less.
If you would like to speak with an experienced immigration attorney regarding T-Visas , please contact the team at Minsky, McCormick & Hallagan, P.C. at (312) 427-6163 or schedule a consultation online.
*Examples are not taken from actual client cases.
The material contained in this alert does not constitute direct legal advice and is for informational purposes only. An attorney-client relationship is not presumed or intended by receipt or review of this presentation. The information provided should never replace informed counsel when specific immigration-related guidance is needed.
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