Homeland Security Dept. pauses Biden parole program for four countries

Venezuela : Apna Punjab Media : The Biden administration said Friday the government has paused a humanitarian program that admits up to 360,000 people a year from Haiti, Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba into the United States to work or seek asylum, after an internal report indicated possible fraud. The Department of Homeland Security said it had put the program on hold for the 30,000 new applicants who are allowed in each month, while it institutes additional security screenings for the U.S.-based residents who sponsor them. “DHS takes any abuse of its processes very seriously,” spokeswoman Erin Heeter said in a statement. “Out of an abundance of caution, DHS has temporarily paused the issuance of advanced travel authorizations for new beneficiaries while it undertakes a review of supporter applications. DHS will restart application processing as quickly as possible, with appropriate safeguards,” she said. The program, known as “parole,” is a critical part of the administration’s strategy to reduce illegal crossings at the southern border, by encouraging migrants from Haiti, Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba to find a sponsor in the United States to apply to bring them into the country. Migrants typically are granted permission to stay and work for up to two years. DHS has not identified security concerns with the almost 500,000 people from the four countries who already have been admitted through the program, after clearing background checks, and they will not be affected by the pause, officials said. The department stopped processing new applications around mid-July after an internal report flagged concerns about U.S.-based sponsors, who include citizens and permanent residents as well as immigrants in the country temporarily, according to two DHS officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.