Form I-914 Instructions
T nonimmigrant status · severe form of trafficking · physical presence · law enforcement cooperation
Source reviewed 2026-10-01A bad employer is not automatically a trafficker. Force, fraud, coercion, and compelled labor change the legal frame.
A Recruiter Took Your Passport, Wages, or Freedom: When the Problem May Be Labor Trafficking
A problem-first guide to T nonimmigrant status for potential trafficking victims, including severe forms of trafficking, physical presence on account of trafficking, law-enforcement cooperation, and extreme hardship involving unusual and severe harm.
Direct answer
Short answer
T nonimmigrant status is for qualifying victims of a severe form of trafficking in persons. USCIS instructions require proof of victimization, qualifying physical presence, compliance with reasonable law-enforcement requests unless an exception applies, and extreme hardship involving unusual and severe harm if removed. Labor trafficking can involve force, fraud, coercion, debt bondage, involuntary servitude, or similar compelled labor.
On this page
Unpaid wages alone and trafficking are not identical legal claims
The trafficking analysis asks whether the person was recruited, harbored, transported, provided, or obtained for labor or services through force, fraud, or coercion for a prohibited compelled-labor purpose. Wage theft can coexist with trafficking but does not automatically establish it.
Why the person is physically present in the United States matters
T eligibility includes a physical-presence requirement tied to trafficking or the statutory alternatives. The timeline from recruitment through escape or law-enforcement contact should be documented.
Law-enforcement cooperation has important exceptions
Under 8 CFR § 214.208, the age exemption applies when the applicant was under 18 at the time at least one act of trafficking occurred. It can therefore cover someone who is already an adult when filing I-914. A separate exception covers inability to cooperate because of physical or psychological trauma. Evidence must establish the exemption or exception; once established, the regulation does not require prior law-enforcement contact or compliance with future requests for assistance.
Control often leaves a paper trail
Recruitment contracts, debt ledgers, passport retention, threats, housing control, transportation, payroll, messages, work schedules, injuries, witnesses, and reports can help explain coercion and the trafficking scheme.
Questions people actually ask
Frequently asked questions
Does an employer have to physically lock someone in a building for labor trafficking?
No. Force is one possible method, but fraud or coercion can also be central depending on the facts.
Must a trafficking victim already have a police certification like a U visa?
T cases have a different legal framework. Law-enforcement cooperation can matter, but T eligibility is not simply the same Supplement B certification process used for U petitions.
Can trafficking by a recruiter or labor contractor count?
Potentially. The legal analysis focuses on the trafficking conduct and relationship, not only the title of the person or company involved.
Authority and current-source review
Official sources supporting this page
These links identify primary or official materials used to control material legal and procedural statements. They are not a substitute for advice about a particular matter.
Victims of Human Trafficking: T Nonimmigrant Status
T visa · labor trafficking · sex trafficking · trafficking victim
Source reviewed 2026-10-018 CFR § 214.208 - Law-enforcement assistance and age or trauma exceptions
law-enforcement cooperation · age at victimization · trauma exception · evidence
Source reviewed 2026-10-01The next useful move
Old files, current rules, one clean strategy
Bring the old petition, labor certification, criminal disposition, N-400 history, police report, certification request, employment record, or asylum timeline that actually drives the question. The legal category should come from the record, not the rumor.
Important legal and service limitations
General U.S. immigration information only. This page is not legal advice, does not create an attorney-client relationship, and does not guarantee eligibility, approval, admission, permanent residence, relief, or any other result.