WASHINGTON — Venezuelan asylum seekers who were bused to D.C. from border states are among the migrants who will be impacted by the recent expansion of Temporary Protection Status (TPS).
On Wednesday, the Biden administration announced the expansion of the humanitarian relief that would protect nearly half a million Venezuelans who are already living in the United States from deportation.
"It's very good of the government to offer us this help because it allows us to progress and meet our goals to work in this country," said Julian, a Venezuelan migrant who has been living in the District since May.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas announced that the TPS extension applies to individuals who were residing in the U.S. on or before July 31. DHS anticipates an estimated 472,000 Venezuelans will be eligible for the status that will allow them to live and work legally for 18 months.
Previously only Venezuelans who arrived in the U.S. before March 2021 qualified for TPS.
Immigration Attorney Kelley Escobar Ortega says TPS will provide a sense of relief to many of the Venezuelan migrants who are at the same time in active deportation proceedings as they wait for their asylum cases.
"TPS is something that you can apply while you have an asylum case pending. If your asylum case is not successful, TPS will at least allow you to remain in the country," Escobar Ortega told WUSA9.
D.C. Department of Human Services says the District has tracked 149 migrant buses arriving since October of 2022 which is when the Office of Migrant Services was established by Mayor Muriel Bowser. The D.C. government has provided temporary lodging for over 1,500 migrants according to an agency spokesperson.
Of the migrants who have gone through the intake of SAMU, the organization that has been conducting the welcoming efforts on behalf of the D.C. government, 1,491 migrants have designated the District as their preferred final destination according to the Department of Human Services.
Temporary Protected Status grants work authorization for migrants which according to Escobar Ortega comes with further benefits like decent wages and labor protections as employees.
An official with the Biden administration says the July 31 cutoff date is aimed at discouraging other Venezuelan asylum seekers from crossing into to the U.S.