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Temporary Protected Status for Venezuela
The Administration has announced it will grant Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, to Venezuelans in the United States until September 2022. Temporary Protected Status grants eligible individuals the ability to live and work in the United States for a limited time. This new TPS designation enables Venezuelan nationals, and individuals without nationality who last resided in Venezuela, currently residing in the United States to file applications for this benefit.
TPS is being extended to Venezuelans due to the extraordinary and temporary conditions in Venezuela that prevent nationals from returning safely, including a humanitarian crisis marked by widespread hunger and malnutrition, rampant crime and insecurity, human rights abuses and repression, and a crumbling infrastructure. Nearly 5.6 million Venezuelans have fled their country to date and nearly one million have sought asylum globally. “The living conditions in Venezuela reveal a country in turmoil, unable to protect its own citizens,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas.
Only individuals who can demonstrate continuous residence in the United States since March 8, 2021 are eligible for TPS under Venezuela’s designation. For their own health and safety, individuals should not believe smugglers or others claiming the border is now open. Due to the pandemic, travel and admission restrictions at the border remain in place.
Individuals desiring TPS must file an application with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services within the 180-day registration period. All individuals applying for TPS undergo security and background checks as part of determining eligibility. More details about the eligibility criteria to submit an initial TPS application and apply can be found at www.uscis.gov.
“It is in times of extraordinary and temporary circumstances like these,” said Secretary Mayorkas, “that the United States steps forward to support eligible Venezuelan nationals already present here, while their home country seeks to right itself out of the current crises.”