THE GOVERNMENT OF the United States fully meets the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. The government continued to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts dunng the reporting period; therefore, the United States remained on Tier 1. The government demonstrated serious and sustained efforts by investigating and prosecuting both sex and labor trafficking, and significantly increasing the number of convictions; providing services to a greater number of trafficking victims and increasing overall funding levels for these services; providing various types of immigration relief for foreign national victims, including a pathway to citizenship; granting T nonimmigrant status to more trafficking victims and extending Continued Presence from one to two years duration to allow victims to remain in the United States temporarily dunng the investigation and prosecution of their traffickers; enhancing outreach to and engagement with survivors to improve training, programs, and policies on human trafficking; expanding industry- and sector-specific outreach initiatives; and continuing funding for an NGO-operated national hotline and referral sendee. Although the government meets the minimum standards, advocates called for increased efforts to investigate and prosecute labor trafficking cases and continued to urge more consistent, victim-centered implementation of anti-trafficking laws and policies, including increased efforts to ensure more trafficking victims have timely access to immigration relief. Furthermore, NGOs reported continued instances of state and local officials detaining or prosecuting trafficking victims for criminal activity related to their trafficking, notwithstanding “safe harbor” laws in some states. Advocates called for the U.S. Congress to adopt a federal vacatur bill that would allow trafficking victims to vacate any such convictions and encouraged the government to enhance protections for foreign workers, who are particularly vulnerable to labor trafficking.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE UNITED STATES

Increase investigation and prosecution of labor trafficking cases and cases involving nonviolent forms of coercion; dedicate additional resources for and increase access to comprehensive services across the country, including appropriate housing for all trafficking victims and economic opportunities for survivors; encourage state, local, and tribal authorities to adopt policies not to criminalize victims; increase training of prosecutors and judges on criminal restitution for trafficking victims; strengthen survivor engagement and incorporate survivor input in policies and programs;