WASHINGTON, USA — The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on Thursday, June 12, 2025, that it has begun revoking temporary legal status and work permits for hundreds of thousands of migrants from four Latin American countries, signalling a major shift in U.S. immigration policy.
The termination notices, sent via email, affect individuals from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela who entered the country under a humanitarian parole programme launched by the Biden administration in late 2022.
The programme allowed individuals from countries experiencing political and economic crises to live and work legally in the U.S. for up to two years, provided they arrived with financial sponsors.
Since its inception, the initiative granted temporary status to approximately 532,000 people.
However, the DHS confirmed on Thursday, June 12, 2025, that these permits are now revoked “effective immediately.”
In the termination letters, recipients were advised to depart the country voluntarily using the CBP One mobile application.
The department also indicated that individuals who leave the U.S. through the approved process would receive travel assistance and $1,000 upon returning to their home countries.
However, DHS did not clarify how it would monitor departures or disburse the financial aid.
The move follows a broader effort by President Donald Trump, who during his campaign vowed to dismantle what he described as the “broad abuse” of humanitarian parole — a discretionary power historically used by U.S. presidents to offer temporary refuge to people fleeing war or political unrest.
The Trump administration’s decision to end the programme was challenged in court, but the Supreme Court ruled last month that the government had the authority to rescind the policy.
Immigration advocates swiftly criticised the revocation, warning of its human and social consequences.
“This is a deeply destabilising decision,” said Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president of Global Refuge, a nonprofit that supports migrants and refugees.
“These are people that played by the rules… they passed security screenings, paid for their own travel, obtained work authorisation, and began rebuilding their lives.”
Among those affected is Zamora, a 34-year-old Cuban mother who arrived in the United States in September 2023 under the sponsorship of an American citizen.
She asked to be identified only by her surname due to fears of deportation.
“I am afraid of being detained while my son is at school,” Zamora said.
“I’m afraid to return to Cuba, the situation is very difficult there.”
Zamora said she has applied for legal permanent residency under the Cuban Adjustment Act — a 1966 law that provides a pathway to a green card for Cubans who enter the U.S. legally and meet certain conditions.
Her application is still pending.
In the meantime, she said, she would consider leaving her job at a clinic to avoid legal complications.
“I’m going to wait quietly without getting into trouble,” she said.
The Biden-era humanitarian parole policy was one of several legal pathways aimed at reducing unauthorised border crossings.
Its dismantling marks a return to more hardline immigration measures under Trump, who has vowed to deport millions of undocumented migrants and curtail legal immigration channels if re-elected.
While the DHS has stated that it will assist voluntary departures, immigrant rights groups warn that many individuals may now be pushed into legal uncertainty, family separation, or unsafe returns to volatile home countries.
