The Trafficking Survivors Relief Act of 2025 provides federal criminal record relief to survivors of human trafficking who committed a non-violent offense as a direct result of having been a victim of trafficking. Human trafficking remains a widespread crisis across the nation. Traffickers often force or coerce their victims into committing crimes such as financial fraud, drug-related offenses, and identity theft, among others. As a result, many trafficking survivors face arrest, conviction, and incarceration – often without recognition of their victim status. 

Though many states have a statute for human trafficking survivors to access relief from criminal records which resulted from trafficking, there is currently no legal framework at the federal level for trafficking survivors to either avoid unjust criminalization at the outset and/or address the harmful effects of having been charged and convicted of crimes resulting from their victimization. This legislation helps to address both gaps.

The legislation would allow survivors of human trafficking with federal records for certain crimes committed as a direct result of their trafficking situation to vacate convictions and expunge arrest records. It would also allow for an affirmative defense for victims of human trafficking to assert at the outset of the criminal justice process. Finally, the bill would expressly permit Department of Justice (DOJ) grants to allow for legal representation for survivors including proceedings related to vacatur, expungement, and other post-conviction relief measures.

Many survivors have a criminal record because of being trafficked, impacting their ability to rent an apartment or get a job. This legislation would break the cycle and give survivors the ability to move forward.