Preparing for a new administration

If you are sponsoring through Welcome Corps: The presidential administration has the authority to set the number of refugees entering the country each year. The number of applications approved through the Welcome Corps could be affected by a new administration. However, the federal benefits that refugees receive upon their arrival to the United States, including a pathway to citizenship, has historically been consistent across administrations.

If you are sponsoring through Humanitarian Parole: Humanitarian parole is granted by executive order and can be withdrawn by executive action under the current or new administration.

The Processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans: The U.S. government may grant advance travel authorization to up to 30,000 noncitizens each month to seek parole on a case-by-case basis under the processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans. Due to high interest in these processes, USCIS updated the review process effective May 17, 2023.

Under the new review process, USCIS randomly selects about half of the monthly total of Forms I-134A, Online Request to be a Supporter and Declaration of Financial Support, regardless of filing date, from the entire pending workload to review. USCIS will review the other half of the monthly total of Forms I-134A based on when the case was submitted under the first-in, first-out method, which prioritizes the oldest Forms I-134A for review. This is intended to maintain a meaningful and equitable opportunity for all beneficiaries of a Form I-134A to move forward through the process and seek advance travel authorization. For more information, see the USCIS web alert.

To inquire about the status of a submitted Form I-134A or make a correction to a submitted Form I-134A, supporters should send a secure message from their USCIS online account. Source: uscis.gov/CHNV

For Uniting for Ukraine: USCIS is accepting and considering, on a case-by-case basis, re-parole requests from certain Ukrainian citizens and their immediate family members who were paroled into the United States on or after Feb. 11, 2022. The I-134A review timeline for new applications has been affected by the processing of re-parole applications, and supporters may experience longer review timelines.

To inquire about the status of a submitted Form I-134A or make a correction to a submitted Form I-134A, supporters should send a secure message from their USCIS online account. For more information, see the Contacting USCIS About Form I-134A section on the Frequently Asked Questions about Uniting for Ukraine page. Source: uscis.gov/ukraine

Options to remain in the United States after the initial two-year humanitarian parole period ends varies by population. See the trusted resources linked below for more information by nationality. These resources are not exhaustive, and we recommend using the services of an immigration attorney for more case-specific advice.

For Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans:

• Asylum
• Temporary Protected Status (TPS)
• Family Reunification Parole

For Ukrainians

This month, USCIS announced that there is not a re-parole process for these programs and that “parole will automatically terminate at the end of your parole period (up to 2 years from the day you were paroled into the United States).”

It is not clear if individuals who arrived in the U.S. through the CHNV programs can apply for re-parole on a case-by-case basis despite the determination not to create a re-parole process. More information is available here.

If you are sponsoring a person from one of these countries, we encourage you to evaluate whether they can apply for an alternative status, like asylum, Temporary Protected Status, residency through the Cuban Adjustment Act, or adjustment of status through a family-based petition. For more information, please visit the USCIS website.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has shared the re-parole process for certain Ukrainian citizens and their immediate family members who were paroled in the United States on or after Feb. 11, 2022. Please visit the USCIS website for eligibility and instructions on re-parole.