U.S. reopens migrant sponsorship program with new vetting process to combat fraud

The Biden administration is reopening an updated version of a migrant sponsorship program that it abruptly shut down earlier this summer due to concerns about fraud, Department of Homeland Security officials said Thursday.

Established in late 2022 and expanded in early 2023 as a way to divert migrants from the U.S.-Mexico border, the initiative allows up to 30,000 people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela to travel to the United States each month if U.S.-based sponsors can support them.

That program, combined with Mexico’s decision to take back citizens of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela who crossed the border illegally into the United States, led to a dramatic drop in migrant crossings from those four countries. But the policy was suspended in July after officials raised concerns that some potential sponsors were filing fraudulent applications.

After a pause of several weeks, the Department of Homeland Security is restarting the program with a strengthened screening process for those who want to sponsor migrants under the policy. The government will now require those who want to sponsor migrants to submit fingerprints for the vetting process. Officials also plan to more closely examine potential sponsors’ financial and criminal records and increase surveillance of repeat sponsors.

“With these updated procedures in place, DHS is resuming the issuance of new advance travel authorizations and will closely monitor how this new process works going forward,” Homeland Security spokesperson Naree Ketudat said in a statement.

Sponsors must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents, or hold another legal immigration status. Concerns about fraud in the program focus on potential sponsors, not migrants, who are also subject to security screening before being allowed to book travel to the United States.

DHS officials said an initial investigation into potential fraud within the program found that the majority of cases of concern had a “reasonable explanation,” including reporting errors. But officials said the review uncovered some cases of fraud, including potential sponsors using fraudulent Social Security numbers. A small number of applicants were referred to law enforcement for further investigation and possible prosecution, officials said.

Known as CHNV because of the initials of the four nationalities eligible for the measure, the measure is a pillar of the Biden administration's strategy to reduce the number of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border, which has spiked in recent years. So far, more than half a million migrants have arrived in the United States under the measure, according to government data.

The administration has created multiple pathways for migrants to enter the United States legally, including through an app that distributes entry appointments for those waiting in Mexico, while increasing penalties for those who cross the southern border illegally. Most recently, President Biden effectively shut down access to the U.S. asylum system between legal ports of entry at the border, a move that officials attribute to the number of illegal crossings hitting a nearly four-year high this summer.

The CHNV policy allows eligible Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans with U.S. sponsors to travel to the United States, where they can apply for temporary work permits under the Immigrant Parole Act, which allows presidents to admit foreign nationals for humanitarian or public interest reasons.

The Biden administration has argued that the policy is justified on humanitarian grounds because of the economic crises and political unrest in the four countries. It has also argued that the program serves a public policy purpose by reducing illegal immigration of migrants from those countries by providing them with a legal alternative to coming to the United States.

Republican state officials have called the CHNV policy illegal, arguing in a lawsuit that the program circumvents congressionally imposed limits on legal immigration. But a federal judge in Texas dismissed that lawsuit earlier this year, finding that GOP-led states had failed to prove they were harmed by the program.

More from Camilo Montoya-Galvez

Camilo Montoya-Galvez is an immigration reporter for CBS News. Based in Washington, D.C., he covers immigration issues and politics.

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