The domestic-violence waiver, INA 237(a)(7)
Survivors are sometimes arrested along with the abuser, or charged on the abuser's complaint, and then charged in immigration court as deportable on the domestic-violence ground. INA 237(a)(7) provides a waiver of that ground for a person who was battered or subjected to extreme cruelty and was not the primary perpetrator of violence in the relationship, if the judge also finds self-defense, a violation of a protection order meant to protect them, or a crime with no serious bodily injury that was connected to the abuse.
Current as of October 2026. We re-check this page every quarter and after any change in the law.
Talk to your criminal lawyer before writing anything down
If a criminal case is open, or could be reopened, do not write out what happened for anyone, including us, until your criminal lawyer says how. We work with your criminal lawyer, not around them.
An arrest after a call to the police does not always land on the right person. Officers may arrest both people. The abuser may file first. A survivor who fought back may be the one with the charge. Immigration law has a specific answer for part of this, and this page explains what it is and what it is not.
What the waiver covers
INA 237(a)(7) lets the immigration judge waive the domestic-violence ground of deportability: a crime of domestic violence or stalking (237(a)(2)(E)(i)) or a protection-order violation (237(a)(2)(E)(ii)). It is for a person who:
- was battered or subjected to extreme cruelty, and
- is not and was not the primary perpetrator of violence in the relationship.
The judge must also find one of three things:
- you were acting in self-defense;
- you violated a protection order that was meant to protect you; or
- you committed a crime that caused no serious bodily injury and that was connected to your having been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty.
The judge is not limited to the criminal court record and considers any credible evidence (INA 237(a)(7)(A)-(B)). It is raised and decided in the removal case, in front of the immigration judge.
Your record decides it
Whether a specific conviction and its facts fit one of the three findings is decided with the record of conviction in hand. The deportability ground the waiver answers has its own text and case law, which your lawyer reads with you.
How the waiver fits with the rest of your case
A charge or conviction touches more than one part of an immigration case. Each needs its own analysis:
- Deportability. The 237(a)(7) waiver answers the domestic-violence ground. It does not answer every ground a conviction can trigger.
- VAWA cancellation. VAWA cancellation under INA 240A(b)(2) has its own list of disqualifying grounds and an aggravated felony bar, and requires good moral character.
- The self-petition. For the good moral character requirement, INA 204(a)(1)(C) provides that a self-petitioning spouse or child is not barred by an act or conviction that is waivable for purposes of the petition and connected to the abuse. The text does not name abused parents.
The record is read first
Before anything is argued, your lawyer pulls the record of every arrest: the charge, the plea, the disposition and the sentence. A dismissed charge is not the same as a conviction. A case that is still open may still be resolved in a way that matters for immigration, which is why the criminal lawyer and the immigration lawyer speak before the plea, not after.
When the abuser is the source
Under 8 U.S.C. 1367(a)(1), DHS and the Justice Department may not make an adverse determination of admissibility or deportability using information furnished solely by the abuser or the abuser's family. That protects against a story the abuser tells immigration, with one large exception: it does not apply if you have been convicted of a crime listed in INA 237(a)(2), which includes the domestic-violence ground. It does not erase a criminal court record, and it does not bind a state criminal court, which is the firm's reading of the statute's reach. See confidentiality.
Protective orders entered against a survivor raise their own questions. The page on protective orders explains what each choice does to the immigration case.
Read next: arrested or charged, VAWA in immigration court, VAWA cancellation, or good moral character.
Common questions
What does the 237(a)(7) waiver do?
It lets the immigration judge waive the domestic-violence ground of deportability (a crime of domestic violence or stalking, or a protection-order violation) for a person who was battered or subjected to extreme cruelty and who is not and was not the primary perpetrator of violence in the relationship. The judge must also find that the person acted in self-defense, violated a protection order meant to protect them, or committed a crime that caused no serious bodily injury and was connected to the abuse (INA 237(a)(7)). It is decided in the removal case. Whether your particular conviction and facts fit it is a question for your lawyer with the record in hand.
Should I write down what happened for my immigration lawyer?
Not before you talk to your criminal lawyer. While a criminal case is open, anything you write can become evidence in it. Your criminal lawyer and your immigration lawyer should speak to each other first, and then decide what is written, by whom, and when.
Can the abuser's statements be used against me in immigration court?
Under 8 U.S.C. 1367(a)(1), DHS and the Justice Department may not make an adverse determination of admissibility or deportability using information furnished solely by the abuser or the abuser's family, unless you have been convicted of a crime listed in INA 237(a)(2). Independent evidence, such as a court record, is a different matter. The criminal record itself is what the immigration case reads.
The lawyers who will handle your case
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Tell us a safe number or email and a safe time, and whether we can leave a message. We never contact the person who hurt you, and we never call from a number or send anything that names this site. The first conversation is free and confidential, in English, Russian, Spanish or Uzbek, with a live interpreter for any other language.