Judge pauses termination of parole programs for Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, Venezuelan nationals
We previously reported that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security had announced its intention to terminate the humanitarian parole programs for nationals of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. The termination was due to take effect a week from Thursday, on April 24.
However, this week a federal judge in Massachusetts issued an Order that stays (pauses) in part the termination of the programs.
Judge Indira Talwani, an Obama appointee, said in her Order that the termination of parole and employment authorization is stayed “insofar as it revokes, without case-by-case review, previously granted parole and work authorization . . . prior to the noncitizen’s originally stated parole end date.”
Most CHNV beneficiaries can continue working. Judge Talwani’s Order stays all of the notices sent to individuals from these “CHNV” nations stating that their parole is being revoked without case-by-case review. In other words, CHNV beneficiaries with valid Employment Authorization Documents can continue to work, at least for now.
Employment Authorization Documents must be current. There is an automatic 540-day extension that applies to individuals in certain categories whose Employment Authorization Documents are expiring. However, the extension does not apply to individuals in the C11 category (aliens paroled into the United States in the public interest or temporarily for emergency reasons). Thus, CHNV beneficiaries must have facially valid and current EADs to continue working.
Appeal is likely. No doubt the government will appeal the stay and perhaps eventually seek review by the U.S. Supreme Court, so this could change again. Whether the Supreme Court will agree to review the case, or will agree with the lower court if it does, is unclear.
Tips for employers – for now. For any employer who is currently seeking to identify and re-verify CHNV individuals by April 24, we recommend halting the blanket re-verification process. On the other hand, if the employer is re-verifying because an employee’s EAD card is approaching its expiration date, then the employer should continue that process.
