If you are a man experiencing extreme cruelty
or physical battery by your U.S.
citizen or green card holding spouse,
you may be eligible to get a green card
based upon this marriage without even involving your spouse.
The Violence Against Women Act or VAWA, wasn't created
just to protect women, it may also help men get a work
permit, travel permission, deferred action, and a ten year green card
based upon being married and suffering extreme cruelty or battery by the spouse.
You can do all of this without getting their help or letting them know.
My name is Moumita Rahman, and I am an immigration attorney based in New York.
I work with clients all over the U.S.
in all 50 states to help them get their green cards
and work permits based upon these sort of situations.
Many of my clients
happen to be men who have suffered during the course of their marriage—
whether the marriage is a same sex marriage or a traditional marriage.
You can contact my office at 212-248-7907
to make an appointment so that we can discuss your case.
Please know that if you are a man suffering extreme cruelty or battery
during your marriage, you have just as much right to file
for VAWA as any woman who has suffered the same during their marriage.
The reality is that many men stay in abusive relationships
because they believe that they cannot qualify for VAWA simply
because they are a man, even though the abuse that they are suffering
is just as painful and as hurtful as what many women also go through.
No one deserves
to be treated this way, and you should not have to stay in a toxic marriage
just to get a green card.
So let's take a quick look at VAWA, see what qualifies,
and to see some of the unique issues that men may face when trying to apply.
So what is VAWA and how do you qualify for it?
The Violence Against Women Act was created in 1994 to protect victims of domestic
violence regardless of their gender. Before VAWA was enacted,
spouses were unable to petition for themselves for a green card.
And if the spouse was abusive, there was almost nothing
they could do about the situation.
Now that VAWA is law, an abused man who has suffered during their marriage
to a US citizen or to a green card holder can apply for VAWA
if they can show the following: that they were married to a U.S.
citizen or to a green card holder; that they married their spouse
in good faith; that during the marriage they suffered extreme cruelty or battery;
that they resided with the spouse
for at least some period of time, either in the U.S.
or outside the U.S.; that if they do not live in the U.S.,
that some of the abuse did occur while they were inside the U.S.;
and that he is a person of good moral character.
VAWA can also be applied for if the marriage is already over,
as long as the divorce is not more than two years old and there was a connection
between the divorce and the abuse suffered during the marriage.
Please note that there are no minimums or limits to how any of these elements
can be proven.
For example, many immigration lawyers insist
that you must have either a police report or hospital records to prove abuse.
But this is simply not the case.
You just need to provide enough evidence that is legitimate
and that is credible in order to establish your eligibility for VAWA.
In fact, the law says that any credible evidence
can be given to prove any elements of a VAWA application.
Some people may consider that the abuse that men tend to suffer is different
from what women suffer, but in many instances it is very, very similar.
For example, some of the abusive behaviors that men can also encounter
during the course of their marriage include but is not limited to: belittling
such as being told by their spouse that they are not good enough
or that they are nothing without the spouse; bullying,
including constant verbal attacks; threats to have their children taken away
or to be harmed by the family or by the US citizen spouse themselves;
threats of being deported; unfounded accusations that you have been
unfaithful to the spouse; being controlled and not being able to talk to family
or to see some friends; invasive behaviors such as having your messages
or emails constantly monitored and checked; being humiliated,
including being humiliated for your sexual performance or your looks;
being compared to other partners that your spouse has had in the past;
being demanding, such as insisting that you work a certain number of hours
or provide a certain amount of money; controlling whether you can spend money
on yourself; and withholding intimacy to gain power in the relationship.
Of course, there is also physical abuse, which also includes
hitting, slapping, pushing and shoving.
If you are subjected to any of these behaviors and can show
that they have been a pattern during the course of your marriage,
then you may be eligible to file for VAWA and you may be able to get your ten year
green card without the involvement or help of your spouse.
At the end of this video, I will provide links to my other videos where I go
into more detail about how to prepare a more successful VAWA case.
But first, it is more important that you understand
why applying for VAWA is different for men.
When most people think of abusive relationships, they tend to think of women
as victims in the traditional power and control struggle.
They find it hard to reverse the roles in their heads
and view a man as a victim instead.
Many people do not think that men can be the victims
of physical, emotional, psychological or financial cruelty.
As a result, many people tend to minimize threats against men,
including the victims themselves.
This leads to a bias that even abused men can carry around inside.
This results in abuse men suffering without taking any action at all
when VAWA can be a solution for them.
They won't often call the police if their spouse hurts them
or steals from them, and they refuse to take any other action
because they believe that it is not "manly."
Many men will also fail to take pictures of their injuries
or to seek the help of a psychologist if they suffer from depression
or anxiety as a result of what their spouse has done.
Also, many men tend to be embarrassed because of what they have gone through,
because they believe that men should not be suffering this way.
They believe that it would make them look weak
in order to reveal any of the abuse that they have been going through.
This may make filing a VAWA case more difficult.
It's not uncommon for women to share what they are going through
with their friends and family; however, many men may tend to do the opposite
and withhold a lot of information and keep it to themselves.
If you are going through anything you should share with your friends
so that they can help you write affidavits of support later in your case.
Many men also come from macho cultures where they believe it is the man's
responsibility to satisfy everything that their partner desires, including
any time there is unreasonable demands for gifts and money and sex.
But just because something is culturally acceptable does not mean that it is right,
nor that it does not fit within the definition of extreme cruelty or battery.
No amount of effort can save a toxic relationship, and it is up to you
to take action when you see that you are suffering in the course of your marriage.
Make sure you start documenting the treatment
that you are going through right now.
And finally,
many men may find it difficult to file a valid case because other attorneys
believe that there is a much higher bar for proving abuse
just because the client is a man.
This is why it is extremely important that you work with an attorney like me
who does know that the bar is just the same as it is for women victims
and that you have suffered abuse that qualifies in your case.
If you believe that you are ready to start your case, please give us a call
so that I can review your case and let you know what your options are.
By applying for VAWA, you may also be eligible to apply for your residency
at the same time and thus get a two year work permit and travel document.
If you would like to learn more about how to file for VAWA and how to file
a successful case, I will include links to two of my other videos here.
I will also continue to release more information about VAWA,
so if you have not already done so, make sure you give me a follow
and turn on notifications so that you don't miss a thing.
Click here to watch my next video and I'll see you there.