Trump Administration Terminates Lawful Status of Nearly 500,000 Foreign Nationals, Throwing Families, Employers, and Communities into Turmoil

Washington, DC – On March 21, the Trump administration announced its plan to end the parole program for nationals of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela (CHNV).  This program led to a significant overall decrease in unauthorized entries to the United States by nationals of these countries. Pursuant to the Federal Register notice which is scheduled to publish on March 25, all individuals whose lawful grant of parole has not expired as of April 24, will have their parole prematurely terminated on that date. The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) warns of the harm of terminating the successful CHNV parole program in the following statement:  

AILA President Kelli Stump stated, “The CHNV parole program was a breakthrough moment by the government, recognizing that rather than spending hundreds of millions of dollars on razor wire, private prisons and military troops, our southern border crisis could be effectively and humanely managed through an expedited legal pathway. It created an efficient and orderly process to vet individuals who were fleeing grave conditions in their homeland by giving them an incentive to apply for their temporary legal entry into the United States instead of crossing unlawfully. Individuals had U.S. sponsors who guaranteed their financial stability and were work authorized to provide for themselves and contribute to the U.S. economy. Now, the rug is being ripped out from under them in another political stunt by the administration to punish those who did things ‘the right way’ in an effort to ramp up deportation numbers.” 

AILA Executive Director Benjamin Johnson added, “The use of legal channels of immigration to address the urgent humanitarian crisis in these countries was smart and sensible policy. Rather than maintaining legal pathways, the Trump Administration is creating a bigger undocumented population.  This means that people will be put back in harm’s way and our country’s economy will lose out too.  CHNV parolees have filled critical labor shortages across the U.S. - in big cities and small towns. When American businesses across industry sectors are struggling to fill vacancies, ending this program prematurely and removing successful workers is shortsighted and undermines our nation’s prosperity.”