On the last day of his horrendous administration, disgraced Donald Trump did one kind act for some immigrants in the US: Venezuelans. He signed an Executive Order granting Deferred Enforcement Departure for certain Venezuelans. After such an order, USCIS should institute certain processes that allow Venezuelans to apply for this benefit, which will include an 18-months stop on on pending or future deportation actions. Also, eligible Venezuelans will be able apply for a work permit (or Employment Authorization Document) using some version of Form I-765. To date, USCIS has not posted any rules or procedures to execute this memo. Keep an eye on USCIS.gov for updates on this possible benefit for some Venezuelans.
To be eligible, the person would need to
- Be a national of Venezuela, or stateless person who last habitually resided in Venezuela
- Is present in the United States as of January 20, 2021
- Have not voluntarily returned to Venezuela or their country of last habitual residence outside the United States;
- Have continuously resided in the United States since January 20, 2021;
- Are not inadmissible under section 212(a)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)) or removable under section 237(a)(4) of the INA (8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(4))
- Have not been convicted of any felony or 2 or more misdemeanors committed in the United States, or who meet the criteria set forth in section 208(b)(2)(A) of the INA (8 U.S.C. 1158(b)(2)(A));
- Have not been deported, excluded, or removed, prior to January 20, 2021;
- Are not subject to extradition;
- Whose presence in the US is in the national interest;
- Who is not a danger to public safety;
- Whose presence poses no serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States.
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