The Katharine & George Alexander Community Law Center (KGACLC) Immigration Practice Area provides free legal services to low-income individuals who seek:
Assistance and orientation regarding T Nonimmigrant Status/Visas for Survivors of Human Trafficking
- The T nonimmigrant status/visa was created by the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, and allows people who have been trafficked into or in the US to remain in the US for a period of 4 years. The T visa was created in the hope that by offering survivors a way to remain in the US lawfully, they would be less afraid to come forward and report their trafficking to authorities.
- Trafficking in persons includes the recruitment, harboring, transportation, obtaining or providing persons for services or labor through force, fraud or coercion for the purposes of involuntary servitude, debt bondage, peonage or slavery. Survivors of this growing transnational crime problem are trafficked into a wide variety of exploitative settings, ranging from the sex industry to domestic servitude to forced labor on farms and in factories.
- The trafficking survivor must show they are cooperating with reasonable requests for assistance in the investigation and/or prosecution of the trafficking, and that they would suffer extreme hardship if removed from the US.
Please make an appointment during one of our Immigration clinics to discuss your particular situation.
Assistance and orientation regarding U Nonimmigrant Status/Visas for Survivors of Certain Crimes in the US
- The U nonimmigrant status/visa is available to immigrants who are survivors of certain crimes in the US, and who possess information concerning the criminal activity. Some of the listed crimes include rape, torture, trafficking, incest, domestic violence, sexual assault, abusive sexual contact, sexual exploitation, female genital mutilation, being held hostage, peonage, involuntary servitude, slave trade, kidnapping, abduction, unlawful criminal restraint, false imprisonment, blackmail, extortion, manslaughter, murder, felonious assault, witness tampering, obstruction of justice, perjury, or attempt, conspiracy, or solicitation to commit one of these offenses. A federal, state, or local official must certify that the applicant has been, is being, or is willing to be helpful in the investigation or prosecution of the criminal activity, and the applicant must show they have suffered substantial physical or mental abuse as a result of the criminal activity.
Please make an appointment during one of our Immigration clinics to discuss your particular situation.
Assistance and orientation regarding self-petitions based on VAWA (the Violence Against Women Act)
- Under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) passed by Congress in 1994, the spouses and children of United States citizens or lawful permanent residents (LPR), as well as parents of US citizens may self-petition in place of a relative petition as the first step in order to obtain lawful permanent residency. The immigration provisions of VAWA allow certain battered immigrants to file for immigration relief without the abuser’s assistance or knowledge, in order to seek safety and independence from the abuser.
Please make an appointment during one of our Immigration clinics to discuss your particular situation.
Assistance or orientation regarding Acquired Citizenship
- Acquired Citizenship is US citizenship conferred at birth to children born abroad to a U.S. citizen parent(s). If you are having trouble proving your US citizenship or that of your child or children, we may be able to assist you based on our available resources at the time.
The Community Law Center offers advice clinics twice-a-month regarding the afore-mentioned issues. See our current clinic schedule.
Depending on the available resources, the KGACLC may decide to offer full legal representation to a limited number of clients seen during its legal clinics. Although these representation services are free, there may be other costs that will not be covered by the KGACLC. Such costs may include court fees, mailing fees, interpreting fees, etc.
Please make an appointment during one of our Immigration clinics to discuss your particular situation.
