The US government is canceling the legal status of over 500,000 immigrants, giving them only weeks to leave the country. This affects people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela who entered under a special program started in October 2022.
The policy change impacts about 532,000 immigrants who came to the US through a program launched by President Joe Biden and later expanded in January 2023. The program allowed up to 30,000 people per month to enter legally for two years. However, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) now says that this was always meant to be temporary.
The immigrants will lose their protection 30 days after the rule is published in the Federal Register, which is scheduled for Tuesday. This means they must leave the US by April 24 unless they can secure another legal status.
A group called Welcome.US, which helps people seeking refuge, is advising immigrants to speak to an immigration lawyer immediately. Without legal status, staying in the US could lead to deportation.
Biden introduced the program as a way to reduce pressure on the overcrowded US-Mexico border. However, DHS now emphasizes that it was never meant to provide permanent status.
Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump has promised to launch the largest deportation effort in US history if he returns to power. He recently used wartime laws to deport more than 200 Venezuelan gang members to El Salvador, where the government offered to imprison them at a discount.
