Migrants who crossed the Rio Grande River into the United States from Mexico line up for processing by U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Eagle Pass, Texas, Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023. Eric Gay/AP Hide Caption
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Eric Gay/AP
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump will end a program used by the Biden administration to temporarily allow more than 500,000 immigrants who fled Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela into the country.
In an executive order signed Monday night, President Trump directed the Department of Homeland Security to implement “any program that is contrary to U.S. policy as established in my executive order,” including humanitarian parole programs in these four countries. “terminate the categorical parole program.”
“One of my most important duties is to protect the American people from the devastating effects of mass illegal immigration and resettlement,” Trump said in his executive order. “My Administration is marshalling all available resources and authority to stop this unprecedented flow of illegal aliens into the United States.”
Since January 2023, nearly 30,000 migrants have been granted temporary stay each month.
It is unclear what will happen to the hundreds of thousands of people currently living on humanitarian parole.
The Biden administration suspended the program over fraud concerns. In October, the government decided not to renew the legal status of those eligible for the program, saying immigrants whose parole has expired must find another path to legal status.
Biden’s initiative would allow immigrants from conflict-affected countries to apply for admission from their home countries for “urgent humanitarian reasons or vital public interest” without attempting to illegally cross outside a port of entry. It became. The application required a U.S.-based sponsor and a background check.
Once approved, immigrants would be allowed to stay in the country for up to two years, obtain work permits and be protected from deportation.
According to DHS, 531,690 people have been granted humanitarian parole since 2023. The majority come from Haiti.
The program has been credited with helping reduce the number of illegal border crossings by immigrants from these countries at the U.S.-Mexico border.
