Deferred action and humanitarian parole are potential options for all humanitarian migrants, minors or otherwise. Deferred action simply means that the United States authorizes a discretionary suspension of its authority to act (usually to deport someone). A formalized Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program was introduced through an executive action by President Obama and formally announced by the Secretary of Homeland Security on June 15, 2012.130 The program was intended to provide an
organized and expeditious manner for a specific population (in this case minors who were brought to the United States at a young age and remain in an unlawful status) to access the existing deferred action law to request temporary relief from deportation and employment authorization. To qualify under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program, immigrants must meet the following criteria:
1. Were under the age of 31 as of June 15, 2012
2. Came to the United States before reaching their 16th birthday
3. Have continuously resided in the United States since June 15, 2007, up to the present time
4. Were physically present in the United States on June 15, 2012, and at the time of making the request for consideration with United States
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
129 “Victims of Human Trafficking and Other Crimes,” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services,
last modified December 10, 2014, http://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/victims-human-trafficking-other- crimes.
130 “Consideration of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals,” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services, last modified January 4, 2016, http://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/consideration-deferred-action- childhood-arrivals-daca.
5. Had no lawful status on June 15, 2012
6. Are currently in school, have graduated or obtained a certificate of completion from high school, have obtained a general education
development (GED) certificate, or are an honorably discharged veteran of the Coast Guard or Armed Forces of the United States
7. Have not been convicted of a felony, significant misdemeanor, or three or more other misdemeanors, and do not otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety131
When the Obama Administration announced that the program would be expanded to include the parents of U.S. citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents, many believed that the program was overstepping the boundaries of the law and represented a type of massive amnesty.132 As a result, on December 3, 2014, 26 states filed an injunction
against the federal government to stop President Obama’s executive action meant to expand the program.133 The injunction was upheld by a federal court of appeals on
November 9, 2015.134 This decision means that no further expansion can be pursued. In
the Honduran fictional scenario, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Program would be eliminated from further consideration because Nestor just arrived in the United States and would therefore not meet the basic residence requirement.
Humanitarian parole can be found under Section 212(d)(5)(A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. It is a rather vague section of law that allows a person to enter the United States for humanitarian reasons or for a significant public benefit.135 The law for
humanitarian parole is not specific and has purposely been left open for interpretation and discretion. There is one general humanitarian parole program that anyone can apply for, and there are different programs for different countries and populations that all exist based on interpretations of the same humanitarian parole law. Some of these programs
131 “Consideration of Deferred Action,” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. 132 “DAPA and Expanded DACA Status,” CitizenPath, last modified January 19, 2016,
https://citizenpath.com/dapa-expanded-daca-status/.
133 State of Texas et al. vs. United States of America et al., No. B-14-254, 2014, United States District
Court Southern District of Texas, “Memorandum Opinion and Order.”
134 Appeal from the United States District Court of the Southern District of Texas, Case: 15–40238,
2015, United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
are discussed in greater detail in Chapter III, on Cuba. For now, this review focuses on the humanitarian parole program that can specifically assist immigrants from Honduras.
A parole is different from a visa. Parole classification does not carry the same rules, restrictions, or time limits as a visa. A parole allows someone with humanitarian need to be admitted into the United States for one year at a time, for an indefinite period of time, as long as the need exists.136 Humanitarian parole also allows the recipient to be
authorized for lawful employment in the United States. However, humanitarian parole is a temporary immigration category that does not lead to Lawful Permanent Residence or U.S. citizenship. Anyone can apply for general consideration of a humanitarian parole. It is not to be used to bypass other visa options, but if a person has no other options, a humanitarian parole can be issued at the discretion of the Department of Homeland Security, as long as the applicant demonstrates significant humanitarian need.137
On December 1, 2014, the Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services began accepting applications for a new program called the Central American Minors Refugee/Parole Program.138 The program is based on the
humanitarian parole law and focuses attention on providing humanitarian parole or, in some cases, refugee status, for qualifying Central American minors who are still present in Central America. The program is intended to provide an alternative path for parents and children seeking to make the dangerous journey from Central America to the United States. The application process begins when the minor’s parent, who must be present in the United States, seeks to bring his or her child (under 21 years of age) to the United States. The parent can be in any of these types of immigration statuses: Permanent Resident Status, Temporary Protected Status, Parolee, Deferred Action, Deferred Enforced Departure, or Withholding of Removal.139 On November 17, 2015, the first six
136 “Humanitarian Parole,” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, last modified August 17, 2015,
http://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/humanitarian-parole.
137 “Humanitarian Parole,” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
138 “In-Country Refugee/Parole Processing,” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. 139 Ibid.
teenagers processed through this new program arrived in the United States.140 The
children entered the United States as refugees and count toward a total of 4,000 allocated refugee slots for Latin America and the Caribbean for fiscal year 2015.141 The U.S.
Refugee Program is covered in greater detail in Chapter VI, on Syria. Up to this point, Honduras has had very little presence in the U.S. Refugee Program.
The fictional character Nestor is already in the United States. The Central American Minors Program is only intended to provide an immigration solution for minors in Central America, albeit only as a temporary solution. Jessica and Nestor will have to wait and see what the attorney recommends.
…
Carolina and Jessica waited for their names to be called in the attorney’s waiting room. Carolina was surprised to see how busy the office was and how many Spanish- speakers she heard. Carolina had asked her husband to stay at home with the kids. They had still not told the children anything about their plans to stay. Carolina thought it would be best to explain everything once she, more or less, had a plan. They had two months before school was scheduled to begin. That should be plenty of time to get their permanent paperwork…
“Carolina Acosta and Jessica Hidalgo?” The receptionist called their names, and greeted them in perfect Spanish.
They walked to a conference room at the end of a hallway where the receptionist offered them water or coffee and explained that the attorney would be with them shortly. A few moments later, a middle-aged Hispanic gentleman appeared. He wore a nice suit and shook their hands warmly. He knew Jessica well, since she had filed her annual Temporary Protected Status paperwork through this office. Jessica introduced Carolina
140 “First Six Teens Arrive in U.S. Legally under Central American Minors Program,” Fox News
Latino, November 17, 2015, http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/politics/2015/11/17/first-six-teens-arrive-in- us-legally-under-central-american-minors-program/.
141 “In-Country Refugee/Parole Program for Minors in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras with
Parents Lawfully Present in the United States Fact Sheet,” Department of State Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, last modified November 14, 2014, http://www.state.gov/j/prm/releases/ factsheets/2014/234067.htm.
to the attorney, who explained he was an immigration attorney serving clients all over Orlando, as well as in North and Central Florida.
Carolina and Jessica explained that they were seeking assistance with two separate matters. Jessica first explained the situation with her son, Nestor, who was detained by Immigration in Texas. The attorney took some notes, including Nestor’s immigration case number, and then explained that Jessica would likely be able to post a bond so that Nestor could be released into her custody. The attorney could also request to have Nestor’s immigration hearing moved to the immigration court in Orlando. The attorney could not make any promises about Nestor staying in the United States, but he remained hopeful. Nestor would file a request for asylum and the immigration judge would be lenient, knowing that Jessica was a recipient of Temporary Protected Status for so many years.
Carolina then took her turn. She talked for a long time about their life in Honduras and their decision to move to the United States. The attorney explained that Carolina may be eligible to receive asylum—Carolina would apply as the principal asylum recipient for the entire family, as she was the one who suffered the direct criminal threats and had the position as a journalist. The attorney warned Carolina, however, that there were not many asylum requests approved for Honduran nationals, and it could take months to arrange a local interview at the Miami Asylum Office.142 The attorney
explained that, if the case was approved after the interview, Carolina could apply for Lawful Permanent Residence. Even if the case was denied, Carolina would have another chance to plead her case before the immigration judge at the time of her removal hearing.
Both women left the office feeling relieved. Jessica made plans to travel to the detention facility outside San Antonio so that she could post bond for Nestor. Carolina would stay at the house and gather the documents requested by the attorney. Everything would fall into place. How hard could it be?
142 “Affirmative Asylum Statistics for January, February, March 2015,” U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services, last modified May 8, 2015, http://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/U.S.CIS/ Outreach/PED-2015-01-03-NGO-Asylum-Stats.pdf.