The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, as amended (TVPA), requires the Secretary of State to submit the Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP Report) to Congress by June 30 each year. The TVPA mandates the Department report and categorize countries based on government efforts to meet “minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.” The Department evaluates only government efforts and government actions to combat human trafficking, not activities of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) or international organizations (IOs). In responses, posts should identify which government agencies undertake anti-trafficking actions and include, if available, details on concrete actions taken. Cite government actions taken in partnership with NGOs or IOs if government support is tangible, e.g., contribution of funds; dedicated personnel, land, buildings, equipment; or other in-kind donations. Consistent with the TVPA, the Department will not include projected activities or commitments of future action as evidence of government efforts to meet the minimum standards; however, certain projected activities (e.g., a written national action plan) may be considered when deciding between a Tier 2 Watch List and Tier 3 ranking.
Questions below request updates to the 2025 TIP Report. Answers must report on government efforts made during the standard TIP Report reporting period (April 1, 2025 to March 31, 2026), except for some quantitative data which may be reported based on the calendar year (see attached Data Charts for details). If an anti-trafficking initiative began prior to April 1 and continued during the relevant reporting period, please clearly distinguish that ongoing effort from new activities during the reporting period. Do not repeat the same information in multiple areas of the submission.
Posts can, but are not required to, submit the written questions directly to host governments to collect their responses. In responding to the questions below, posts should seek information from all available sources and supplement any written responses from host governments with this additional information. Please cite sources in the responses, which can include: government ministries and law enforcement agencies; NGOs, such as shelter operators; IOs; media reports; research studies; other foreign missions; and other Mission elements, such as consulates, INL teams, those implementing PEPFAR programming, LEGATTs, and other USG agencies at post. Please reach out to the TIP Office as early as possible if you have any questions or difficulty gathering this information.
The TVPA mandates the Department assess governments’ concrete actions to combat human trafficking as the TVPA defines it, which is largely consistent with the definition of human trafficking under international law. Per the TVPA, “concrete actions” include:
Human trafficking does not require movement from one location to another for the crime to fall within this definition. Some governments, NGOs, IOs, and others may classify some criminal activity as “trafficking” even though such activities are outside the TVPA definition. The TIP Report only assesses efforts related to severe forms of human trafficking as defined by the TVPA (22 U.S.C. 7102(11):
In order to credit government efforts in the TIP Report, the Department must receive case details demonstrating the crimes involved in trafficking. The following criminal activities, by themselves, are not trafficking under the TVPA unless they were committed for the purpose of exploiting an individual for commercial sex and/or labor or services:
Some national laws may cover trafficking in persons together with the criminal activity listed above. In those cases, the Department must assess the trafficking-related elements of broader laws to assess impacts to prosecution, protection, and prevention per the TVPA.
This questionnaire requests information on populations vulnerable to trafficking in persons in order to assess “concrete actions,” “emerging issues,” and the “nature and scope” of trafficking in the country as required under the TVPA.
UPDATED TRENDS, including those related to America First priorities, in line with the TVPA requirement for coverage of “nature and scope of trafficking in each country,” “reporting and analysis on the emergence or shifting of global patterns in human trafficking,” and “effective practices and use of innovation and technology:”