Virtual reality sex worker says she was ‘denied entry to US permanently’ for digital ‘prostitution’
A VIRTUAL reality sex worker has reportedly been denied entry to the U.S. after being branded a "prostitute."
The woman, who is identified only as Hex, streams behind a 3D avatar on the adult platform Fansly.
Her work consists of creating adult-only virtual reality content ranging from images to videos, Vice's Motherboard revealed in a new report.
However, her profession prevented her from entering the United States earlier this year.
Specifically, her letter from a U.S. visa office stated that she was permanently ineligible because of "prostitution."
"My reaction to the notice was honestly 'what the hell? How is this possible? What I’m doing is completely legal,'" she told Motherboard.
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"I was very upset and confused, it baffled me completely and it still does," she added.
This is apparently very common, according to a report by the Global Network of Sex Work Projects (NSWP).
"Sex workers’ right to move and migrate is often impeded," the report reads.
"They are subject to arbitrary questioning and decision-making by officials," the report continued.
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This happens often at border control because officers assume sex workers will violate visa conditions.
Similarly, visa decisions tend to be made with intense bias against sex workers.
In the case that a sex worker's visa is refused or revoked even once, it can hinder their ability to travel internationally in the future.
And in the United States, that's just one of the many things Immigration looks for to deny visas – this is known as '"inadmissibility."
This is a legal concept that "constitutes a broad array of immigration violations that can cover anything from polygamy to substance abuse to what immigration calls ‘engaging in prostitution,'" Clement Lee, the associate director of Immigration Legal Services at the Urban Justice Center’s Sex Workers Project, told Motherboard.
"When sex workers have criminal convictions under laws that criminalize sex work, we regularly see that those people may encounter intense questioning by immigration authorities to see if there exist grounds to deny them entry," Lee said.
"But even when people don't have criminal convictions related to sex work, they may be subject to similar scrutiny," he added.
This scrutiny is exactly what Hex claimed she faced when trying to plead her case to U.S. Immigration.
"When I was at the interview, I told [the officer] everything as my Fansly is virtual reality content from a game called VRChat, I do post IRL pictures of me via a paywall and I do not meet anyone IRL from that platform," Hex told Motherboard.
"The woman gave me a very dirty look when I explained everything to her," Hex added.
"I told her it was a virtual game and I use a VR headset, she didn’t understand anything I said, all she said to me is, 'so do you meet these people on this website.' I said 'no absolutely not.'"
In response, the officer told Hex that she was denied but her application would still be processed.
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Hex's application was later denied via a letter she posted to her Twitter account.
However, the VR sex worker plans to dispute the decision, calling it "unfair and not true."