Haiti - FLASH : New US entry program for Haitian migrants, conditions and steps to follow

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Haiti - FLASH : New US entry program for Haitian migrants, conditions and steps to follow
09/01/2023 05:42:34

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced a new program that offers 30,000 monthly humanitarian permits to Venezuelans, Cubans, Nicaraguans, and Haitians, allowing them to legally enter the United States for up to two years on a case-by-case basis, subject to sponsorship (support) on American territory. At the same time, the Biden administration will turn back thousands of migrants seeking to cross the border via Mexico to enter the United States.

DHS strongly encourages Haitians seeking to enter the United States who do not have and are not eligible for a visa, to request entry through this process instead, as it will be the safest and most effective to pursue a temporary stay in the United States.

Access to these processes is free. Neither the U.S. Supporter nor the Recipient is required to pay the U.S. government any fees for Form I-134A or participation in this process.

The United States began on Friday 9 to accept applications from migrants from the countries concerned who will be able to benefit from this Program.

"Eligibility :

A. Supporters

U.S.-based supporters must initiate the process by filing Form I-134A on behalf of a Haitian national and, if applicable, the national's immediate family members.80

Supporters may be individuals filing on their own, with other individuals, or on behalf of non-governmental entities or community-based organizations. Supporters are required to provide evidence of income and assets and declare their willingness to provide financial support to the named beneficiary for the length of parole. Supporters are required to undergo vetting to identify potential human trafficking or other concerns. To serve as a supporter under the process, an individual must:

be a U.S. citizen, national, or lawful permanent resident; hold a lawful status in the United States; or be a parolee or recipient of deferred action or Deferred Enforced Departure;
pass security and background vetting, including for public safety, national security, human trafficking, and exploitation concerns; and
demonstrate sufficient financial resources to receive, maintain, and support the intended beneficiary whom they commit to support for the duration of their parole period.

B. Beneficiaries

In order to be eligible to request and ultimately be considered for a discretionary issuance of advance authorization to travel to the United States to seek a discretionary grant of parole at the POE, such individuals must:

Be outside the United States;
Be a national of Haiti or be a non-Haitian immediate family member and traveling with a Haitian principal beneficiary;
Have a U.S.-based supporter who filed a Form I-134A on their behalf that USCIS has vetted and confirmed;
Possess an unexpired passport valid for international travel;
Provide for their own commercial travel to an air U.S. POE and final U.S. destination;
Undergo and pass required national security and public safety vetting;
Comply with all additional requirements, including vaccination requirements and other public health guidelines; and
Demonstrate that a grant of parole is warranted based on significant public benefit or urgent humanitarian reasons, as described above, and that a favorable exercise of discretion is otherwise merited.

A Haitian national is ineligible to be considered for advance authorization to travel to the United States as well as parole under this process if that person is a permanent resident or dual national of any country other than Haiti, or currently holds refugee status in any country, unless DHS operates a similar parole process for the country's nationals.[94]

In addition, a potential beneficiary is ineligible for advance authorization to travel to the United States as well as parole under this process if that person:

Fails to pass national security and public safety vetting or is otherwise deemed not to merit a favorable exercise of discretion;

Has been ordered removed from the United States within the prior five years or is subject to a bar to admissibility based on a prior removal order; 83

Has crossed irregularly into the United States, between the POEs, after January 9, 2023 except individuals permitted a single instance of voluntary departure pursuant to INA section 240B, 8 U.S.C. 1229c or withdrawal of their application for admission pursuant to INA section 235(a)(4), 8 U.S.C. 1225(a)(4) will remain eligible;

Has irregularly crossed the Mexican or Panamanian border after January 9, 2023; or

Is under 18 and not traveling through this process accompanied by a parent or legal guardian, and as such is a child whom the inspecting officer would determine to be an unaccompanied child.84

Travel Requirements :
Beneficiaries who receive advance authorization to travel to the United States to seek parole into the United States will be responsible for arranging and funding their own commercial air travel to an interior POE of the United States.

Health Requirements :
Beneficiaries must follow all applicable requirements, as determined by DHS's Chief Medical Officer, in consultation with CDC, with respect to health and travel, including vaccination and/or testing requirements for diseases including COVID-19, polio, and measles. The most up-to-date public health requirements applicable to this process will be available at www.uscis.gov/CHNV

C. Processing Steps

Step 1: Declaration of Financial Support

A U.S.-based supporter will submit a Form I-134A, Online Request to be a Supporter and Declaration of Financial Support, with USCIS through the online myUSCIS web portal https://my.uscis.gov to initiate the process. The Form I-134A identifies and collects information on both the supporter and the beneficiary. The supporter must submit a separate Form I-134A for each beneficiary they are seeking to support, including Haitians' immediate family members and minor children. The supporter will then be vetted by USCIS to protect against exploitation and abuse, and to ensure that the supporter is able to financially support the beneficiary whom they agree to support. Supporters must be vetted and confirmed by USCIS, at USCIS' discretion, before moving forward in the process.

Step 2: Submit Biographic Information
If a supporter is confirmed by USCIS, the listed beneficiary will receive an email from USCIS with instructions to create an online account with myUSCIS and next steps for completing the application. The beneficiary will be required to confirm their biographic information in their online account and attest to meeting the eligibility requirements.

As part of confirming eligibility in their myUSCIS account, individuals who seek authorization to travel to the United States will need to confirm that they meet public health requirements, including certain vaccination requirements.

Step 3: Submit Request in CBP One Mobile Application
After confirming biographic information in myUSCIS and completing required eligibility attestations, the beneficiary will receive instructions through myUSCIS for accessing the CBP One mobile application. The beneficiary must then enter limited biographic information into CBP One and submit a live photo.

The free CBP One mobile app is available at Apple and Google App Stores and at https://www.cbp.gov/about/mobile-apps-directory/cbpone

Step 4: Approval To Travel to the United States
After completing Step 3, the beneficiary will receive a notice in their myUSCIS account confirming whether CBP has, in CBP's discretion, provided the beneficiary with advance authorization to travel to the United States to seek a discretionary grant of parole on a case-by-case basis. If approved, this authorization is generally valid for 90 days, and beneficiaries are responsible for securing their own travel via commercial air to an interior POE of the United States.

Approval of advance authorization to travel does not guarantee parole into the United States. Whether to parole the individual is a discretionary determination made by CBP at the POE at the time the individual arrives at the interior POE.

All of the steps in this process, including the decision to grant or deny advance travel authorization and the parole decision at the interior POE, are entirely discretionary and not subject to appeal on any grounds.

Step 5: Seeking Parole at the POE
Each individual arriving under this process will be inspected by CBP and considered for a grant of discretionary parole for a period of up to two years on a case-by-case basis.

As part of the inspection, beneficiaries will undergo additional screening and vetting, to include additional fingerprint biometric vetting consistent with CBP inspection processes. Individuals who are determined to pose a national security or public safety threat or otherwise do not warrant parole pursuant to section 212(d)(5)(A) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5)(A), and as a matter of discretion upon inspection, will be processed under an appropriate processing pathway and may be referred to ICE for detention.

Step 6: Parole
If granted parole pursuant to this process, each individual generally will be paroled into the United States for a period of up to two years, subject to applicable health and vetting requirements, and will be eligible to apply for employment authorization from USCIS under existing regulations. USCIS is leveraging technological and process efficiencies to minimize processing times for requests for employment authorization. All individuals two years of age or older will be required to complete a medical screening for tuberculosis, including an IGRA test, within 90 days of arrival to the United States.

D. Scope, Termination, and No Private Rights

The Secretary retains the sole discretion to terminate the Parole Process for Haitians at any point. The number of travel authorizations granted under this process shall be spread across this process and the separate and independent Parole Process for Cubans, the Parole Process for Nicaraguans, and Parole Process for Venezuelans (as described in separate notices published concurrently in today's edition of the Federal Register) and shall not exceed 30,000 each month in the aggregate. Each of these processes operates independently, and any action to terminate or modify any of the other processes will have no bearing on the criteria for or independent decisions with respect to this process.

This process is being implemented as a matter of the Secretary's discretion. It is not intended to and does not create any rights, substantive or procedural, enforceable by any party in any matter, civil or criminal."

HL/ SL/ HaitiLibre