DHS to End Family Reunification Parole Program, Citing Security Concerns

WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is shutting down Family Reunification Parole (FRP) programs for immigrants from Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, and Honduras, along with their immediate family members, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced in an alert issued Dec. 12.

The FRP program was designed to allow U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents to bring eligible family members to the United States temporarily while they pursued permanent residency. The parole granted under the program allowed immigrants to enter and remain in the country while applying for green cards or other qualifying immigration benefits.

USCIS said the decision was driven by serious security concerns, citing insufficient vetting procedures that it says created vulnerabilities in the system. According to the agency, those gaps allowed “malicious actors” to exploit the program, posing what officials described as an “unacceptable level of risk” to national security.

“This administration is ending the abuse of humanitarian parole, which allowed poorly vetted aliens to circumvent the traditional parole process,” USCIS said in a statement.

The agency emphasized that parole was never intended to function as a broad immigration pathway. “DHS is returning parole to a case-by-case basis, as intended by Congress. Ending the FRP programs is a necessary return to common-sense policies and a return to America First,” the statement said.

Under the new policy, immigrants who entered the United States through FRP and whose parole does not expire before Jan. 14, 2026, will see their parole terminated on that date. In cases where parole is set to expire earlier, it will remain valid until its original expiration or until a final decision is made on the individual’s immigration application, whichever comes first.

USCIS also warned that if an immigrant’s Form I-485, the application to adjust status to permanent residency, is denied, their parole will immediately end, requiring them to leave the country. Any employment authorization tied to parole status will also be revoked.

“The desire to reunite families does not override the government’s responsibility to prevent fraud and abuse and to protect national security and public safety,” USCIS said, adding that DHS is prioritizing “the safety, security, and economic well-being of Americans.”

An exception will apply to immigrants who have a pending Form I-485 on Jan. 14, provided the application was filed on or before Dec. 15, according to the agency.

The move marks one of the latest steps by the Trump administration to tighten U.S. immigration policy. On the same day, DHS announced that Secretary Kristi Noem was terminating Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Ethiopian nationals. TPS allows individuals from countries facing armed conflict, natural disasters, or extraordinary conditions to live and work temporarily in the United States.

Under the previous administration, TPS coverage was expanded to include hundreds of thousands of migrants from countries such as Haiti, Ukraine, Venezuela, and Afghanistan. In recent months, DHS has also ended TPS for nationals from Haiti, Venezuela, Burma, Syria, and South Sudan.

The administration’s immigration agenda has faced legal challenges. On Nov. 19, U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla temporarily blocked the termination of TPS for more than 6,000 Syrians, ruling that the abrupt move was likely unlawful while a legal challenge proceeds.