Mass Deportation Looms for Migrants with Humanitarian Parole
A US Federal Court authorizes revocation of Humanitarian ‘Parole’ for half a million migrants
According to lawyer Willy Allen, cited by Café Fuerte, “the most affected will be Venezuelans, Haitians, and Nicaraguans, but Cubans may also suffer the consequences of this decision.”
HAVANA TIMES – The humanitarian parole program (CHNV), created to offer legal entry to migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, could be definitively dismantled following a new judicial setback. A ruling issued this Friday by the First Circuit Court of Appeals in Massachusetts authorizes Donald Trump’s Administration to prematurely cancel the permits granted since 2022 to more than half a million people.
The decision confirms that the government has the authority to end migration programs without reviewing cases individually, even if they are still pending in the courts, something that, in practice, was already happening, with migrants being arrested even at courthouse doors, and allows for immediate detention and deportation of those who have not managed to regularize their status.
“We recognize the risks of irreparable harm, convincingly laid out in the district court’s order: that parolees who arrived legally in this country were suddenly forced to choose between leaving in less than a month, a decision that potentially includes being separated from their families, communities, and legal jobs, and returning to dangers in their countries of origin,” the judges explained.
Nonetheless, they concluded that there was “no strong showing of likelihood of success on the merits” and that “the risk of such irreparable harms alone cannot justify halting the suspension” of parole.
Asked about the ruling by Café Fuerte, immigration lawyer Wilfredo Allen lamented that “we are witnessing the burial of humanitarian parole.” He explained that the measure will particularly impact Venezuelans, Haitians, and Nicaraguans, though Cubans “may also suffer the consequences of this decision.”
Allen reminded that Cuban migrants who arrived in the US through humanitarian parole have the option, after one year and one day of presence on US territory, to apply under the Cuban Adjustment Act, still considered a form of legal admission in the US, but he warned that this does not protect them from “being detained and placed in deportation proceedings.” For this reason, he recommended “that everyone avoid problems while waiting for their legal residency.”
According to official figures, more than 110,000 Cubans have arrived in the US through parole. Most are already in the process of applying for residency, but around 600—who entered between September and December 2024, under the last rounds of parole approvals, have not yet obtained a legal status and are in the most vulnerable position.
The appeals court ruling backs the actions of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which last March abruptly canceled the migration program and revoked all valid permits with just 30 days’ notice. The measure was blocked by a federal judge in Boston, but in May the Supreme Court overturned that protection.
Friday’s ruling sets a precedent by establishing that the Immigration and Nationality Act allows this type of program to be canceled without the need for case-by-case review.
The humanitarian parole program was launched in 2022 with the aim of providing a legal pathway for citizens of crisis-stricken countries to enter the US, and its cancellation was one of Trump’s main objectives in implementing his migration policy upon taking office.
The attempt at mass revocation has been criticized by multiple NGOs and migrant rights advocates, who argued—among other points—that if parole was granted on a case-by-case basis, it should also be revoked in the same manner.
The litigation is not yet over, and lawsuits for violations of due process continue in federal courts. However, in practice, the Trump Administration now has the legal tool to detain and deport those who have not yet secured another legal status in the United States.
First published in Spanish by 14ymedio and translated and posted in English by Havana Times.
Most of the people that came to the U S from Cuba came legal. Many are good people work at jobs in Demand like mechanics and Nurses aids. The current gov in the United States does not seem to care about certain things.
80% of these people came legal and are good people often working as mechanics or nurses aids that come from Cuba . I will take hate for this but think it would be around 9% of those from Cuba in the United States should go somewhere else or some restrictions placed on them like a monitor or jail. Canada and many other countries in Europe have also changed in the last 10 months. IF the gov was to step down I think countries like Japan and maybe Chinese manufacturers would be interested in hiring cheaper Cuban people. I think Holland and 2 other countries could turn around food production and food processing. BUT i think the current gov in Cuba will just put more people in prison labor camps that do not deserve to be there. Just because they go out on the streets and protest no water no medical supplies or limited electricity. The problem is both Russia and China will back the current gov against it own people.
So the richest country in the world can’t afford immigrants/ refugees.. USA: You have the most millionaires and billionaires… many citizens have regular homes and a 2nd “cottage or cabin “ for vacation times, we see how many Americans flew to Europe “just to see Taylor Swift” in concert, we see how long the lineups are when a new APPLE device came out so they could “upgrade” their phones etc. … we see how many pay sky high ticket prices to attend some football game across the country, we see how how many have not 1 but 2-3 cars now per home.. and garages full of toys , men toys and kid toys.. We see how they always have the latest fashions.. so when i visit another country i don’t see all this materialism, this hyper consumerism or conspicuous consumption.. the poorest of the poor in US , the homeless , the working poor are invisible.. This is what we see on American TV. Yet you cannot have a thought for someone who did not have the good luck , or God’s grace to be born in the US.
The land that became the USA in 1776,has been since the first white men from Europe ( at the exception of the black slaves and the native Americans) arrived, a land of immigrants, therefore the USA, should continue to be so. The USA, became what it is now, thanks to the black slaves and to its immigrants.
Just deport, it’s not the time to be in the US. Whether it was through the humanitarian parole route or walking through the wall, to this administration they’re all the same. You cannot live in this limbo, better to migrate to another country where you are welcomed.
George, you are misinformed. The people who came to the US under the Humanitarian Parole program all came legally, most of them on flights.
Wrong the Trump Administration doesn’t have the right America has the right. Unfortunately we can no longer afford everything the illegal aliens believe they have a right to. Much as the article here talked of the expense from taking in illegal aliens we have the same problem by some enormous multiplier. It sucks but best case is to use the app to apply for self removal take the free flight and money we will pay anyone doing so then enter legally and become citizens. Learn to speak english so you can understand your fellow citizens and read our newspapers unfiltered by whoever advised you that entering illegally was a good idea.