Biden administration extends legal status and work permits to thousands of Venezuelan migrants

The move was advocated by local leaders across the country as a way to make migrants eligible to work legally. In New York, Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams have pressured the White House to extend this status to migrants from countries in difficulty.

The New York Immigration Coalition estimates the change will impact approximately 60,000 Venezuelans in New York who will now be able to “quickly obtain work authorizations and immediately begin contributing to our local economy and communities.”

“After my productive conversation with President Biden last night, I am grateful that the federal government acted so quickly to grant one of our top priorities: granting temporary protected status to already-arrived Venezuelan asylum seekers and migrants in this country. ” Hochul said in a statement after meeting Biden on Tuesday at a reception in Manhattan during the United Nations General Assembly.

Business groups and immigration advocates joined state and city officials in demanding that Biden expand TPS, saying putting migrants to work would allow them to leave shelters and start their lives again .

As the number of migrants in New York City’s care rises to 60,000, Hochul and Adams said migrants are eager to find work and can fill vacancies in sectors such as child care. health and construction.

The designation announced Wednesday will apply to those in the United States on or before July 31.

Members of Congress have also called for it long and loud.

Adams said he has been pushing for the change since April, saying he personally spoke to the White House on Wednesday evening to learn more about the announcement – although he did not meet with Biden in the city in because of his criticism of the federal response.

“I hope we can continue to work with President Biden to expand Temporary Protected Status to tens of thousands of other migrants in our care from other countries,” Adams said in a statement.

TPS is reserved for individuals who cannot safely return to their home country due to fear of armed conflict, natural disasters, or other extraordinary conditions.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Leader in the House Hakeem Jeffriesboth Democrats from New York, said the move would help New York’s strained system, which has been overwhelmed by the influx of more than 100,000 migrants and led to tent shelters across the city.

“Through this decision, immigrants will be temporarily allowed to work, hold necessary jobs, and support their families while awaiting an asylum decision,” the leaders said in a joint statement.

While Biden can expand TPS unilaterally, another senior administration official stressed Wednesday that the power to further alleviate the immigration crisis rests with Congress.

“We are working under the constraints of our fundamentally broken statutory framework that is simply inadequate to address the challenges we see today at the border,” the official said.

Biden officials also announced efforts Wednesday to speed up the processing of work authorization documents, or EADs, for people released on parole into the United States after an appointment with the CBP One app.