Trump asks Supreme Court to reinstate revocation of parole for Cubans, other migrants
The Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday to reinstate its decision to end a program that granted temporary humanitarian parole to more than 500,000 migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela.
In an emergency filing, Solicitor General D. John Sauer requested that the court block a ruling by a federal district judge in Massachusetts that stopped the Department of Homeland Security from revoking the parole status granted under a Biden-era policy.
The program, introduced by former DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, allowed migrants from those four countries to come to the U.S. for up to two years as part of an effort to reduce unlawful border crossings.
In March, current DHS Secretary Kristi Noem terminated the parole program, known as CHNV for the initials of the countries involved, citing national security risks, mounting immigration backlogs, and evolving foreign policy concerns. But after the case went to court, U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani ruled that DHS could not end the program across the board. Instead, she ordered the agency to conduct individual case reviews for all 532,000 migrants before revoking their parole.
The administration argues that the decision exceeds the court’s authority and interferes with powers Congress granted to DHS. Sauer noted that federal law gives the DHS secretary broad discretion over parole decisions—including the ability to revoke them—and limits judicial review of such actions.
Sauer criticized what he called a “one-way ratchet,” saying the court allowed Mayorkas to approve parole for large groups but is now requiring Noem to revoke it one case at a time. He warned that this could overwhelm the already overburdened immigration system.
“The district court’s indefinite halt of parole revocation irreparably harms the government,” Sauer wrote. “The court’s order blocks the Executive Branch from exercising its discretionary authority over a key aspect of the Nation’s immigration and foreign policy and thwarts Congress’s express vesting of that decision in the Secretary, not courts.”
The First Circuit Court of Appeals had previously denied the administration’s request to pause the lower court ruling, prompting the appeal to the Supreme Court.
The administration emphasized that migrants knew their parole was temporary and could be revoked at any time. It warned that the court’s order could disrupt immigration enforcement and diplomatic efforts.
The Supreme Court is expected to issue a decision soon, with major implications for executive authority and immigration policy.
President Biden established the CHNV “humanitarian parole” program in January 2023 in an effort to stem the flow if undocumented immigration to the U.S.-Mexico border. It allowed people from the four countries to come to the U.S. for two years if they had a sponsor in the United States, passed a background check and bought a plane ticket. The program allowed a maximum of 30,000 people a month to come to the U.S. More than 500,000 people came to the U.S. under the program.
The attorneys representing the four groups argue that ending the CHNV program is not only legally flawed but also inhumane, as it effectively cuts off pathways to asylum and permanent residency for thousands of vulnerable individuals.
Freezing the status quo in place prevents hundreds of thousands of immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela from imminent termination of their parole status by the Trump administration. Still, the paroled immigrants, depending on when they arrived in the United States, face a two-year deadline that affects each one differently — it could fall next month, this summer or even in 2026 for those who arrived as recently as last December, for example.
Immigration lawyers highlight challenges for paroled immigrants seeking asylum, TPS, or green cards while advocates hope those with pending applications can remain in the U.S. even after their parole expires, a courtesy the Trump administration would likely not extend, arguing its termination order was not subject to court review.
Talwani’s ruling only halted the revocation of parole status and work permits, not pending applications for other immigration benefits.
The Trump administration argued during the Boston case that the parole program, created by Biden to provide a legal avenue for entry and reduce border irregular migration for individuals with U.S. sponsors and who passed checks, did not align with its foreign policy and had little impact on border flows.
As of December 2024, over 531,000 people entered via the program from the troubled nations facing political repression, violence and economic turmoil. The administration intends to prioritize for deportation those without pending applications for legal status, such as asylum or TPS. Talwani ruled the administration misinterpreted immigration law by viewing paroled migrants as illegal border crossers rather than individuals granted legal entry.
Miami Herald reporter Jay Weaver contributed to this story.
This story was originally published May 8, 2025 at 10:51 PM.
