Hennepin County Attorney’s Office passes milestone in U and T visa certifications

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office (HCAO) has surpassed 500 U or T visa certifications for crime victims and their families since Jan. 1, 2024, under a policy introduced last year that victim advocates have called a “model for the country.”

From 2008-2023, the HCAO issued just over 400 certifications.

Removing obstacles to reporting crime assists law enforcement and prosecutors in the detection, investigation, and prosecution of crime. U and T visas are a proven tool to ensure crimes are reported among immigrant communities. U and T visas are issued by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) after being certified by local authorities, like the County Attorney’s Office, and are designed to increase crime reporting among immigrant communities. The HCAO does not grant immigration relief.

The federal statute that created these visas was signed into law by President Bush in 2000 and its programming was reauthorized under Presidents Obama and Trump.

U Visa: provides immigration relief for victims who were helpful, are being helpful, or are likely to be helpful in the detection, investigation, prosecution, conviction, or sentencing of 28 different qualifying crimes. The categories of qualifying crimes include violent crimes, domestic violence, sexual assault, trafficking crimes, and crimes that obstruct law enforcement officers.
T Visa: provides immigration relief for victims of sex trafficking, labor trafficking, and forced labor.

“Under previous administrations, this office has not used this public safety tool to its greatest extent. It was one of my major priorities to change that and we have absolutely succeeded,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said. “We adjusted the policy to strengthen law enforcement’s ability to detect and solve crimes and to increase trust with vulnerable populations. As successful as it has been, our community is still suffering from the effects of the Trump administration’s disastrous, militaristic overreach. Victims and witnesses have declined to cooperate with our prosecutions of dangerous individuals due to their fear of being abducted by federal agents.”

The full policy is available here: U/T visa policy (PDF, 1MB)

Additional information and resources are available on the office’s website: U/T Visa

#30#