As Trump presses to remove humanitarian parolees, some in Utah have already left on their own

KEY TAKEAWAYS

The notice advising immigrant beneficiaries of a humanitarian parole program revoked by the Trump administration that they must leave isn't a shock for some.
Some have voluntarily left the United States as the program for Venezuelans, Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans has faced dismantling, fearing forcible deportation.
Others have sought asylum or married their U.S. partners in a bid to stay.

SALT LAKE CITY — Some Venezuelans in Utah, thanks to a humanitarian parole program launched under President Joe Biden, have already known their days were likely numbered.

As such, the Trump administration's announcement on Thursday that it is immediately revoking their work authorization and permission to be in the country may not have come as such a shock. Patricia Quiñonez of Utahzolanos, a digital media outlet that caters to the Venezuelan community, said some who received preliminary notices on the matter last April have already left on their own, as sought by the Trump administration.

"They had their passports, they bought their tickets and they left," said Quiñonez, with some returning to Venezuela and others going to places like Colombia or Spain. "At first, they were worried they'd be deported, and they couldn't control the decision. That's why they decided to go on their own before becoming deportable."

At the same time, South Jordan immigration attorney Christopher Vizcardo said since the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's initial notice last March ending the parole program for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans, many have investigated other options allowing them to remain.

"I've had a lot of consultations lately of people trying to find other options. Some people, for example, married a U.S. citizen and have the possibility of getting a green card through that," he said, referencing the informal name of the U.S. identity card granted to those with legal permanent residency. "Some people are seeking asylum, which is definitely also a valid option."

President Donald Trump has made the detention and deportation of immigrants in the country illegally a priority. At the same time, he has dismantled immigration programs launched under Biden — including the humanitarian parole program for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans — to push immigrants out. The program benefits around 532,000 people around the country, and in Utah, most beneficiaries come from Venezuela, according to Vizcardo.

"Ending the CHNV parole programs, as well as the paroles of those who exploited it, will be a necessary return to common-sense policies, a return to public safety and a return to America first," Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary of homeland security, said in a statement Thursday. McLaughlin charged that those benefitting from the humanitarian program were "poorly vetted" and that their presence "undercut American workers."

Since Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem last March first announced the program for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans would be ended, it's been the focus of a court challenge by immigrant advocates trying to keep it intact. The U.S. Supreme Court on May 30, however, ruled that the Trump administration may revoke the temporary legal status even as the court challenge continues, precipitating Thursday's announcement.

The Department of Homeland Security said in its statement that it had started sending "termination notices" to those paroled into the country under the program.

"The messages informed the illegal aliens both their parole is terminated, and their parole-based employment authorization is revoked — effective immediately," reads the statement. The department, it continues, "is now notifying parole recipients if they have not obtained lawful status to remain in the U.S., they must leave immediately."

As the issue has already been the focus of public debate, neither Quiñonez nor Vizcardo reported an immediate outcry from impacted immigrants. "I'm sure it's just a matter of time before we start getting phone calls about that," Vizcardo said.

At this stage, Vizcardo said most of those impacted have opted to seek asylum as a means of remaining. Given conditions in Venezuela, governed by President Nicolás Maduro, a socialist who critics say has persecuted political foes, they have valid claims and a "legitimate fear of return."

Like Quiñonez, though, Vizcardo said some have also voluntarily left the country, an option the Department of Homeland Security endorses. Figuring in decisions to self-deport have been concerns of being forcibly deported by immigration authorities to a third country, like El Salvador, and the threat of being separated from family.

Those she knows who voluntarily left "couldn't live under the cloud of fear," Quiñonez said.

Spain is a consideration, she said, because it's easier for Venezuelans to legally enter the country.

"It's easy compared to the United States to get a work permit. You arrive and ask for asylum and they give you a work permit six months later and two years later, you can get residency," she said.

The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.