immigration
Safe Contacts for Immigrant Survivors
A guide to identifying safe points of contact for immigrants facing DV situations.
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Safety Tools
Safe Contacts for Immigrant Survivors
Purpose of a Safe Contact List
This page outlines options for choosing and organizing safer people to contact, especially when immigration, language, or community ties affect your situation.
Step 1: Map Out Your Circles
It can help to separate people in your life into basic groups before deciding who to involve.
- Household members (adults, older teens, extended family)
- Family in your country of residence
- Family in your country of origin
- Friends and neighbors
- Faith or religious community contacts
- Work, school, or childcare contacts
- Community organizations and service providers
- Legal, medical, or social service professionals
Step 2: Who May Be Safer to Trust
These are types of people some immigrant survivors find more practical and lower-risk to involve. You can adjust based on your situation.
- People who are not closely tied to the abusive person
- Friends who do not socialize with the abusive person
- Neighbors or coworkers who do not depend on the abusive person for work, favors, or housing
- People who respect your privacy
- Those who have kept other sensitive information confidential in the past
- Those who do not pressure you to “forgive,” “go back,” or “stay”
- Contacts who understand immigration concerns
- People who know that involving immigration authorities can create risks
- People who will not threaten to report you or your family
- People who can communicate in your preferred language
- Trusted bilingual friends or relatives
- Community advocates who can use an interpreter if needed
- Stable, reachable contacts
- People who usually answer calls or messages
- People with consistent housing and phone numbers
Step 3: Who Not to Involve (Or Use With Caution)
Some contacts can increase risk, even if they seem helpful. You can review each person and decide how much information to share with them.
- People who strongly support the abusive person
- Relatives who blame you for “causing problems”
- Friends who repeat everything back to the abusive person
- Contacts who have threatened immigration consequences
- Anyone who has said they will “call immigration” on you or your family
- Anyone who has used immigration status to control or frighten you
- People who share information widely
- Family members known for spreading news quickly
- Community members who post about private matters online
- Leaders or elders who prioritize reputation over safety
- Faith leaders who pressure people to stay in harmful relationships
- Community leaders who focus on “protecting the community image”
- Anyone financially dependent on the abusive person
- People whose income, housing, or immigration process depends on the abusive person
Some people may be safe for limited tasks (for example, holding a spare key) but not safe to share full details about your situation. You can choose different levels of information for different contacts.
Step 4: Using Community Organizations Safely
Community organizations can sometimes provide more neutral support than friends or family. Options may include:
- Immigrant support organizations (language help, paperwork support, basic needs)
- Domestic violence and sexual assault programs with experience serving immigrants
- Cultural or ethnic community centers
- Faith-based charities or social service branches
- Legal clinics or advocacy groups that understand immigration-related abuse
Questions to Ask Community Organizations
You can ask some or all of these questions before sharing your full story:
- “Do you keep information confidential? In what situations do you share it?”
- “Do you ever contact immigration authorities about the people you serve?”
- “Have you worked with immigrant survivors of relationship harm before?”
- “Do you have staff who speak my language or access to interpreters?”
- “Can I speak with you without giving my full name or address first?”
Ways Community Organizations Might Help
- Explaining local processes (shelter, court, benefits, school, housing)
- Connecting you with interpreters for appointments or calls
- Helping you gather documents and keep them safer
- Offering group classes, support spaces, or safety planning tools
- Referring you to legal or immigration resources that understand abuse-related harm
Some directories and referral sources, including those listed at https://www.dv.support, may help you locate local organizations familiar with immigrant safety and relationship concerns.
Step 5: Building Your Personal Safe Contact List
You can create a simple list and update it as things change.
Suggested Categories for Your List
- Primary contacts
- 2–3 people you would contact first if you needed short-term help (for example, a ride, a place to stay for one night, or help watching children)
- Information-only contacts
- People you trust to hold copies of documents, spare keys, or important phone numbers without sharing them
- Organization contacts
- Names and phone numbers of advocates, clinics, or centers you might contact for information or planning
- Interpreter or language help contacts
- People who can translate or interpret, and who you trust not to reveal information to the abusive person or others
What to Record for Each Safe Contact
- Name and relationship (for example, “Ana – coworker”)
- Phone numbers (mobile, work, home if applicable)
- Messaging apps they use (WhatsApp, Signal, etc.)
- Languages they speak
- Best times and ways to reach them
- What you feel comfortable asking them for (ride, translation, place to stay, keep documents, etc.)
Step 6: Managing Information and Privacy
For each contact, you can decide how much to share.
- Full information contacts
- People you might tell more details about your situation
- People who understand the risks related to immigration and community pressure
- Partial information contacts
- People who only need to know specific tasks (“Can you keep a bag for me?” “Can you drive me to an appointment?”)
- People you may describe as helping with “family problems” or “paperwork” without going into detail
- Emergency-use-only contacts
- People you prefer not to involve often, but who could help if no one else is available
- Organizations you might contact only if another plan does not work
Step 7: Practical Tips for Organizing Your List
- Keep one version written on paper in a place that feels low-risk.
- Use simple labels in your phone (for example, first names or initials) if that feels safer.
- Store a copy of important numbers with a trusted contact or in a password-protected note.
- Review your list when there are changes in housing, relationships, or immigration processes.
- Remove or adjust contacts who become less safe over time.
Questions to Review Regularly
- Has anyone on my list started sharing information more widely?
- Has anyone made new threats involving immigration, police, or community leaders?
- Have I met any new people or organizations who might belong on my safe contact list?
- Do I want different safe contacts in my country of residence and in my country of origin?
- Do my safe contacts know the best ways and times to reach me?