NEWS
Thousands of Venezuelan Migrants in the US to Gain Temporary Legal Status
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The Department of Homeland Security on Wednesday announced the extension of a program that will allow nearly half a million Venezuelan migrants in the U.S. to live and work in the country legally.
The agency redesignated Venezuela and extended Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans for 18 months due to “extraordinary and temporary conditions in Venezuela that prevent individuals from safely returning.”
According to the agency, the program was extended “based on Venezuela’s increased instability and lack of safety due to the enduring humanitarian, security, political, and environmental conditions.”
Before the change, only Venezuelans who arrived in the U.S. prior to March 2021 qualified for TPS. The program was created by Congress in 1990 to offer temporary protections to migrants from countries in crisis.
According to the agency, there are approximately 242,700 people who were granted TPS under Venezuela’s previous designation. The redesignation announced Wednesday could extend eligibility to a further 472,000 Venezuelan nationals who arrived in the U.S. before July 31, 2023.
“Temporary protected status provides individuals already present in the United States with protection from removal when the conditions in their home country prevent their safe return,” Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement.
“That is the situation that Venezuelans who arrived here on or before July 31 of this year find themselves in. We are accordingly granting them the protection that the law provides. However, it is critical that Venezuelans understand that those who have arrived here after July 31, 2023 are not eligible for such protection, and instead will be removed when they are found to not have a legal basis to stay.”
Millions of Venezuelans have left the country in recent years, prompting a refugee crisis in neighboring Colombia. Those who migrated to the U.S. have settled in large cities like New York, which is straining to house them while they are not allowed to work.
“Our administration and our partners across the city have led the calls to ‘Let Them Work,’ so I want to thank President Biden for hearing our entire coalition, including our hard-working congressional delegation, and taking this important step that will bring hope to the thousands of Venezuelan asylum seekers currently in our care who will now be immediately eligible for Temporary Protected Status,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Wednesday.
TMX contributed to this article.
