US Announces Plans to Protect 472K Venezuelan Migrants

Move is likely to appease Democratic leaders, provide grist for Republicans
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Sep 21, 2023 1:28 AM CDT
US Announces Plans to Protect 472K Venezuelan Migrants
President Joe Biden speaks as he meets with Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in New York, Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023.   (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

The Biden administration said Wednesday that it was granting temporary legal status to hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans who are already in the country—quickly making them eligible to work—as it grapples with growing numbers of people fleeing the South American country and elsewhere to arrive at the US border with Mexico. The Homeland Security Department plans to grant Temporary Protected Status to an estimated 472,000 Venezuelans who arrived in the country as of July 31, 2023, making it easier for them to get authorization to work in the US, the AP reports. That's been a key demand of Democratic mayors and governors who are struggling to care for an increased number of migrants in their care. That's in addition to about 242,700 Venezuelans who already qualified for temporary status before Wednesday's announcement.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas granted the expansion and an 18-month extension for those who already have temporary status due to "Venezuela's increased instability and lack of safety due to the enduring humanitarian, security, political, and environmental conditions," the department said in a statement. The administration said that it would accelerate work authorizations for people who have arrived in the country since January through a mobile app for appointments at land crossings with Mexico, called CBP One, or through parole granted to Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans who have financial sponsors and arrive at an airport. It will aim to give them work permits within 30 days, compared to about 90 days currently.

(More Venezuela stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X