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# 9-72.000 - Nonimmigrant VISA Classification

### 9-72.100 S Visa Program

The Violent Crime Control Act of 1994 amended the Immigration and Nationality Act to establish a new "S" nonimmigrant visa classification. See 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(15)(S).

This classification is available to a limited number of aliens who supply critical reliable information necessary to the successful investigation and/or prosecution of a criminal organization, or who supply or critical reliable information concerning a terrorist organization, if the alien is eligible to receive a State Department reward under the Rewards for Justice Program. Id.; see also 22 U.S.C. § 2708. The statute permits the aliens selected for the program, and eligible family members, to be admitted to the United States in a temporary nonimmigrant status for up to three years, see 8 U.S.C. § 1184(k)(3), and authorizes the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to waive most grounds of inadmissibility.

Applications for S nonimmigrant visa classification must be certified by the Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division and approved by the Department of Homeland Security. See the below-listed sections of the Criminal Resource Manual for more information on the S Visa Program and the procedures to be followed in seeking an S Visa for an alien. Further information concerning the S Visa program may also be obtained by contacting the Office of Enforcement Operations, Criminal Division at (202) 514-6809.

Statutory and Regulatory Basis | Criminal Resource Manual at 1861
Eligibility | Criminal Resource Manual at 1862
Application Procedures | Criminal Resource Manual at 1863
Reporting Requirements | Criminal Resource Manual at 1864
Adjustment to Lawful Permanent Resident Status | Criminal Resource Manual at 1865
Criminal Division Contacts | Criminal Resource Manual at 1867

[updated July 2011]

Updated September 19, 2018