On Monday, the Department of Homeland Security extended temporary protected status, TPS, to Venezuelan citizens living in the US. The 18-months of deportation relief is an extension of the short-term protections from the Trump administration.
“The living conditions in Venezuela reveal a country in turmoil, unable to protect its own citizens,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said. “It is in times of extraordinary and temporary circumstances like these that the United States steps forward to support eligible Venezuelan nationals already present here, while their home country seeks to right itself out of the current crises.”
Under this designation, Venezuelan nationals and people who last lived in Venezuela and lived in the US as of March 8 can apply for TPS. Applicants must file with USCIS within the first 180-day registration period.