Policy Text
Page 1 of 4 8/07 (New 1/16)
U Visa Certification
The purpose of this General Order i s to standardize the U Visa certification process.
I. Policy Statement
The Sheriff’s Department will pr ocess U Visa requests in accord ance with Penal Code
679.10, Department of Homeland Secu rity (DHS), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) guideli nes and this General Order.
II. Background
A. The Sheriff’s Department recei ves requests for U Visa certif ication from law
firms, legal services groups, and private citizens. Per the DH S, USCIS
guidelines:
“USCIS Form I-918, Supplement B is the U visa certification document that a
law enforcement agency can complete for a victim who is petitioning USCIS
for a U visa. USCIS is the federal com ponent of DHS with the responsibility to
determine whether immigr ation benefits and immigrat ion status should be
granted or denied. Form I-918B is a requi red piece of evidence to confirm to
USCIS that a qualifying crime has occurr ed and that the victim was helpful, is
being helpful, or is likely to be helpful in the investigation or prosecution of
criminal activity.”
B. The Legal Affairs Bureau is r esponsible for receipt of U Vis a requests,
determining if there is the potent ial for certification, identi fying and
disseminating requests to the inve stigating officer, and return ing signed,
rejected, or denied requests back to the requestor.
III. Procedures
A. Receipt and Distribut ion of U Visa Requests
1. Requesters must send a Form I- 918B to the Sheriff’s Departme nt’s
Legal Affairs Bureau and must incl ude a copy of the Sheriff’s
Department report.
a. The Form I-918B must be comple tely and accurately filled
out with the ex ception of:
Page 2 of 4 8/07 (New 1/16) (1) Name of Certifying Official
(2) Title and Division/Office of Certifying Official
(3) Signature of Certifying Official (4) Date
2. The Legal Affairs Bureau will verify t hat the Form I-918B is
completely and accurately fill ed out and whether a rejection or
denial should immediately be sent to the requestor.
a. Rejections will be sent from the Legal Affairs Bureau if:
(1) The Form I-918B is incomplete or inaccurately filled
out.
(2) The requestor did not inc lude a copy of the Sheriff’s
Department report.
(3) The case was reviewed by the District Attorney’s
Office, and charges were filed (this includes cases where a warrant was issued).
(a) Requestor should be directed to the District
Attorney’s website for procedures in obtaining
the U Visa.
b. Denials will be sent from the Legal Affairs Bureau if the
criminal activity does not cons titute a qualifying crime.
3. If the Form I-918B is acc epted, the Legal Affairs Bureau wil l:
a. Determine the appropriate certifying official. b. Send an email notifyi ng the certifying official of the reque st.
c. Send the certifying offici al the Form I-918B with an IDC
explaining what to fill out, and the date it needs to be
returned, via inter-office mail.
B. Certification or D enial of U Visa Requests
1. Once the certifying official receives the Form I-918B they s hall
verify the accuracy of the information.
Page 3 of 4 8/07 (New 1/16) a. If the information is incompl ete or inaccurate the certifyin g
official may change the informati on to correctly reflect the
incident.
2. Once the Form I-918B accurately reflects the incident and th e
certifying official agrees that the victim was helpful in the
investigation, they shall sign the Form I-918B and return it to the
Legal Affairs Bureau, either in per son or via inter-office mail .
“Helpfulness means the victim was, is, or is likely to
be assisting law enforcement in the investigation or
prosecution of the qualifying criminal activity of which
he or she is a victim. This includes being helpful and providing assistance when reasonably requested. This also includes an ongoi ng responsibility on the
part of the victim to be helpful. Those who unreasonably refuse to assist after reporting a crime will not be eligible for a U visa. The duty to remain
helpful to law enforcement remains even after a U visa is granted, and those victims who unreasonably refuse to provide assistance after the U visa has been granted may have the visa revoked by USCIS. Law
enforcement agencies should contact and inform USCIS of the victim’s unreas onable refusal to provide
assistance in the investigat ion or prosecution should
this occur.”
3. If the victim was not helpful in the investigation, the cert ifying official
shall write a short ID C stating in what fashion the victim was
unhelpful and return the IDC and unsigned Form I-918B to the
Legal Affairs Bureau, either in per son or via inter-office mail .
C. Timing for U Visa Certification
1. The certifying official has t en (10) calendar days, from the date
listed on the Legal Affairs Bur eau IDC, to complete their
certification and return the Form I-918B to the Legal Affairs B ureau.
D. Completion of