Trump officials make plans to revoke legal status of migrants welcomed under Biden

The Trump administration is preparing to revoke the legal status of many of the migrants who were allowed to come to the U.S. legally from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela under former President Joe Biden, according to internal government documents reviewed by CBS News.

The proposal by the Department of Homeland Security, spelled out in an unpublished notice, would fully terminate a Biden administration program that allowed more than 530,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans to fly to the U.S. if American sponsors agreed to help them financially. 

The Biden administration argued the policy, known as CHNV, discouraged illegal immigration by people from these four Latin American countries by offering them legal means to come to the U.S., but President Trump froze the initiative hours after being inaugurated. Trump officials have specifically argued the program was a misuse of immigration parole, the legal authority which the Biden administration used to admit those under the sponsorship initiative, and to allow them to apply for work permits.

Under the new move, the Trump administration would revoke the parole status of those allowed into the CHNV policy and place them in deportation proceedings if they have failed to apply for, or obtain, another immigration benefit, like asylum, a green card, or Temporary Protected Status, the internal proposal shows. 

It’s unclear how many of the over half-million people allowed into the U.S. under this initiative have applied for other immigration programs. When the Trump administration’s plan will be finalized also remains unclear.

Those whose parole classification is revoked, and who lack another immigration status, would become ineligible to work in the U.S. lawfully. They would also receive notices to appear in immigration court, the first step in the deportation process, according to the internal documents.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration empowered federal immigration agents, including those with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, to seek the deportation — including in an expedited fashion in some cases — of those permitted to enter the U.S. under various Biden administration policies, including the CHNV program.

Representatives for DHS did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Camilo Montoya-Galvez

Camilo Montoya-Galvez is the immigration reporter at CBS News. Based in Washington, he covers immigration policy and politics.