U visas
ASISTA, AILA, & ICWC Amicus Brief 2024: Proper Analysis for ‘Qualifying Criminal Activity’
On Monday, Oct. 28, AILA, ASISTA, and ICWC submitted a joint amicus brief to the US District Court for the Middle District of Florida, regarding the proper analysis USCIS should use to assess whether a crime underlying a U visa petition is “qualifying criminal activity.” The complainant in the case had been the victim of…
Read MoreASISTA Practice Pointer: Age-Out Protections in U Nonimmigrant Status (Aug. 2024)
ASISTA is pleased to release this Practice Pointer on the age-out protections for U Nonimmigrants. The age-out statute provides critical protections to U principals and derivatives, but the protections are limited in scope and often misunderstood. This Practice Pointer clarifies the scope of these age-out protections and provides practice tips for practitioners to avoid age-out for clients…
Read MoreASISTA Practice Advisory: Addressing Late-Breaking Inadmissibility Grounds for U Visa Beneficiaries (Aug. 8, 2024)
When a U applicant or recipient fails to waive an applicable inadmissibility ground at any stage, for any reason, it puts their current and future statuses at risk. Yet there do exist strategies to address these “late-breaking” inadmissibility grounds, depending on when they come into being and when you learn of them. This practice advisory…
Read MoreRequest for USCIS to Accept Prior Edition of I-918 Forms Through March 31, 2025 (April 18, 2024)
In conjunction with the new fee rule that went into effect on April 1, 2024, USCIS updated immigration forms, including the I-918 and related forms. Starting June 3, 2024, USCIS will only accept the new version of the form. This short grace period will create significant hardships and hurdles for those who have sought or…
Read MoreASISTA Practice Pointer: Correctly Identifying the Expiration Date of U Nonimmigrant Status (Updated February 8, 2024)
Many practitioners report uncertainty about the date their client’s U status expires because the client has multiple documents defining the validity of their status. For instance, a U derivative may have: (1) the I-797 approval notice for the principal’s I-918, (2) the I-797 approval notice for their own I-918A, (3) a U-3 (or other derivative…
Read MoreASISTA Practice Pointer: Hot Tips for Using Service Center Hotlines and Supplementing Pending Petitions (Updated Jan. 22, 2024)
This practice pointer synthesizes the current recommendations for using USCIS “hotline emails” for customer service inquiries on cases protected by 8 USC § 1367 privacy requirements, i.e., survivor-based relief applications. This project was supported by Grant No. 15JOVW-23-GK-05161-MUMU awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and…
Read MoreASISTA I-485 Comment (11/7/2023)
On September 8, 2023, USCIS published a revision of Form I-485 Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status greatly expanding the number and type of questions for applicants to complete. On November 7, 2023, ASISTA submitted a comment emphasizing the impact of these form changes on beneficiaries of survivor-based relief.
Read MoreImmigrant Visa Flowcharts for Derivatives of VAWA and U Principals
These four flowcharts were created by Esther Limb, Supervising Attorney at Her Justice, in connection with ASISTA’s March 2023 Virtual CLE Conference, “Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Derivatives.” They are current as of March 2023. The flowcharts depict the processes to follow for derivative beneficiaries and other relatives of VAWA and U petitioners,…
Read MoreASISTA and collaborators AILA, ICWC, CAST, and ILRC delivered a letter to USCIS Re: Biometrics for U and T Visa Applicants Abroad (Feb. 2023)
On February 14, 2023 ASISTA and collaborators AILA, ICWC, CAST, and ILRC delivered a letter to USCIS raising concerns about the unavailability of biometrics appointments for U and T visa petitioners and their derivatives abroad, and the negative consequences resulting from their inability to complete application requirements, including prolonged family separation and even unfair denials…
Read MoreAmicus Brief in V.U.C., et al. v. USCIS (1st Circuit)(Dec. 8, 2021)
ASISTA and other amici filed this brief regarding USCIS’s unreasonable delay in adjudicating U visa work authorization requests. Amici were represented pro bono by Nathan Warecki, Brianna Nassif, Lauren Maynard, and Myra Benjamin from Nixon Peabody. Click here to access the amicus brief.
Read MoreNew ASISTA Policy Alert, Q&A on ICE Directive: Using a Victim-Centered Approach with Noncitizen Crime Victims (Current as of August 23, 2021)
On August 10, 2021, ICE issued a new agency directive superseding guidance from 2019 regarding stay of removal requests and removal proceedings involving U visa petitioners (hereinafter “Directive”). The Directive outlines new policies and procedures regarding exercising prosecutorial discretion for victims of crime, including those eligible for victim-based immigration relief (including VAWA self-petitions, U and…
Read MoreASISTA Statement on New Path to Work Authorization for U visa petitioners
June 14, 2021 ASISTA applauds USCIS’s policy alert announcing work authorization for U visa petitioners who present a bona fide case. This policy will help alleviate the myriad barriers that victims and their families face as a result of the significant processing delays in the U visa program. Currently there are nearly 270,000 individuals with…
Read MoreUpdated Practice Alert Regarding Certain U and T After-Acquired Cases (June 11, 2021)
The Ninth Circuit’s decision in Medina Tovar became final on May 2, 2021. The Court held that after-acquired spouses of U visa petitioners are eligible to “accompany or follow to join” the U-1 petitioner through the I-918A petitioning process. ASISTA, CLINIC & ILRC’s new Practice Alert includes the latest information on how and when to file…
Read MoreASISTA Practice Alert Regarding Certain U Visa ‘After-Acquired Spouse’ Cases (Feb. 11, 2021)
In December, the 9th Circuit held in Medina Tovar v. Zuchowski that certain after-acquired spouses of U visa petitioners are eligible to “accompany or follow to join” the U-1 through the I-918A petitioning process. The Court recently issued its mandate on 1/25/2021. The judgment in Medina Tovar is therefore in effect as of 1/25/2021. We’ve prepared this Practice Alert to help you…
Read MoreGranados-Benitez v. Wilkinson (1st Cir) (unpublished- Jan. 28, 2021)
The 1st Circuit found that the BIA had abused its discretion in failing to follow Matter of Sanchez-Sosa in adjudicating the U visa petitioner’s Motion to Reopen and ordered remand. Click on the links to access the Amicus Brief and the Decision.
Read MoreNew Practice Advisory: Insight into USCIS’s Application of the “No-Blanks” Policy to U-Visa Petitions
The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), ASISTA and the Domestic Violence Project (DVP) of the Urban Justice Center have published a new practice advisory based on new USCIS documentation obtained by FOIA litigation brought by Cleary Gottlieb on behalf of DVP. This advisory contains a summary of the records USCIS released through the FOIA litigation , as…
Read MoreASISTA Practice Pointer: Filing Form I-290B When Multiple Interrelated Forms are Denied (July 2020)
When a petitioner files multiple interrelated forms for one case, such as a U visa, the denial of one form generally leads to the denial of all ancillary forms as well. In this practice pointer, we will address how many Form I-290Bs to file in this scenario, whether derivatives need to file their own Form…
Read MoreASISTA Amicus 9th Circ. U Spouses (May 28, 2020)
ASISTA argues that DHS regulations prohibiting U visas for after-acquired spouses of crime victims violates the Congressional goals of the U visa law. See Amicus here.
Read MoreUpdated Advisory: Blank Spaces on Form I-918, Petition for U Nonimmigrant Status
ASISTA has updated its practice advisory regarding U visa application rejections due to blank spaces on the Form I-918 and I-918A. This updated advisory has filing practice pointers, as well as suggestions for re-filing rejected forms. As this is an emerging issue, please keep ASISTA informed of any new trends not addressed in this advisory.…
Read MoreALERT: ASISTA submits Amicus on Erosion of Continuances and Admin Closure for Survivors of Violence
Yesterday, ASISTA, along with our partners, submitted an amicus brief challenging EOIR’s erosion of docketing tools like continuances and administrative closures. This errosion results in limiting access to critical immigration relief for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking and other serious crimes. ASISTA was joined in this brief by American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence (API-GBV), National Immigrant Justice…
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