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A federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration cannot immediately cancel the deportation protections and work permits for hundreds of thousands of migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela who entered the United States legally under a policy established during the Biden administration. This decision was made by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani on Monday.
Judge Talwani’s ruling prohibits the Trump administration from proceeding with their plan to terminate the legal status of these migrants by April 24. The government’s announcement had warned individuals affected by this change that they would need to leave the U.S. voluntarily by that date or face capture and deportation by immigration enforcement agents.
In her ruling, Talwani suspended the deportation warnings issued by the administration and barred officials from revoking the legal protection granted through a program known as immigration parole. This program, which has allowed over half a million migrants from the four countries mentioned, enabled them to enter the U.S. legally after obtaining sponsorship from individuals within the United States.
Talwani emphasized that any mass termination of parole would require an individual assessment for each case, stating that “the early termination, without any case-by-case justification, of legal status for noncitizens who have complied with [Department of Homeland Security] programs and entered the country lawfully undermines the rule of law.”
This ruling comes as a vital relief for many migrants who benefited from a program that the Biden administration argued was designed to promote legal immigration pathways and reduce unlawful crossings at the southern border.
Under the CHNV program, a total of approximately 532,000 migrants were granted the ability to travel to the U.S. legally, receive immigration parole, and work lawfully for a period of two years. Officials from the Biden administration highlighted that this initiative contributed to a notable decrease in illegal border crossings from the eligible countries. However, the program faced significant legal challenges from Republican-led states, which argued that the federal government’s use of parole authority was excessive in admitting large numbers of foreign nationals under broad eligibility criteria.
In early 2024, the Biden administration temporarily suspended the CHNV initiative due to concerns surrounding fraudulent applications. Additionally, it opted not to allow current beneficiaries to renew their parole beyond the initial two years, suggesting they should explore alternative options such as seeking asylum or applying for temporary protected status to remain in the U.S.
Following President Trump’s return to office in January, his administration began efforts to eliminate parole-based immigration policies, asserting that they exceeded presidential authority and that individuals admitted under the CHNV program had not undergone adequate vetting.
Recently, the Department of Homeland Security announced it would give CHNV beneficiaries 30 days to leave the U.S. voluntarily or face arrest and deportation, prioritizing enforcement actions against those who had not applied for other immigration benefits like asylum or green cards.
In response to the ruling, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin criticized the CHNV program, claiming it allowed over 530,000 inadequately vetted individuals into the country, which she argued has contributed to crime and job displacement. McLaughlin indicated that Secretary Kristi Noem would pursue all available legal avenues to terminate this program, stressing a commitment to the safety of American citizens.
This legal setback adds to the mounting challenges facing the Trump administration as it works to dismantle immigration programs established under the Biden administration that currently protect hundreds of thousands of migrants from deportation. A recent court ruling in California has also prevented the administration from ending a Temporary Protected Status program that safeguards more than 350,000 Venezuelans from deportation.
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