DHS axes parole for CHNV migrants, exit by April 24 deadline
Published Date: 3/25/2025
Notice
Summary
Starting March 25, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security is ending special parole programs for people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela and their families. Those currently in the U.S. under these programs must leave by April 24, 2025, unless given special permission to stay. This change affects travel and work permissions and signals a big shift in how these groups can enter and stay in the U.S.
Analyzed Economic Effects
5 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 3 costs, 0 mixed.
CHNV Parole Programs End; Must Leave by April 24
The Department of Homeland Security is ending the parole programs for nationals of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela effective March 25, 2025. People paroled into the U.S. under those programs whose parole has not already expired must leave the United States by April 24, 2025 unless the Secretary grants an individual determination to let them stay. The change also affects travel and work permissions tied to parole.
CHNV Parolees Added to Asylum and Court Backlogs
The notice reports that CHNV parolees account for approximately 75,000 affirmative asylum applications and that USCIS's asylum backlog exceeded 1.4 million cases as of December 2024. It also states the immigration court backlog rose from about 2.5 million cases at the end of FY 2023 to about 3.6 million cases at the end of FY 2024, and that CHNV parolees could further strain these systems.
Related Employment Authorization Ends With Parole
Employment authorization tied to CHNV parole is tied to the parole period. The notice states that termination of the CHNV parole programs affects related employment authorization and that parole periods for affected individuals will terminate on April 24, 2025 unless the Secretary decides otherwise.
CHNV Parolees Count as "Qualified Aliens" for Benefits
Because DHS generally issued two-year parole periods, CHNV parolees were generally treated as "qualified aliens" under 8 U.S.C. 1641(b)(4), which expanded eligibility for some Federal public benefits. The notice cites examples: certain parolees under age 18 may be eligible for SNAP (see 7 CFR 273.4(a)(6)(ii)(J)) and some lawfully residing children and pregnant women may receive Medicaid or CHIP under state options (see 42 U.S.C. 1396b(v)(4) and 42 U.S.C. 1397gg(e)(1)(O)).
Secretary May Grant Individual Parole Extensions
The Secretary of Homeland Security retains discretionary authority to continue or extend parole for any individual paroled under the CHNV programs on a case-by-case basis for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit. Any decision to allow someone to remain beyond the termination date is committed to the Secretary's sole discretion.
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