If you are filing a VAWA self-petition (Form I-360), you may wonder whether you need a police certificate from your home country. The answer depends on your residency history and the need to show good moral character.

USCIS requires evidence of good moral character for applicants 14 years and older, typically covering the three years before filing. This evidence can include police clearance letters from any place you lived for six months or more during that time. Our firm includes background check reports from the FBI as an exhibit with the application. This check allows us to understand if a client has a prior criminal history and bolster the application packet with proof of rehabilitation or good moral character, if needed.

If you lived in another country during this period, you may need a police certificate or equivalent record from that country. These certificates show that you have not been convicted of a serious crime, which supports your VAWA petition. Police reports of abuse are helpful but not required—personal declarations and other credible evidence can satisfy the abuse requirement. Our firm has received numerous VAWA and green card approvals with affidavits alone as proof of evidence of the abuse.

You are not required to provide a police certificate from every country you’ve ever lived in—only from those where you lived six months or more during the relevant period. If obtaining a certificate is difficult due to country conditions or safety concerns, you can explain the situation and provide alternative evidence.

Every VAWA case is different. If you have questions about police certificates or the VAWA process, our team at Agarwal Law Group can help. Call us at 703-348-1663 to schedule a confidential case evaluation.

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