In July 2023, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced the creation and implementation of a family reunification parole process (FRP) for certain Colombians, El Salvadoreans, Guatemalans, and Hondurans. The FRP applies to certain individuals from these countries who have been sponsored for immigration to the U.S. by their qualifying U.S. citizen or permanent resident relatives. Due to backlogs in the family-based immigrant visa availability, it can generally take years, even decades, for families to be reunited legally in the U.S. The FRP seeks to alleviate some of the pressure on the southwest U.S. border with illegal migration by allowing these sponsored family members, and their immediate relatives, to be reunited and enter the U.S. up to 3 years early while awaiting availability of their immigrant visas. During this time, they would also be allowed to work in the U.S.
The DHS has also modernized the existing FRP processes for nationals of Cuba and Haiti as of August 2023. In brief, the process will be entirely on-line (as it is for Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras) and not require a personal interview at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate abroad.
