TPS Venezuela

Venezuela TPS in 2023

On September 20, 2023, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas, announced that Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Venezuela will be extended for another 18 months. This decision is in response to the ongoing unsafe conditions in Venezuela, which include increased instability, humanitarian crises, security issues, political challenges, and environmental problems.

Under this extension, individuals who were already in the United States before July 31, 2023, will be granted temporary protection from deportation and permission to work in the U.S. However, those who arrived after this date will not be eligible for these protections.

To qualify for TPS during this extension, applicants must demonstrate:

• Are Venezuelan citizens or individuals without a recognized nationality who last resided in Venezuela
• Have continuously lived in the United States since July 31, 2023
• Meet the original TPS eligibility criteria

If you have already submitted a TPS application under the previous designation for Venezuela, your application will continue to be processed, and you do not need to reapply. If approved, you will receive TPS status and a work permit (Employment Authorization Document or EAD) with the same expiration date.

For those who are not currently covered by TPS, the specific requirements, deadlines, and application procedures will be outlined in a forthcoming Federal Register notice.

TPS for Venezuelans Under the Trump Administration

Former President Trump’s administration was a strong critic of granting TPS for Venezuelans. This is even though the former President had vocally disapproved of the Venezuelan socialist federal government and was aware of the intensifying humanitarian crisis in the oil-rich country. 

Because of the court processes and debate around the 2019 TPS for Venezuela bill, USCIS was compelled to issue a notice that the validity of TPS for beneficiaries from Sudan, Nicaragua, Haiti, and El Salvador will be extended through January 2021 from previous expiration dates.

Cubans, Venezuelans and other individuals from Latin America fleeing from regimes in their countries had been blocked from the usual asylum process by policies of the Trump administration. These policies required them to wait for asylum claims in Mexico or other countries. While waiting, they face various difficulties such as gaining help from a qualified legal representation. Others are being detained in the United States detention facilities.

Venezuelans and other individuals or families wanting to immigrate to the U.S. should schedule an appointment with an attorney who has experience navigating the Atlanta immigration court system.

What Did the Venezuela TPS Act of 2019 Entail?

Venezuela TPS Act of 2019 would not have ensured irreversible legal resident status for those seeking asylum. It would, however, enabled recipients to lawfully work in the United States. 

To qualify, Venezuelans would need to be in the United States at the time that H.R. 549 became a law, had it been passed. Recipients of TPS would require the approval of the Secretary of Homeland Security to leave the country for any reason. Upon their return, they would be dealt with like any other foreign individual. 

To get the best legal advice and advocacy through this confusing process, contact us at Manji Law.

Timeline of TPS for Venezuela

The Venezuela TPS Act of 2019 was initially introduced on January 15, 2019. On July 23, 2019, the fast-track version of the bill was voted down by Republican politicians. 

July 25, 2019, H.R. 549 passed in the House of Representatives and was sent to the Senate. There, it was read two times and then referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. A committee issued a report on the bill, which can provide helpful background on the issue. However, Senate Republicans blocked a vote on whether to grant temporary protected status (TPS) to Venezuelan nationals who fled Venezuela.

Senator Bob Menendez, D-N.J., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., tried to pass the House’s bill by unanimous consent to expedite the process and get it passed quickly, but Senator Mike Lee, R-Utah, opposed the request. Since a senator objected, a request was rejected. Since the beginning of 2020, the bill has been considered by Communications and Technology in March, and by House Committee on Energy and Commerce in July.

Ultimately, the 2019 bill was not passed. At the end of his term, former President Trump passed DED for Venezuelans, which offered some protection. TPS was not enacted for Venezuelan nationals until March 2021.