Congress Urged to Reform U Visa Program Amid Fraud Concerns

The U visa program, established by Congress in 2000 to protect noncitizen crime victims who assist law enforcement, faces growing challenges including application backlogs and fraud concerns. The program allows victims of specified crimes to remain in the United States for up to four years with work authorization, while also enabling some relatives to gain temporary legal status. After three years, visa holders can apply for permanent residency.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) can issue only 10,000 U visas annually but receives significantly more applications, creating a substantial backlog. According to USCIS data, the agency received 266,293 U visa petitions between October 2017 and March 2023. Officials estimate it will take approximately two decades to process the existing applications, highlighting administrative challenges within the system.

In 2021, USCIS implemented a "bona fide determination" process that grants qualifying applicants four years of work authorization and temporary protection from deportation before their cases are fully adjudicated. Recent federal indictments suggest this system has attracted fraudulent applications. In Louisiana, three police chiefs, a city marshal, and a convenience store owner were indicted for allegedly filing false police reports claiming immigrants were victims of fictional armed robberies, reportedly receiving $5,000 for each victim listed.

Similar fraud cases have emerged elsewhere, including a New York case where an individual pleaded guilty to staging armed robberies so alleged victims could apply for U visas. These incidents have prompted calls for program reforms, including allocating more resources to USCIS to address the application backlog and amending federal rules to allow police agencies to submit documentation directly to immigration authorities rather than through applicants.

Reform advocates suggest maintaining the program's core purpose of encouraging crime reporting regardless of immigration status while implementing stronger safeguards against fraud. Proposed changes include reconsidering eligibility requirements and benefits provided through the program, as well as improving the verification process to prevent misuse while protecting legitimate victims.