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Vermont’s no-cost or “nonprofit” immigration lawyers now offer one shared system for new requests for immigration legal help, called “coordinated intake.”

Vermont has a strong but small network of nonprofit immigration lawyers. Demand is higher than capacity. That’s why we have joined forces to make sure we devote every available attorney-hour to providing direct legal services to immigrant Vermonters in need.

Starting February 1, 2026, submit one request to Vermont Asylum Assistance Project (VAAP). We will contact partner organizations for you, so you do not need to contact each one separately.

Click here to jump to the form.

You can still walk in to trusted community organizations to ask for help in person. Community organization staff can also help you fill out the online help request form. We are working to translate the form into multiple languages and appreciate the community’s patience and support.

This shared system is meant to make things faster for you and for lawyers. It saves time and resources, so we can help more people even with a limited number of immigration lawyers in Vermont. It also helps document unmet need, so we can show state leaders where more lawyers are needed.

Click here to print a downloadable two-pager describing coordinated intake.

If you live in Vermont and need an immigration lawyer, submit your request through VAAP by filling out and submitting the form linked below.

Please submit one request only and do not supplement with calls, text messages, or emails. This protects privacy and helps us respond faster.

After you submit, your request goes into VAAP’s secure system. VAAP will review your request and aim to reply within 5 business days after we receive a complete form.

If VAAP cannot help directly, and if you agree, we will communicate with local nonprofit legal partners to try to find a no-cost lawyer for your case:

• Association of Africans Living in Vermont (AALV)

• Vermont Afghan Alliance (VAA)

• WISE Upper Valley (WISE)

• Vermont Legal Aid

• Center for Justice Reform Clinic at Vermont Law & Graduate School

NOTE: If you are detained in Vermont, you will be redirected to the New England Habeas Project for next steps and fastest screening. They are coordinating the filing of federal lawsuits to challenge unlawful ICE activity region-wide.

After submitting your form, you will see confirmation. Do not submit duplicates, which slow responses.

VAAP never charges for processing help requests. Report scams to the Vermont Attorney General.

We protect client privacy. Lawyers cannot share whether we represent someone without permission.

Submitting the form does not guarantee a lawyer and does not create an attorney-client relationship.

We aim to resolve your request within five (5) business days after we receive a complete form. We review information, mind deadlines, and contact partners if needed to try to find you a no-cost lawyer. If we cannot find you a no-cost lawyer, we recommend fee-charging or “private practice” lawyers and tailored resources from our multilingual VAAP Resource Library.

We regret that there are not enough immigration lawyers available to meet immigrant Vermonters’ needs. Unfortunately, this means many people will have to rely on self-help to navigate their immigration cases.

Continue reading for calls to action to join VAAP’s advocacy for more immigration lawyers in Vermont.

Immigration lawyers are not trained in rapid response. We focus on court work that can stop unlawful detention or deportation, which requires focused computer work and takes time.

If you are personally witnessing an ICE emergency right now, such as a border patrol checkpoint, road stop, home or business entry, or ICE arrest, call Migrant Justice for Rapid Response at 802-881-7229. There is nothing meaningful an immigration lawyer can do right in that moment, and we want to safeguard every available attorney-hour for impactful legal service delivery.

For non-emergency ICE reports like border patrol sightings, activity that already ended, or secondhand reports, use VAAP’s ICE Tracker instead.

Please do not share your sighting on social media or through text message chains. Let Migrant Justice and VAAP verify information, assess risk, share action steps, and report trends. Help us stop the spread of rumors and misinformation so we don’t make people even more fearful about living daily life.

If you are frustrated by long waits or not enough immigration legal help, please call your lawmakers and state leaders. Ask them to support H.742 so Vermont can expand access to immigration lawyers, and no one detained in Vermont faces the legal process alone.

We know many people want an easy phone number to call for immigration legal help, like “2-1-1” for United Way of Vermont. If you want Vermont to build a sustainably staffed legal help line for New Vermonters, tell state leaders what you need. Vermont’sAct 29 Office of New Americans Study Committee is studying how the state should coordinate immigrant services. You can share your comments by joining a Study Committee public meeting or sending written comments to the State Refugee Office at tracy.dolan@vermont.gov.

VAAP maintains a community partner referral list here.

We are actively coordinating with community organizers to help identify a single landing page to recommend for “mutual aid” requests and offers.

Building an Intake System that Actually Supports People

At VAAP, "intake" is more than a first step—it’s where people navigating complex and often urgent immigration processes begin to be seen, heard, and supported. 

Screening and triage are at the heart of that experience. Screening helps us understand what someone needs, while triage helps us determine how quickly and in what way we can respond. Together, they allow us to move with intention in a space where the need is high and the stakes are even higher. VAAP serves individuals and families navigating the U.S. immigration detention, court, and processing systems, often under pressure, uncertainty, and strict legal deadlines.

Like in healthcare or other high-stakes fields, triage exists to ensure that people receive the right support at the right time—not simply in the order they arrive. Without a clear intake system, urgent cases can be delayed, staff and volunteers can become overwhelmed, and clients can feel confused or overlooked. 

A strong system helps prevent that by creating structure where there might otherwise be chaos. A healthy intake system is both structured and human. It makes it clear how to access support and what to expect, while still honoring each person’s story. It allows us to respond to urgency most effectively—recognizing that someone facing an upcoming court date or detention needs a different level of attention than someone seeking general guidance. 

It also requires transparency. We set expectations early about timelines, capacity, and what we can realistically offer, so people aren’t left guessing or feeling unsupported. Just as importantly, it creates sustainability for the team, reducing reactive, crisis-driven work and making space for more thoughtful, consistent care. This work is also grounded in professional responsibility.

Behind every intake is a commitment to doing things the right way. That means approaching each case with competence, being mindful of conflicts of interest, and communicating clearly about what support looks like. 

It also means protecting confidentiality, being honest when something may impact a case, and maintaining clear boundaries in how information and resources are handled. And it means showing up with civility—treating people with respect, especially in moments of stress and uncertainty. Every call, form, or message is not just data; it represents a real person navigating a life-changing moment.

A well-designed system helps us organize information, make fair and consistent decisions, protect sensitive data, and use limited capacity where it matters most. It allows us to move from reacting to everything, to responding with clarity and purpose. 

No intake system gets everything right the first time. That’s why we approach this work as something that grows and adapts. We learn from each interaction—with the people we serve and with those supporting this process—and use that insight to make meaningful improvements. 

Our goal is to build a system that is not only structured, but increasingly accessible, responsive, and aligned with real needs. For partners and supporters, building the system with VAAP means helping us reach more people, respond to urgency with care, and continue strengthening how we serve our community by joining intake coordination. 

At its best, screening and triage are not barriers—they are bridges. They help connect people to the right support, at the right time, in a way that is thoughtful, ethical, and grounded in care. And that’s how we build a system that truly serves.

Our key message? 🚨 If you need immigration legal assistance in Vermont, begin the "intake" process by requesting screening and awaiting triage at vaapvt.org/help.

• Download and share an English-language written explainer here.

• View and share an English-language video explainer here.

Translations coming soon!