Judge Temporary Blocks Trump From Terminating Legal Status for 530,000 Illegal Aliens

A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from revoking legal status and work permits for over 530,000 illegal aliens from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.  

U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani, an Obama appointee, ruled Monday that the Trump administration cannot terminate the legal status of the migrants “without case-by-case review.” 

The Biden administration program allowed migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to be flown directly into the interior of the U.S. and granted work authorization. The program was intended to provide “safe and orderly pathways to the United States” for nationals from the four nations under the category of humanitarian parole. 

On his first day back in office, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Department of Homeland Security to “Terminate all categorical parole programs,” including the “Processes for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans.” 

In March, DHS issued a notice announcing the official termination of the program on April 24.  

The Trump administration has encouraged illegal aliens who entered the U.S. under the parole program to self-deport before the program expires, but the judge’s ruling suspends the program’s end until further court rulings are made.  

“If their parole status is allowed to lapse, Plaintiffs will be faced with two unfavorable options: continue following the law and leave the country on their own, or await removal proceedings,” the judge wrote in her ruling. “If Plaintiffs leave the country on their own, they will face dangers in their native countries, as set forth in their affidavits.”  

“For some Plaintiffs, leaving will also cause family separation,” Talwani continued. “Leaving may also mean Plaintiffs will have forfeited any opportunity to obtain a remedy based on their [Administrative Procedure Act] claims, as leaving may moot those claims.”  

In the summer of 2024, the Biden administration temporarily paused the parole program due to reports of fraud, but later resumed the program after changes were reportedly made to diminish abuse of the parole program.  

Talwani’s ruling comes as a blow to the Trump administration that is aggressively encouraging illegal aliens to self-deports using the CBP Home app or face fines or forced removal.  

“Illegal aliens should use the CBP Home app to self-deport and leave the country now,” a Sunday post on the DHS X account reads. “If you don’t, you will face the consequences. This includes a fine of nearly $1,000 per day that you overstay your final deportation order.” 

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem has warned that if illegal immigrants don’t self-deport, “we will find them, we will deport them, and they will never return.”  

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