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Trump Ends Humanitarian Parole for Migrants from Nicaragua, Cuba, Venezuela, and Haiti

On the first day of his second term, Donald Trump signed several decrees to close the border and prevent the arrival of "millions" of migrants

Donald Trump

Redacción Confidencial

22 de enero 2025

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The same day he took office as President of the United States, Donald Trump ordered the termination of the humanitarian parole program that benefited thousands of migrants from Nicaragua, Cuba, Venezuela, and Haiti.

Through an executive order signed on the evening of Monday, January 20, 2025, after assuming his second term, Trump directed the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to "terminate all categorical parole programs that are contrary to the policies of the United States established in my Executive Orders," including the program known as humanitarian parole for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans.

The humanitarian parole program was created by the Joe Biden administration in October 2022 for Venezuelans. In January 2023, immigrants from Nicaragua, Cuba, and Haiti were also included as eligible for the program.

In the document, Trump claims that in recent years, the United States "has endured a large-scale invasion at an unprecedented level."


"One of my most important duties is to protect the American people from the disastrous effects of illegal mass migration and resettlement," Trump said in the order.

"My administration will marshal all available resources and authorities to stop this unprecedented flood of illegal foreign nationals into the United States," he added.

Stopping the Arrival of "Millions of Foreigners"

In his inaugural speech, he outlined plans to carry out mass deportations and militarize the border.

He explained that he would declare a national emergency on the southern border with Mexico. "All illegal entries will be blocked immediately, and we will begin the process of sending millions and millions of criminal foreigners back to where they came from," emphasized the Republican president.

"Millions of illegal foreigners from nations and regions around the world successfully entered the United States, where they now reside, including potential terrorists, foreign spies, cartel members, gangs, violent transnational criminal organizations, and other hostile actors with malicious intent," Trump wrote in the executive order.

He also pointed out that "deadly narcotics and other illicit materials have flowed through the border while agents and officers spend their limited resources processing illegal foreigners for release in the United States."

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"These catch-and-release policies undermine the rule of law and our sovereignty, create substantial risks to public safety, and divert critical resources away from stopping the entry of contraband and fugitives into the United States," he insisted.

Parole Benefited More Than Half a Million Migrants

The humanitarian parole for Nicaraguans, Cubans, Venezuelans, and Haitians came into effect on January 5, 2023, and since then, about 531,690 citizens were able to migrate legally to the United States, according to data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

The largest group of migrants came from Haiti, with about 211,040 citizens migrating over two years. Following them were Venezuelans with 117,330, Cubans with 110,240, and Nicaraguans with 93,070.

By December 2024, there were another 3,200 Nicaraguans authorized to travel to the United States. It is unclear whether, under the new resolution, they will no longer be able to migrate through the program.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) claims that after the approval of this measure, which allows citizens to live and work legally in the U.S. for up to two years, migrant apprehensions at the borders were reduced by up to 91%.

According to the Biden administration, through this program, they expected to receive about 30,000 migrants per month from Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, and Haiti, meaning about 360,000 citizens would migrate annually.

In August 2024, the U.S. government temporarily suspended the humanitarian parole program benefiting citizens from Nicaragua, Venezuela, Cuba, and Haiti, after detecting numerous suspicions of fraud in applications submitted by many sponsors, some of whom were allegedly behind the arrival of up to 30 people into U.S. territory.

Along with the suspension of the humanitarian parole program, the CBP One application was also canceled, through which migrants in Mexican territory could fill out a form with their details and request an appointment to present themselves at a port of entry on the southern border.

 This article was first published in Spanish by Confidencial and translated by our staffTo get the most relevant news from our English coverage delivered straight to your inbox, subscribe to The Dispatch.

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Redacción Confidencial

Redacción Confidencial

Confidencial es un diario digital nicaragüense, de formato multimedia, fundado por Carlos F. Chamorro en junio de 1996. Inició como un semanario impreso y hoy es un medio de referencia regional con información, análisis, entrevistas, perfiles, reportajes e investigaciones sobre Nicaragua, informando desde el exilio por la persecución política de la dictadura de Daniel Ortega y Rosario Murillo.

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