Psychological Evaluations
for Immigration

Better Talk is the largest Hispanic therapy platform in the world. We are changing the way people approach their mental health and helping them face life’s challenges by providing accessible and affordable care. With Better Talk, you can send a message to a professional therapist at any time and from anywhere.

A psychological evaluation for migrations is a procedure performed by a licensed psychologist with the aim of assessing the psychological and emotional state of a person who is seeking to emigrate, apply for asylum, or change their immigration status in the US. These evaluations are often conducted in the context of legal procedures and may be requested to support the applicant’s claims or to meet certain immigration requirements.

We can help with your application for regularizing immigration status before USCIS, including: Asylum Applications, Extreme Hardship Waivers (also known as Pardons or Waivers), Petitions for Human Trafficking (T Visa), Petitions for Victims of Violent Crime (U Visa), Residency Application for Victims of Domestic Violence by a US Citizen (VAWA).

The legal document of the Psychological Evaluation greatly increases the chances that an immigration application before USCIS will be approved. Most applications that are not accompanied by a psychological evaluation are rejected by USCIS. Anyone applying before USCIS will be greatly favored in their process with a psychological evaluation. Consult with your lawyer or preparer.

A psychologist certified to conduct psychological evaluations before USCIS can help you communicate technically and truthfully to US immigration services the reasons for your petition and give voice to your claim. We help to understand the reasons and how the events qualifying you to regularize your immigration status in the US have affected your mental health.

The psychological evaluation therapists at Better Talk are licensed, trained, experienced, and accredited forensic psychologists (PhD / PsyD). All of them have a Master’s or Doctorate in Forensic Psychology and certifications to perform reports before USCIS. They have been qualified and certified by the professional board after successfully completing the necessary education, exams, training, and practice. While their experience, practice, and backgrounds vary, all possess at least 3 years and 1,000 hours of practical experience.

The cost of the Psychological Evaluation for Migrations is $600, which includes 3 to 5 sessions with your evaluating psychologist, coordination with your legal team or preparers, and the report in English to USCIS standards. The whole process takes 3 to 4 weeks from the first interview. We also offer an express service for $1,000 that takes only 10 days.

The sessions are conducted via video call and we use the Google Meet or WhatsApp platform to carry them out. You can download the Google Meet app from Google Play or the App Store.

This depends on your needs and varies greatly from person to person. Some people feel they get most of the value after just a few weeks, while others prefer to follow the program over an extended period of time. This is entirely up to you. The usual frequency is one appointment per week.

Payments are made just like any online purchase, with a credit or debit card, or PayPal. Payment is made when scheduling the first appointment.

Neither Better Talk nor the therapists on the Better Talk platform submit claims to Medicare, Medicaid, or health insurance companies. The services offered through this site are generally not covered by health insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid. Coverage and benefits for traditional therapy and therapy services vary from one health insurance company to another and from one plan to another, but the following rules generally apply:

• With many health insurance plans, coverage may be partial or very limited.
• Even if your plan covers all your costs, the copay you would be required to contribute could be higher than the total cost of Better Talk.
• In many cases, before you can get reimbursed by your insurance company, your therapist would need to diagnose you with a mental disorder or problem. This diagnosis would be sent to the insurance company and recorded in your medical file. In some cases, the therapist would also need to provide additional clinical information to the insurance company, such as treatment plans, summaries, or copies of the full record.

Please note that Better Talk offers very affordable pricing options that are usually comparable to the copays of most insurance plans.

There are many studies that confirm the effectiveness of the online medium for making changes in life. For example, a study published by JMIR Publications and conducted by researchers at the University of California – Berkeley, the University of California – San Francisco, and San Francisco General Hospital, concluded that “users who engaged in online therapy experienced a significant reduction in the severity of depression symptoms after interacting with their therapist.” Our confidence in the platform is primarily based on the feedback and testimonials we receive from users. Every day we are excited to hear from other people about how this service helped them make a tremendous change in their lives.

Engaging in a therapeutic process requires trust and persistence. Therefore, being able to know and feel that you are achieving therapeutic successes is important. In the working methodology of @BetterTalk, it is common to start noticing progress from the first sessions. Sometimes some techniques have effects in the medium term. Sometimes when starting to address painful issues, discomfort or unpleasant emotions are recorded, which do not always have instant relief. At @BetterTalk we recommend regularly discussing with the therapist the goals and objectives of the therapy and tracking how the therapeutic goals are being addressed and worked on to have a clear follow-up of the therapy results and understand the therapeutic work that is being done.

All therapists are licensed with their respective licensing board after successfully completing the necessary education, exams, training, and practice. This means that when you talk to a licensed therapist online, they are subject to the mandatory reporting and confidentiality requirements of their governing board and respective state laws, the same as in-person therapy. In general, the therapist will keep what you say confidential, but there are limited exceptions. For example, if you threaten serious harm to yourself or an identifiable victim, the therapist is required to report this information to the relevant authorities. Before starting therapy, talk to your therapist about their legal confidentiality obligations if you have any concerns or questions.