Under the program, known as CHNV, 532,000 migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela were allowed to fly to the U.S., granted immigration parole, and allowed to work in the U.S. for two years.
A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from revoking the legal status and work permits for over 530,000 individuals from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.
U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani ruled that the Trump administration cannot terminate the legal status of the migrants “without case-by-case review.”
Talwani, who sits on the federal district court in Boston, was appointed by former President Barack Obama.
The attempt to revoke the 530,000 legal statuses is part of a broader effort by President Trump to crack down on illegal immigration, restore homeland security, and secure the nation’s borders.
On Trump’s first day in office this term, he signed an executive order directing the Department of Homeland Security to “Terminate all categorical parole programs,” including the “Processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans.”
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has warned that if illegal immigrants don’t self-deport as encouraged by the Trump administration, “we will find them, we will deport them, and they will never return.”
In March, the Department of Homeland Security formally announced the official termination of the program would be on April 24th.
The program was established under the Biden administration to provide “safe and orderly pathways to the United States” for nationals from the four nations under the category of humanitarian parole.
In Talwani’s ruling, she wrote, “If their parole status is allowed to lapse, Plaintiffs will be faced with two unfavorable options: continue following the law and leave the country on their own or await removal proceedings. If Plaintiffs leave the country on their own, they will face dangers in their native countries, as set forth in their affidavits.”
She also said the “early termination, without any case-by-case justification, of legal status for noncitizens who have complied with DHS programs and entered the country lawfully undermines the rule of law.”
The program was put on pause by the Biden administration in the summer of 2024 due to reports of fraud. It was later resumed after reported changes made to diminish abuse of the program.
