Support for Immigrant LGBTQ+ Survivors

The current political landscape is rapidly ever-changing like never before and interrupting the lives of numerous immigrant LGBTQ+ survivors and their families. For the most up-to-date information on policy and its impact on our communities, we highly recommend utilizing Alliance For Immigrant Survivors’ resources.

Statistics on Immigrant LGBTQ+ Survivors

According to Transrespect Versus Transphobia Worldwide, between October 2022 and September 2023 more murders of trans people happen in Latin America (74%) than in any other region of the world.
Overall, there are roughly 1,274,500 LGBTQ+ foreign-born adults in the U.S., including 289,700 (22.7%) who are undocumented and 984,800 (77.3%) who are documented.
Three quarters (75.7%) of undocumented LGBTQ+ adults are Latine—similar to the percentage of all undocumented adults (73.3%) in the United States.
More than one in ten (13.6%) undocumented LGBTQ+ adults are Asian or Pacific Islander— similar to the percentage of all undocumented adults (14.0%).
State-level estimates suggest that 59,600 undocumented LGBTQ+ adults live in California, 43,300 in Texas, 21,000 in Florida, 19,600 in New York, and 12,900 in New Jersey, though these numbers are likely to be underreported.
In a review of community-based studies, 41–61% of respondents from Asian homes within the United States reported experiencing intimate partner violence (physical and/or sexual) during their lifetime.
A study found that the South Asian immigrants in the United States experience physical abuse at a rate of 48% and emotional abuse at a rate of 38%.
One study found that Latine immigrants were less likely than non-immigrants to seek help for domestic violence from formal agencies (6.9% vs. 14.7%).

Barriers Faced by Immigrant LGBTQ+ Survivors

Abusive partners may manipulate survivors by threatening to have them reported to immigration authorities, threaten to cause them to be deported and separated from their children, or even lie about immigration law to control a partner’s behavior.
It can be difficult to find language accessible resources or proper interpretation services for immigrant survivors.
Immigrant survivors may be afraid to access legal systems, law enforcement, or even attend court hearings due to fear of immigration authorities. This can lead to options that could be essential to survivors’ safety becoming inaccessible to immigrant survivors. Therefore, safety measures and legal remedies such as restraining orders, police reports, civil standbys, divorce, and custody may not be a safe option for many immigrant survivors.
If LGBTQ+ survivors’ employment options are impacted by their immigration status, this may reduce their financial ability to exit an abusive relationship.
For LGBTQ+ migrants leaving Latin American countries, any indication of their sexual orientation or non-traditional gender identity makes them more vulnerable and targeted for their journey to the United States.
Anti-immigrant attitudes and policies have made it more difficult for immigrant survivors to feel safe and comfortable. Continuously changing and confusing legislation has forced immigrant survivors to be fearful of potential deportations and afraid to leave abusive relationships.
While numerous services and support are available for domestic violence survivors, Black immigrant survivors face barriers in accessing these services due to limited culturally relevant services, language barriers, transportation issues, financial issues, and lack of training among professionals.
Black immigrants have lower household incomes on average compared to all U.S. immigrants, despite having reached higher levels of education when compared to our general immigrant population due to a report on uplifting the Journey of Black Immigrants created by the Tahirih Justice Center.

Reminders and Affirmations for Immigrant LGBTQ+ Survivors

LGBTQ+ immigrant survivors deserve safety, peace, comfort, and a home.
LGBTQ+ immigrants have unique and beautiful cultures that deserve to be recognized and respected.
Fear is a valid response to a lack of safety; it’s okay to feel everything that naturally comes to your body.
Taking time to find joy within community is powerful and necessary.
Your existence is historical resistance and part of a long legacy of familial courage.

Forms of Humanitarian Immigration Relief for Survivors of Qualifying Crimes

It’s important to note that this content is not legal advice but legal information. Depending on the survivor’s immigration and criminal history, eligibility to adjust their status might not be possible. Furthermore, depending on the age of the applicant and their immediate relatives, some immediate family members might not be able to adjust their status.

It is strongly encouraged that all immigrant and undocumented survivors receive a comprehensive immigration legal screening by a vetted immigration attorney and/or a Department of Justice (DOJ) Accredited Representative. A helpful guide to finding a non-profit legal service provider in your area would be the National Immigration Legal Services Directory courtesy of the Immigration Advocates Network.

U- Visa

Immigrant survivors of qualifying crimes committed within the United States such as domestic violence who have cooperated with authorities throughout the investigation and/or prosecution, might be able to apply for immigration humanitarian relief such as a U-Visa.
Under U-Visa requirements, the survivor does not need to be married to the abusive party or be an immediate relative like a parent, child, or step-child. The abusive party also does not need to be a United States Citizen or a Legal Permanent Resident.
A mandatory component to U-Visa eligibility is for the survivor to request a U-Certification by a designated certifying agency. The Immigration Center for Women and Children (ICWC) has a helpful national U Visa Certifier and CP Collaborative Database that can support survivors and immigration practitioners in locating the correct designated certifying agency.
A barrier for LGBTQ+ survivors in obtaining a signed U-Certification is that often, law enforcement doesn’t recognize that domestic violence can occur in LGBTQ+ relationships. This anti-LGBTQ+ bias results in law enforcement not investigating the incident and/or not providing survivors with an initial incident report that demonstrates that a crime occurred.

T-Visa

Survivors of commercial sexual exploitation, sex trafficking, and labor trafficking can also apply for T-Visas, which are a special type of visa for victims of trafficking. T-Visas require that reasonable attempts are made to a designated T-Visa certifying agency. However, unlike the U-Visa, a T-Visa certification is not required if there is sufficient evidence demonstrating that the survivor cooperated with authorities. If a survivor is under the age of 18, they may proceed with filing a T-Visa without showing reasonable attempts to obtain a T-Visa certificate for a certifying agency.

Violence Against Women’s Act (VAWA)

VAWA is another form of humanitarian immigration relief for survivors who can self-petition for legal status without the abusive party’s knowledge. While the title contains “violence against women”, it extends to survivors of all genders affected by violence.
Survivors must be immediate relatives of an abusive United States citizen or Legal Permanent Resident, such as a spouse, or child/step-child over the age of 21. Unlike a U-Visa, VAWA does not require a police report or proof demonstrating that a survivor cooperated with law enforcement. Fortunately, other forms of evidence like a letter from a therapist, medical professional, clergy, and/or witnesses will suffice.

Asylum

LGBTQ+ survivors who face persecution under one of the five protected grounds (race, religion, nationality, political opinion, and membership in a particular social group) in their country of origin may be eligible to apply for Asylum.
Asylum law is very complicated and depending on the individual’s immigration and/or criminal history, they might not be able to adjust their status.

Special Inmigrant Juveniles (SIJ)

If a survivor has special findings orders from a family court in the United States stating that they are under the age of 21, unmarried, have been abused, neglected, and/or abandoned by one or two parents, they might be able to adjust their status. Please note that Family Court orders must be filed concurrently with form I-360 to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) before the survivor turns 21. Some states in the US will only grant special findings if the child is under 18 years old, whereas some states like California, Nevada, New York and Oregon can grant special findings before the child turns 21 years of age.
Project Lifeline Collaborating for Kids has a national State-by-State Age -Out Database.

Resources

Oasis Legal Services provides legal assistance with asylum, residency, naturalization, VAWA, and family petitions for LGBTQ+ immigrants. They provide quality, holistic and trauma-informed immigration and social services to low-income LGBTQ+ immigrants and is the leading organization on the West Coast championing statewide and national policies benefitting LGBTQ+ immigrants.
Alliance For Immigrant Survivors (AIS) is a national network of advocates and allies dedicated to defending and advocating for policies that ensure immigrant survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, trafficking, and other gender-based abuses have access to life-saving protections that all survivors of violence deserve.
The Black Migrant Power Fund is a community-led fund that will move immediate, no-strings funding to Black-led, grassroots organizations addressing the urgent needs of Black migrant communities and building power with and for Black migrants in the US.
Black Alliance for Just Immigration uses organization, education, advocacy, and cross-cultural alliances with the goal of ending the racism, criminalization, and economic disenfranchisement perpetrated against Black immigrants, refugees, and African American communities. For more than 15 years, they have united Black voices in the pursuit of equality and justice in both laws and local communities.
The Anti-Violence Project has a 24-hour hotline for LGBTQ+ survivors to call for confidential support: 212-714-1141
You can find your local LGBTQ+ center and find resources, social groups, and support groups for both the broader LGBTQ+ community and those specific to the bisexual community by going to: www.lgbtqcenters.org/LGBTCenter