Immigrants face uncertainty as parole protections are revoked

HOUSTON - Nearly one million immigrants who entered the United States using a Biden-era online appointment app are facing immediate deportation after the Department of Homeland Security revoked their legal status.

Legal status revoked

What we know:

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is terminating parole protections for people who entered the country through the CBP One app, revoking legal status for nearly a million migrants who came to the U.S. during the Biden administration.

NOGALES, MEXICO - JANUARY 21: A immigrant from Venezuela tries in vain to access the CBP One app (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

Roughly 985,000 people used the app to make appointments at a port of entry at the border, with those who entered often permitted to seek asylum and given temporary work authorization.

The administration has begun sending email notices to affected migrants telling them to self-deport through the Trump administration’s version of the app, now called CBP Home.

Those who entered the country as part of the Uniting for Ukraine program and Afghans who entered under Operation Allies Welcome are not impacted. 

The DHS previously revoked parole for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans, who had also sought parole through the CBP One app, so long as they could also secure a U.S.-based financial sponsor. The more than 500,000 people affected by that revocation will lose their status April 24.

Time of uncertainty

What they're saying:

Johana Paredes, a Venezuelan immigrant, expressed her distress over the sudden change. "I am not ready for that. I can’t go back. I cannot go back to Venezuela," she said. Paredes, who entered the country through the CBP One app, had been living and working legally in the U.S. "Everything was going well, and now you tell me this news," she added.

Another immigrant, a Salvadoran woman living in Houston, shared similar sentiments. "It is so sad because we spent a lot of time waiting in Mexico and we were happy when they said yes to let us in, and now that they’re saying no to us, it’s something difficult," she said.

Remaining options for immigrants

Immigration attorney Pamela Dones highlighted that there are still options for those fearing returning to their home countries. "If a person applied for the asylum process, and they express fear of going back, they have the right to go through the asylum process," Dones explained. However, she noted that some may have to consider returning and evaluate their options with their families.

The other side:

"The Biden Administration abused the parole authority to allow millions of illegal aliens into the U.S. which further fueled the worst border crisis in U.S. history. Under federal law, Secretary [Kristi] Noem — in support of the President — has full authority to revoke parole. Canceling these paroles is a promise kept to the American people to secure our borders and protect national security," the DHS said in a statement.

Trump administration fining immigrants

The Trump administration last month also said it plans to begin fining migrants $998 per day if they fail to leave after being ordered deported.

"Illegal aliens should use the CBP Home app to self deport and leave the country now. If they don’t, they will face the consequences. This includes a fine of $998 per day for every day that the illegal alien overstayed their final deportation order," the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.

The administration also said on the social platform X last month that the department plans to fine migrants between $1,000 and $5,000 if they leave the country later than they said they would, and that such individuals could face "possible imprisonment."