Supreme Court Approves Mass Visa Revocations

The United States Supreme Court ruled on Friday (30) that the administration of President Donald Trump may revoke the temporary legal status of more than 500,000 immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. This decision marks a significant shift in U.S. immigration policy, overturning a measure introduced under President Joe Biden that had allowed these individuals to enter the country legally on a temporary basis for humanitarian reasons or public interest.

The program, launched in 2022 and expanded in 2023, granted eligible foreigners the right to live and work legally in the U.S. for an initial period of two years, provided they had an American sponsor responsible for their financial support. The initiative aimed to reduce illegal border crossings by offering a controlled legal alternative, particularly along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Supreme Court’s decision overruled a prior injunction issued by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston, who argued that federal immigration law requires case-by-case evaluations for humanitarian parole, rather than collective revocations. However, the majority of justices sided with the Trump administration’s emergency appeal, authorizing a mass termination of these legal statuses. The final vote count was not disclosed, but two justices dissented.

This decision opens the door for affected immigrants to be placed in expedited removal proceedings, a process under federal law for those who have been in the country for less than two years. It is estimated that approximately 532,000 migrants entered the U.S. under these now-rescinded programs. Many have pending asylum or immigration applications, which have now been indefinitely suspended.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has indicated plans to enforce expedited removals and has instructed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to conduct at least 3,000 arrests per day, aiming for an annual total of one million. Simultaneously, a voluntary departure campaign has been launched, offering limited financial assistance to those who choose to leave the country on their own.

The Trump administration argues that maintaining the parole programs undermines critical immigration policies and encroaches on the Executive Branch’s discretionary authority in matters of immigration and foreign policy. U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer told the Court that requiring individualized determinations would be an unmanageable task and would interfere with powers expressly granted to the Executive, not the judiciary.

On the other hand, the immigrants affected, who have filed lawsuits against the decision, argue that the abrupt termination of parole places them at severe risk, exposing them to potential persecution, violence, or even death in their home countries, many of which are marked by authoritarian regimes and deep economic crises.