Some publicly funded supports are open to all persons without regard to immigration status. Other state and federal public benefits are only open to certain categories of immigrants. When immigrant survivors of domestic violence, child abuse, sexual assault, stalking, human trafficking and other crimes begin the process of filing for protections under U.S. immigration laws, their ability to access publicly benefits and services expands. NIWAP’s works to ensure that professionals who work with immigrant survivors are knowledgeable about the forms of immigration relief available to victims. Victim-based immigration remedies include Violence Against Women Act self-petitioning, U visas for victims of serious crime, T visas for victims of trafficking and Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) for abused, abandoned or neglected immigrant children. Useful screening tools that highlight which adults and child immigrant survivors are eligible for which forms of immigration relief can be accessed below:

Filing an application for one of forms of immigration relief designed to help victims can lead to eligibility for public and assisted housing, health insurance and subsidies, post-secondary education grants and loans, nutrition assistance, and state and/or federal public benefits that can be key stepping stones crucial to supporting immigrant survivors. Which public benefits an immigrant survivor is eligible for depends on several factors:

The state in which a survivor lives;
The form of immigration relief the victim has been granted or has filed for;
When the victim first entered the United States; and
Which publicly funded benefits program or service the victim needs.

The resources on this page help professionals working with immigrant survivors identify which public benefits each particular immigrant survivor qualifies for in your state. Using these tools together will help ensure that immigrant women, children and families receive access to the legal remedies and benefits for which they are eligible and which ensure safety, security, health, independence, and equitable access to justice and services for survivors and their children.

If you are looking for resources regarding child trafficking victims and the benefits and/or assistance that they are eligible for, please visit the following training event webpage:

National Judicial Network Peer-to-Peer Forum – HHS’ Office on Trafficking in Persons (OTIP) Answers Questions on Identifying and Reporting Child Trafficking Victims (May 2, 2023)

Please note that if you are working with an immigrant who has lawful permanent residency, has been granted humanitarian parole, or other qualified immigrant listed in 8 U.S.C. 1641(b), when using NIWAP’s benefits maps and charts the rules for access to state and federal public benefits will be generally the same as the eligibility rules that apply to VAWA self-petitioners. The main difference is that there are some states that for certain benefits the state funded benefits may only be available to abused immigrants who are also qualified immigrants which includes all VAWA self-petitioners and may also include lawful permanent residents or humanitarian parolees who have also suffered abuse. To quickly see which states offer greater access to some public benefits for abused immigrants see

State-Funded Public Benefits Comparison Chart (June 29, 2022)

Interactive Public Benefits Map

Guide for Using the Interactive Benefits Map

States

Washington Public Benefits Chart (2022) – Washington Public Benefits Screening Chart (2022)
West Virginia Public Benefits Chart (2024) – West Virginia Public Benefits Screening Chart (2024)
Wisconsin Public Benefits Chart (2022) – Wisconsin Public Benefits Screening Chart (2022)
Wyoming Public Benefits Chart (2022) – Wyoming Public Benefits Screening Chart (2022)

U.S. Territories

American Samoa Public Benefits Chart (2022) – American Samoa Public Benefits Screening Chart (2022)
Guam Public Benefits Chart (2022) – Guam Public Benefits Screening Chart (2022)
The Northern Mariana Islands Public Benefits Chart (2022) – The Northern Mariana Islands Public Benefits Screening Chart (2022)
Puerto Rico Public Benefits Chart (2022) – Puerto Rico Public Benefits Screening Chart (2022)
U.S. Virgin Islands Public Benefits Chart (2022) – U.S. Virgin Islands Public Benefits Screening Chart (2022)

This project was supported by Grant No. 2015-TA-AX-K043 and 15JOVW-21-GK-02208-MUMU awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this program are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women. This publication is also supported by Grant No. SJI-23-T-043 from the State Justice Institute. The points of view expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the State Justice Institute.