VAAP is a small, new, and volunteer-led legal team of four advocates supervising many volunteers. We work hard to generate resources to hire more staff. Through the lens of harm reduction, we focus on connecting as many people as possible to a minimum level of legal service needed to set their cases and claims up for success. Access to Justice advocates refer to this approach as “unbundled services.” This means that most of our legal work involves providing limited assistance and advice on asylum and related humanitarian matters, with a growing capacity to offer extended representation in-house.

If you are a Vermont noncitizen seeking immigration legal help, submit this confidential form to join VAAP's waitlist. We review the waitlist regularly and respond to new requests for help as resources allow and either according to demonstrated legal urgency or in the order in which we receive them. This form is the only way to request our help. Response times vary from a few days to a few weeks. Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee you legal services or coordinate legal services for individuals outside VT.

While you wait to hear back from us, do not miss any court dates or government appointments and let officials know you are looking for legal help. You can continue trying to find other legal help and, if you are comfortable, start working on your case yourself. Be aware you must submit your asylum application before the one-year anniversary of your most recent entry to the United States. We also recommend you review these Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), subscribe to our newsletter, follow our calendar and blog, and follow us on social media.

Vermont is home to several small immigration legal teams like VAAP, some who charge money for services and others who have grants to provide services for free. VAAP is currently the largest one of these teams, and the only one offering full scope humanitarian immigration legal services statewide. We are working to help the entire Vermont immigration legal services sector grow. If you are ever seek help that VAAP does not provide, or that VAAP cannot provide quickly enough, we recommend any of the following partners:

FREE IMMIGRATION LEGAL SERVICE PROVIDERS

Center for Justice Reform Clinic at Vermont Law and Graduate School (formerly a project of the South Royalton Legal Clinic) offers no-cost legal help with removal defense, criminal-immigration issues, immigration detention issues, intimate partner violence and gender violence related immigration legal help, and assistance with pre- and post-conviction relief. (NOTE: Intake closed through June ‘25).

Association of Africans Living in Vermont has a long history of serving immigrants in Vermont.  This support is accomplished through no-cost immigration legal services (e.g. I-90, I-102, I-130, I-131, I-485, I-598, I-730, I-864, N-400 and N-600) , social work, employment assistance, youth development and a host of other programs designed to support new Americans.

U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants VT provides no-cost access to affordable housing, medical and mental health support, education, employment, community connections, and more. Refugees resettled in Vermont come primarily from Bhutan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Iraq, Russia, Somalia, Syria, and Ukraine.

WISE Upper Valley for no-cost humanitarian based immigration representation and wrap-around supports for individuals experiencing gender, family, sexual, and intimate partner based violence.

PRIVATE IMMIGRATION ATTORNEYS

Montroll, Oettinger, & Barquist in VT for fee-for-service family, employment, and humanitarian based immigration representation.

MSK Attorneys in VT for fee-for-service family and employment based immigration representation.

Collier Immigration in VT for fee-for-service family and employment based immigration representation.

Dinse in VT for fee-for-service family and employment based immigration representation.

McHaffey and Nice in MA for fee-for-service affirmative and defensive immigration representation of all kinds.

Green & Spiegel in MA for fee-for-service affirmative and defensive immi rep of all kinds.

Peryeva Immigration in MA for fee-for-service affirmative and defensive immi rep of all kinds.

Law Offices of Jason Giannetti in MA for fee-for-service affirmative and defense immi rep of all kinds.

OTHER FREE LEGAL SERVICES

Vermont Legal Aid and Legal Services Vermont for all other forms of no-cost civil legal assistance, accessible through the self-help website of vtlawhelp.org.

Disability Rights Vermont for no-cost legal help for individuals with disabilities.

Have Justice Will Travel for no-cost family legal help and intimate partner violence legal and social support.

South Royalton Legal Clinic for no-cost statewide veterans legal assistance as well as family and poverty legal help in Orange and Windsor Counties.

Vermont Bar Association for referrals for no-cost and fee-for-service legal assistance.