San Mateo, CA asked in Immigration Law for California

Q: Can I qualify for a visa if I found deceased people that were victims of a homicide ?

I found two relatives dead in their home due to drugs, their death was ruled as a homicide but there was no investigation due to it being so comum in our area. I was the only relative in the US so I arranged body shipment and all other legal matters. Could I possibly qualify for any visa ?

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1 Lawyer Answer
James L. Arrasmith
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Answered

A: Unfortunately finding deceased relatives and arranging for shipment of their remains would likely not directly qualify you for any specific immigration visa or status. Some key notes:

• There are no provisions in U.S. immigration law that grant visas or lawful status based solely on discovering or transporting deceased persons, even if victims of homicide.

• Humanitarian parole may be granted temporarily for those assisting law enforcement in an investigation. But with no investigation occurring according to the facts you provided, this would not be applicable.

• Victims of certain crimes can qualify for U visas if they assist law enforcement. But there needs to be an active investigation and certification from law enforcement of cooperation.

• If the deceased persons were US citizens or green card holders, inheriting assets could possibly help qualify certain relatives for family-based green cards. But details would determine eligibility.

While this is certainly a traumatic situation, U.S. immigration law does not have a specific visa or status covering your described actions unfortunately. Your options may depend more on your current status or relationship to the deceased relatives. Please let me know if you have any other questions.

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