Immigration

Trafficking is slavery in our midst. Human traffickers recruit, transport, hold, or kidnap their victims and force or trick them into providing sex in exchange for something of value (“sex trafficking”) or labor that is against their will or is in exchange for a so-called debt that can never be repaid (“labor trafficking”).¹ Traffickers often control victims so much that they can’t leave, sometimes through:

• threats or violence against the victims’ family in the homeland;
• threats or violence against the victims themselves;
• taking the victims’ passport, identification, and money; or
• physically locking the victims in the building where they are being held.

Traffickers often use victims’ social or economic status to lure them in and keep power over them.

A T visa is an immigration benefit for survivors of a severe form of human trafficking that occurred in or on the way to the U.S. It allows trafficking survivors to live and work legally in the United States for four years.² After having T visa status for three years, or sooner if a trafficking investigation or prosecution gets started and completed, you may request lawful permanent residence, commonly called a “green card.”³ If you want to apply for a green card, you must do so before your T visa status runs out.⁴ After holding a green card for five years, you could become eligible to apply for citizenship.

¹ INA § 101(a)(15)(T)(i)
² INA § 214(o)(7)(A)
³ INA § 245(l)(1)(A); 8 U.S.C. § 1255(l)(1)(A)
⁴ 8 C.F.R. § 245.23(a)(3)