VAWA Self-Petition: Green Card for Survivors of Abuse

If you are in immediate danger in the US, call 911. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is free and confidential at 1-800-799-7233 or thehotline.org, and it can connect you with local shelters and legal help. Use a safe phone or computer if the abuser may check your devices.

You must also show:

• Battery or extreme cruelty. Abuse can be physical, sexual, emotional, financial, or threats. It must have happened during the relationship.
• You lived with the abuser at some point (you do not need to live together now).
• Good moral character.
• For spouses: a good-faith marriage, meaning you married for real reasons, not only for immigration.

Your children under 21 can be included as derivatives, even if they were not abused themselves.

Federal law (8 U.S.C. 1367) bars USCIS and other agencies from telling the abuser about your case and from denying your case based only on information the abuser provides. USCIS sends VAWA mail to the safe address you give it. You do not need the abuser's signature, documents, or cooperation.

Keep in mind that other paths, such as a family court or criminal case, can involve the abuser. A lawyer or advocate can help you plan for that, including what to do if the abuser controls your passport or documents.

1. File Form I-360 with evidence of the relationship, the abuser's status, the abuse, living together, and good moral character. Personal statements, police or medical records, protective orders, and letters from counselors or shelters all help.
2. Prima facie determination. If your filing looks complete on its face, USCIS may issue a notice that can help you access some public benefits.
3. Approval. An approved I-360 usually comes with deferred action and allows you to apply for a work permit.
4. Green card. If the abuser is a US citizen, you are treated as an immediate relative with no visa wait and can often file Form I-485 at the same time as the I-360. If the abuser is a permanent resident, you wait for your priority date in F2A or F2B in the Visa Bulletin.

VAWA self-petitioners in the US can usually adjust status even if they entered without inspection, and they do not need an Affidavit of Support. See adjustment of status.

USCIS must consider "any credible evidence," so you do not need police reports to qualify. Common evidence includes:

Your own detailed statement is often the most important document. An advocate or lawyer can help you write it safely.

A lawyer can tell you which route is safest and strongest for you.

The May 2026 USCIS adjustment memo is aimed at people in temporary visa status, and VAWA has its own rules, but officers still have discretion in green card cases. The 2026 interview freeze. Since August 25, 2026, the State Department has paused scheduling of immigrant visa interviews worldwide while consular officers train on public charge screening. No restart date had been announced as of September 22, 2026. Track it on our immigrant visa pause page. This matters for self-petitioners who must finish abroad. Public charge. A new public charge rule took effect on September 18, 2026. It replaces the 2022 rule with a broader "totality of the circumstances" test of whether you are likely to rely on government support. VAWA self-petitioners are exempt from the public charge ground.

There is no fee for a VAWA Form I-360. USCIS also lists fee exemptions or waivers for related forms such as the I-485 and work permit application in VAWA cases; confirm on the USCIS fee schedule or fee calculator before filing. Many nonprofit legal services help survivors for free. Learn how to verify a lawyer or accredited representative, and avoid notarios.