Federal judge to halt Trump admin from ending Biden's CHNV program

On Thursday, a federal judge is set to halt the Trump administration's order from the Department of Homeland Security to end the Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela (CHNV) immigration parole program, which has allowed for hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals to enter the United States. 

The program was originally implemented by the executive authority of the Biden administration, but US District Judge Indira Talwani from Massachusetts—an appointee of former President Barack Obama—is set to pause the Trump administration's decision made by similar executive authority.

This comes after immigration rights group Justice Action Center brought a lawsuit against the Trump administration over the program ending, according to the Miami Herald.

"DHS's decision to terminate the CHNV program and existing grants of parole under that program is within this statutory authority and comports with the notice requirements of the statute and regulations," the Trump administration argued in the case. "Additionally, given the temporary nature of CHNV parole and CHNV parolees' pre-existing inability to seek re-parole under the program, their harms are outweighed by the harms to the public if the Secretary is not permitted to discontinue a program she has determined does not serve the public interest."

President Donald Trump and the Department of Homeland Security implemented an order to end the CHNV program last month so the program would end April 24. In addition, it forces those in the US under the program to leave the country.

The Trump administration wrote in its order to end the program in March, "Parolees without a lawful basis to remain in the United States following this termination of the CHNV parole programs must depart the United States before their parole termination date."

Judge Talwani said that those who are in the US using the program should not be removed as they pursue immigration benefits. Those that came in under the program were eligible for Medicaid and SNAP because of policies implemented by the Biden administration. 

The judge claimed that the Trump administration was using a flawed interpretation of immigration law and argued that because they came in under the CHNV program and did not cross illegally over the border, they should be treated as immigrants who came to the US with permission.

"What you’re prioritizing is not people coming over the border but the people who followed the rules," the judge said.

In effect, the program allowed for those wishing to immigrate to the US from the four countries to come to the US under temporary protected status. As of December 2024, over 530,000 foreign nationals have used the program to enter the United States. The parole program was supposed to allow those coming to the US using the program to stay temporarily for two years, and it started in October 2022 for those coming from Venezuela, according to CBS News. The program was expanded in January 2023 to include citizens of Cuba, Haiti and Nicaragua.