Terms for Humanitarian Protection in Immigration Processes- High School

These programs, visas, and statutes are designed to provide a safe haven, legal protections, or status to vulnerable individuals fleeing persecution, crime, or systemic crises.

• Asylum: A form of legal protection granted to foreign nationals already physically present in the U.S. (or at a Port of Entry) who can prove a well-founded fear of persecution in their home country based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.

• Temporary Protected Status (TPS): A temporary humanitarian designation granted by the Secretary of Homeland Security to eligible people of a country experiencing ongoing armed conflict, environmental disasters, or extraordinary, temporary conditions that make a safe return impossible.

• Deferred Action / C-33 category: The executive branch agrees to defer an individual's removal (deportation) from the country for a designated period. It does not confer lawful status, but it grants a temporary reprieve and eligibility for a work permit. "C-33" is the specific regulatory code printed on employment authorization cards for recipients of programs like DACA.

• DREAM Act (federal): A recurring, proposed piece of federal legislation aimed at providing a pathway to permanent residency and eventual citizenship for undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as minors, grew up here, and met specific educational or military milestones.

• Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS): A specialized federal classification that enables children under 21 who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected by one or both parents to obtain a Green Card. The process requires a state juvenile court to declare that it is not in the child's best interest to return to their home country.

• T-Visa (human trafficking victims): A temporary nonimmigrant status that protects victims of severe forms of human trafficking (forced labor or commercial sex trafficking). It allows individuals to remain in the U.S. to recover and assist federal law enforcement agencies in investigating and prosecuting trafficking networks.

• U-Visa (victims of reported crimes): A temporary nonimmigrant status set aside for victims of certain serious crimes (such as domestic violence, sexual assault, or extortion) that occurred within the U.S. To qualify, the victim must obtain a certification from police or prosecutors proving they have been helpful in the investigation.

• Violence Against Women Act (VAWA): A statutory provision allowing abused spouses, children, or parents of U.S. citizens or LPRs to independently petition for temporary legal status and a Green Card without the abuser's knowledge. This removes the abuser’s ability to use the victim's undocumented status as a tool of coercion and control.

• Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act (HRIFA): A specific piece of historical federal legislation enacted in 1998 that allowed certain national citizens of Haiti who had been residing continuously in the United States to adjust their status to lawful permanent residency without having to leave the country.