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Lawyers Manual - Unified Court System

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324 Lori Cohen<br />

The self-petition form contains instructions on the payment of filing fees,<br />

submission of additional documents, and mailing address. However, the form<br />

also contains requirements that are no longer used to establish VAWA eligibility.<br />

For example, the petition requires a petitioner to show that she or a qualifying<br />

family member would suffer extreme hardship should she be deported. The<br />

requirement was stricken under VAWA 2000, however, and USCIS no longer<br />

considers extreme hardship in adjudicating a self-petition. 62 When preparing the<br />

VAWA self-petition packet for mailing, mark the envelope and all<br />

correspondence “VAWA UNIT” in red ink.<br />

If the self-petitioner has been married to a USC abuser, she may<br />

simultaneously file applications for adjustment of status and employment<br />

authorization. If she has foreign-born children who live with her, she may<br />

include them in her self-petition but must execute separate adjustment of status<br />

applications for each child. 63 Because spouses of green card holders must wait<br />

for an immigrant visa to become available, a self-petitioner who had been<br />

married to a permanent resident cannot typically file for adjustment of status<br />

concurrently with the VAWA self-petition but can apply for employment<br />

authorization. If, however, the victim’s current or former permanent resident<br />

spouse previously filed a family petition for her that has a current priority date,<br />

the self-petitioner may file an adjustment application. 64<br />

If the self-petition is approved, USCIS will issue “deferred action” status<br />

and any requested employment authorization. 65 Self-petitioners who had been<br />

married to US citizens or who have current priority dates from previously filed<br />

family petitions will be scheduled for an interview on their adjustment of status<br />

applications at their local USCIS office. Spouses of permanent residents without<br />

current priority dates must wait for an immigrant visa to become available<br />

before seeking adjustment of status. 66 In the interim, both categories of selfpetitioners<br />

may extend their deferred action status and employment<br />

authorization until they adjust status. 67<br />

VAWA Cancellation of Removal<br />

If a domestic violence victim has been placed in removal proceedings<br />

before an immigration judge, she may also be eligible to “cancel” the<br />

proceedings and adjust to permanent resident status under a special provision<br />

colloquially known as “VAWA Cancellation.” “VAWA Cancellation” offers<br />

domestic violence victims in removal proceedings the chance to obtain lawful

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