Important Factors in Prince William County VAWA Applications
It is important to go down the entire checklist of the eligibility criteria to evaluate whether someone has a viable VAWA application properly filed. It is important to ensure there is evidence that the individual applying has a had a bonafide relationship with their abuser and that there is definite proof of the abuser’s lawful status. That information can be requested by USCIS. It is also important to ensure that the behavior rises to the level of abuse in the eyes of USCIS and is not just an unhealthy or dysfunctional relationship. The Violence Against Woman Act can present assistance, and it is important for those applying to get the help of skilled attorneys who can consider all important factors in their Prince William County VAWA applications.
Providing Necessary Evidence and Records
One very important piece necessary in a VAWA application is an individual’s personal statement, especially if the applicant has a lack of hard evidence, so it needs to be very well-crafted. Individuals can also submit letters and affidavits from people that might have known peripheral facts about the relationship, if maybe a neighbor saw people coming and going and can corroborate certain points of the abused person’s timeline, but never really witnessed the abuse.
They can submit a letter that can assist the abused individual’s statements. Individuals also can see a therapist and get a letter from them and in some cases, if there is physical harm, the person wants to see a doctor to corroborate any kind of injuries that they have suffered physically. If a person has never sought help after leaving the relationship by going to a shelter, a person wants to submit evidence of that.
Another kind of piece of this case is that – in some cases, the individual who was abused will still be living with the abuser and so it is part of an attorney’s job to help access the resources that are out there to leave the relationship and in those cases, they are along evidentiary path as they move forward with the case because any kind of help they seek from a domestic violence shelter or otherwise will definitely be helpful in the case.
Waivers of Inadmissibility
One other very important factor of VAWA applications in Prince William County for a lot of people is the grounds of inadmissibility that apply to VAWA applicants. There is a very broad and kind of simple waiver of inadmissibility, so if a person has certain criminal convictions, it is just very easy and straightforward to waive them, but for VAWA, that is not necessarily true.
Grounds of inadmissibility, or prior orders of removal or re-entry after being ordered to move, can be much more difficult to overcome in a VAWA case and a person may actually require a waiver showing that an immigration violation that a person committed was connected somehow to the abuse that a person was suffering. There are special waivers that are available for VAWA applicants, but a person needs to make sure that they are eligible and need to know the criteria that is required in order to be granted one.
Contacting an Attorney
There is no rule against self-representation. If a person can prepare a VAWA application, and the person fulfills the requirements, a person can absolutely submit by themselves. In general, VAWA applications are pretty complex cases and it is definitely highly advisable to get an attorney, but there is no rule against defending one on their own. There are a lot of non-profit resources out there that a person can access in order to help them if that is what they want to do.
There are many factors of the VAWA application process in Prince William County to take into account when to filing a petition. By working with a lawyer who has extensive experience in this area of the law, and the applicant is increasing the chances of a positive outcome. While the timeline can be long, and the requirements are extensive, an attorney can help their client navigate the process.
