Abused by a parent who is a citizen or green card holder
If a parent who is a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident abused you, and you are unmarried and under 21, you can file your own petition. If you are already past 21, you may still be able to file until 25 if the abuse was a central reason you did not file sooner. A parent who was not the abuser can also help, in more than one way.
Current as of October 2026. We re-check this page every quarter and after any change in the law.
This page may be read by the young person, or by the parent who was not the abuser. Both are covered. The law here is INA 204(a)(1)(A)(iv) for a child of a U.S. citizen and INA 204(a)(1)(B)(iii) for a child of a permanent resident, read with USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 3, Part D. The rules are stated as of October 2026.
The elements
Under INA 204(a)(1)(A)(iv) and (B)(iii), you show that:
- You are the child of a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, including a parent who within the past 2 years lost or renounced citizenship in a way related to an incident of domestic violence, or lost permanent residence due to one.
- You are unmarried and under 21 at filing, and unmarried at approval; or you are under 25 and the abuse was at least one central reason you did not file before 21 (INA 204(a)(1)(D)(v)).
- You reside or have resided with the abusive parent. The statute says "residence includes any period of visitation."
- The parent battered you or subjected you to extreme cruelty. See battery or extreme cruelty and abuse without violence.
- You have good moral character. A child under 14 is presumed to have it and need not submit evidence (3 USCIS-PM D.2(G)(2)). See good moral character.
- You are eligible as an immediate relative (citizen parent) or in F2A (permanent resident parent).
The regulation still prints rules the statute removed
8 C.F.R. 204.2(e)(1)(i) still lists residence in the United States at filing, shared residence in the United States and extreme hardship as child elements. The Policy Manual says VAWA 2000 removed them and supersedes that part of the regulation (3 USCIS-PM D.2(A) fn. 5). They are not elements of a child's self-petition.
USCIS must consider any credible evidence (INA 204(a)(1)(J)). A report to a school, a doctor, child protective services or the police helps if it exists, but none is required. See any credible evidence.
Who counts as a child
- A biological child.
- A stepchild, if the marriage creating the step relationship took place before you turned 18. If the parent and stepparent later divorced, you can still qualify if the step relationship existed at the time of the abuse (3 USCIS-PM D.3(A)(2)).
- An adopted child, adopted under 16. An abused adopted child does not have to show the usual 2 years of legal custody and joint residence (INA 101(b)(1)(E)).
Termination of the abuser's parental rights, or a change in custody, does not matter (3 USCIS-PM D.2(B)(3)). The abuse must have happened during the relationship, while you were under 21 and living with or visiting the abusive parent. For an adopted child, the abuser may be the adoptive parent or a family member of the adoptive parent living in the same household (3 USCIS-PM D.2(E), (F)).
To prove the relationship: for a mother, your civil birth certificate naming her; for a father, the birth certificate plus the parents' marriage, legitimation, or for a child born out of wedlock a bona fide parent-child relationship; for a stepchild, the parent-stepparent marriage before 18; for an adopted child, the adoption decree (3 USCIS-PM D.2(B)(3)).
Between 21 and 25
Turning 21 does not end the right to file if the abuse is part of why you waited. Under INA 204(a)(1)(D)(v), you may file before age 25 if the abuse was at least one central reason for the delay. It need not be the only reason, but it must be more than tangential. You must have met every requirement on the day before your 21st birthday, and you must remain unmarried. The petition is treated as filed the day before your 21st birthday (3 USCIS-PM D.3(G)(1)). The reason is shown mostly through your own account: what the abuse was, how it kept you from acting, and what changed. See writing your declaration.
Life events
- If the abusive U.S. citizen parent dies before you file, you are not eligible on that relationship (3 USCIS-PM D.3(D)(1)).
- If you marry after filing, you are ineligible while married, but may remain eligible if the marriage ends before a final decision (3 USCIS-PM D.3(B)(1)).
- If the abuser loses status after you file, your petition is not affected (3 USCIS-PM D.3(E)(2)). See abuser died or lost status.
Your own children
A self-petitioning child may include their own unmarried children under 21. The statute covers "any child of the alien," and the Policy Manual allows it (INA 204(a)(1)(A)(iv), (B)(iii); 3 USCIS-PM D.2(I)).
The regulation says otherwise
8 C.F.R. 204.2(e)(4) says a self-petitioning child's own child cannot be a derivative. The statute and the Policy Manual allow it, and we follow them.
Deadline
The outer limit is your 25th birthday. Plan to file well before it.
When the other parent is the one filing
If the abusive parent is married to your other parent, that other parent may be able to self-petition as a spouse. The spousal self-petition covers a spouse whose child was battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by the abuser during the marriage (INA 204(a)(1)(A)(iii)(I)(bb), (B)(ii)(I)(bb); 3 USCIS-PM D.2(B)(2)), and the spouse's children may be included on that petition whether or not they were abused (8 C.F.R. 204.2(c)(4)). The spouse submits proof of the relationship to the child as well as the marriage. See children on your petition.
A child included on a parent's petition who turns 21 before approval is treated as a self-petitioner with the parent's priority date (INA 204(a)(1)(D)(i)(III), (D)(ii)).
Which route is better, a child's own petition, inclusion on a parent's, or both, is decided on the facts of each family.
Other paths for children
If the abusive parent is not a citizen or permanent resident, the VAWA self-petition does not fit. Special Immigrant Juvenile classification may: it rests on a state-court finding of abuse, neglect or abandonment, not on the abuser's status (INA 101(a)(27)(J); 8 C.F.R. 204.11). See SIJ for abused children. The U visa covers domestic violence regardless of the abuser's status (INA 101(a)(15)(U)(iii)); see U visa.
After approval
An approved self-petitioner is eligible for a work permit (INA 204(a)(1)(K)). VAWA self-petitioners are exempt from the public charge ground (INA 212(a)(4)(E)(i)). A person who became a permanent resident as the battered child of a U.S. citizen may apply to naturalize after 3 years (INA 319(a)). See the green card after VAWA. We do not publish processing times; USCIS posts them at uscis.gov/processing-times.
Read next: children on your petition, SIJ for abused children, staying safe online, or the self-petition overview.
Common questions
I just turned 21. Is it too late?
Not necessarily. A child who turns 21 may still self-petition before turning 25 if the abuse was at least one central reason for the delay in filing (INA 204(a)(1)(D)(v)). You must have met every requirement on the day before your 21st birthday and must stay unmarried, and the petition is treated as filed that day (3 USCIS-PM D.3(G)(1), as of October 2026). Your declaration should explain how the abuse kept you from filing earlier.
My abusive citizen parent died. Can I still file?
Not on that relationship. If the abusive U.S. citizen parent dies before the child files, the child is not eligible; the 2-year death rule covers spouses and parents only (3 USCIS-PM D.3(B)(1), D.3(D)(1), as of October 2026). Other paths, such as Special Immigrant Juvenile status or the U visa, may still fit.
My other parent was not the abuser. Can they file for themselves?
If the abuser is that parent's U.S. citizen or green card holder spouse, yes. A spouse can self-petition when the spouse's child was battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by the abuser during the marriage, and can include the children on the petition (INA 204(a)(1)(A)(iii), (B)(ii); 8 C.F.R. 204.2(c)(4)). See the children on your petition page.
Is this the same as Special Immigrant Juvenile status?
No. The VAWA self-petition depends on the abuser being a citizen or permanent resident parent. Special Immigrant Juvenile classification depends on a state-court finding of abuse, neglect or abandonment (INA 101(a)(27)(J); 8 C.F.R. 204.11), and the abuser's status does not matter.
Will my parent be told that I filed?
The government may not disclose information about a VAWA applicant to anyone, with limited exceptions (8 U.S.C. 1367(a)(2), (b)). That rule binds the government. It does not control what a parent in the same home might notice, so a safety plan made with an advocate matters.
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