Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas issued a decree making certain Venezuelans eligible for Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which allows the U.S. government to grant provisional humanitarian protection to immigrants whose home countries are plagued by armed conflict, recovering from natural disasters, dealing with an epidemic or otherwise unable to guarantee the safe return of their citizens.
"The designation is due to the extraordinary and temporary conditions in Venezuela, which is one of the statutory bases for it," a senior Biden administration official told reporters on a call Monday. "Because of conditions there, it is not safe for Venezuelans to return."
The TPS designation, which was
first reported by the Los Angeles Times, applies to undocumented Venezuelan immigrants who have been living in the U.S. as of Monday. Senior Biden administration officials said an estimated 320,000 Venezuelans would be eligible for the relief, and fees associated with the application process total $545.
Republican and Democratic administrations have sought to isolate the increasingly authoritarian government of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who has managed to hold on to power despite a political challenge mounted by Juan Guaidó, who the U.S. and other Western countries have recognized as the country's legitimate interim president.
During the presidential campaign, President Biden promised to grant TPS to Venezuelans "seeking relief from the humanitarian crisis brought on by the Maduro regime."