The United States has announced the termination of legal protections for hundreds of thousands of immigrants, giving them a limited window to leave the country.
The move aligns with President Donald Trump’s commitment to enforcing stricter immigration policies and conducting large-scale deportations, primarily affecting migrants from Latin American nations.
The order impacts approximately 532,000 individuals from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela who had been allowed to enter the U.S. under a program introduced by former President Joe Biden in October 2022 and later expanded in January 2023.
According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), those affected will lose their legal status 30 days after the order is officially published in the Federal Register, which is set for Tuesday.
This means that unless they obtain a different immigration status, individuals who benefited from the program “must depart the United States” by April 24, the order states.
Welcome.US, an organization assisting migrants seeking refuge, has urged those impacted to “immediately” seek legal counsel regarding their options.
The Processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans (CHNV) program initially permitted up to 30,000 migrants per month from these four nations to enter the U.S. for a two-year period. The initiative was presented by Biden as a “safe and humane” strategy to manage migration at the U.S.-Mexico border.
However, the DHS emphasized that the program was never meant to be permanent.
“Parole is inherently temporary, and parole alone is not an underlying basis for obtaining any immigration status, nor does it constitute an admission to the United States,” the department stated in its order.
Meanwhile, in a separate immigration enforcement action, Trump last week invoked a rarely used wartime provision to deport over 200 suspected members of a Venezuelan gang to El Salvador. The Central American nation has agreed to imprison migrants and even U.S. citizens under a controversial deal.
