The Biden administration’s new plan to manage the increasing exodus from Venezuela was packaged by the Biden administration as a “joint action with Mexico.”
Venezuelans have moved into the spotlight as migration and displacement around the world reaches new levels. An estimated 6.8 million Venezuelans have fled their country since the economy tanked in 2014, mostly to Latin America and Caribbean countries.
These are the most important components of the plan:
This is a two-fold plan. First, effective immediately, U.S. immigration authorities will send to Mexico Venezuelan migrants attempting to cross the border without authorization. Secondly, the U.S. will accept up to 24,000 Venezuelan migrants on a plan similar to how Ukrainians have been admitted since Russia’s invasion.
Why does this plan apply only to Venezuelans?
Last August, Venezuelans were the second largest nationality seeking entry into the U.S. at the southern border with Venezuelans and were caught more than 25,000 times, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The dramatic rise of Venezuelans seeking entry into the U.S. highlights issues around a pandemic-related health order known as Title 42. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had said the measure was no longer necessary and its end date would be May 23, 2022.
The Biden administration is in litigation with Republican-led states to end the measure. Immigration advocates say the Title 42 measure denies due process, especially to asylum seekers, because of rapid expulsions back to Mexico.
Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas, in making the announcement Wednesday, said: “Those who attempt to cross the southern border of the United States illegally will be returned to Mexico and will be ineligible for this process in the future. Those who follow the lawful process will have the opportunity to travel safely to the United States and become eligible to work here.”
Who will get one of those 24,000 visas?
To be eligible, Venezuelans must:
- Have a supporter in the United States who will provide financial and sponsorship;
- Pass biometric and biographic national security and public safety screening and vetting
- Complete vaccinations and other public health requirements.
Homeland Security said that Venezuelans will be authorized on a case-by-case basis and will travel to the United States by air directly to an interior port of entry. Once in the United States, they will be eligible to apply for work authorization.
Why do some advocates claim this is a “preferential treatment”
Advocates raised protests about the expansion of Title 42 to Venezuelans, and the “preferential treatment” given to some.
“...it’s clear to us that launching a parole program to admit some Venezuelans while expanding the reach of Title 42 for others will not be enough to solve the major challenges faced by people seeking protection in the United States, all of whom have a right to due process and equitable treatment at the border,” said Naomi Steinberg, the vice president of U.S. Policy and Advocacy for HIAS. HIAS is a global nonprofit with Jewish roots that go back more than a century in refugee aid.
For the first 11 months of the fiscal year, Guatemalans, after Mexicans, remained the second largest nationality caught by immigration officials. U.S. CBP hasn’t released the full fiscal year numbers yet, but already the numbers have surpassed 2 million at the southwest border.
What about migrants from other Latin American counties?
Because of a tangle of diplomatic relations between the U.S. and countries like Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua, migrants from those countries have not been sent back to their homelands and have largely been allowed entry into the U.S. Many are expected to ask for asylum, which they have a legal to do.
What’s the role of Mexico?
Mexico will start taking Venezuelan migrants expelled by the U.S. and be subject to its own immigration policy, an agreement the Biden administration had been working on for months. Venezuelans need a visa to enter Mexico.
With information from Associated Press.
