US Ends Family Reunification Parole Affects Thousands of Cubans
HAVANA TIMES — The United States government announced today, December 12th, the immediate termination of the Family Reunification Parole program, a mechanism that allowed certain relatives—adult children or siblings of US citizens—to enter the United States with temporary permission even when their immigrant visa was not yet available.
With this announcement, that option disappears and applicants will now have to wait outside the country until their visa becomes available through the regular consular process. According to the official statement from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the measure affects Cuba, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, and Honduras, whose citizens had benefited from these family reunification mechanisms through parole.
In its statement, DHS clarifies that terminating parole does not eliminate family petitions or immigrant visas, which continue to exist under US immigration law. The decision was officially communicated by the Department of Homeland Security through an alert published on the website of US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which argues that the use of this type of parole had expanded beyond the limits established by law.
The text establishes that on January 14, 2026, the parole of all individuals admitted through Family Reunification Parole will automatically expire, except in one specific scenario: if the beneficiary filed Form I-485 (Application to Adjust Status) before December 15, 2025, and that application remains pending on that date.
The document clarifies that in such cases parole is not immediately canceled but remains in effect temporarily. “If the Form I-485 is properly filed, parole will continue until a final decision is made on the case or until the parole period expires, whichever occurs first,” DHS states.
However, the protection is limited: if the adjustment-of-status application is denied, parole will be immediately revoked, and the person must leave the United States without delay. Parole “does not create a permanent immigration status” and should not substitute traditional legal channels, which is why its use in broad programs was deemed inappropriate, the statement emphasizes.
According to the official document, DHS determined that humanitarian parole should not be used as a general or categorical family reunification program, but only in individual and exceptional cases where there is an urgent humanitarian need or a significant public benefit.
“The Department is terminating the categorical Family Reunification Parole programs to restore the proper and limited use of this legal authority,” the notice disseminated by USCIS states.
For the Cuban community, the change represents a significant tightening of waiting times. For years, family reunification parole functioned as an intermediate pathway that shortened family separation, especially in categories with delays of several years. From now on, families will have to endure the entire wait outside the United States, without the option of early entry.
In its justification, the government argues that the extensive use of parole in family reunification programs created distortions in the immigration system by allowing entries that were not aligned with the limits set by Congress. According to DHS, the decision “seeks to restore order and legal coherence in the management of temporary admissions,” in a context of sustained migratory pressure in the region.
The decision announced by the Department of Homeland Security will be formalized on Monday, December 15, when it is published in the Federal Register, the official gazette of the US government. With its publication, the measure will take legal effect, enabling immigration agencies to apply the deadlines, parole cancellations, and other consequences outlined in the document.
First published in Spanish by El Toque and translated and posted in English by Havana Times.