The United States has announced the termination of legal protections for more than half a million immigrants, giving them only weeks to leave the country.
President Donald Trump, who has vowed to implement the most extensive deportation drive in US history, is intensifying efforts to limit immigration, particularly from Latin America.
The directive impacts approximately 532,000 individuals from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.
These migrants arrived under a program initiated by former President Joe Biden in October 2022 and later expanded in January 2023.
According to the order, their legal status will expire 30 days after the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) publishes it in the Federal Register, which is set for Tuesday.
This means they must leave the US by April 24 unless they secure another legal immigration status.
Welcome.US, a nonprofit assisting refugees, has urged affected individuals to seek legal counsel immediately to explore their options.
The program, known as the Processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans (CHNV), allowed up to 30,000 migrants per month to enter the US for two years.
Biden defended the policy as a safe and humane measure to ease strain on the overwhelmed US-Mexico border.
However, DHS emphasized that the program was always meant to be temporary.
“Parole is inherently temporary and does not provide a path to permanent residency,” the department stated.
Meanwhile, Trump has denied recently invoking an emergency wartime law to deport over 200 alleged Venezuelan gang members to El Salvador, which has offered to detain migrants and even US citizens at reduced costs.