DHS Ends Household Reunification Parole Packages
On December 12, 2025, the Division of Homeland Safety (DHS) introduced that it’s terminating all categorical Household Reunification Parole (FRP) packages for residents of Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, and Honduras, together with their rapid relations.
These packages allowed sure relations of U.S. residents and everlasting residents to enter america on parole whereas awaiting completion of the immigrant visa course of.
DHS described the transfer as an effort to finish what they described because the “abuse of humanitarian parole,” arguing that these packages allowed people to bypass conventional immigration procedures with out enough vetting. Beneath the brand new coverage, parole might be granted on a case-by-case foundation.
The termination takes impact December 15, 2025, and parole for people already admitted underneath FRP will typically expire on January 14, 2026, except they’ve a pending Type I-485 Software to Alter Standing that’s postmarked or electronically filed on or earlier than December 15 and it’s nonetheless pending on January 14, 2026.
If a person has a pending Type I-485, their parole will stay legitimate till both their interval of parole expires or USCIS makes a remaining resolution on their pending Type I-485, whichever is sooner. If the Type I-485 is denied, the interval of parole might be terminated, and they are going to be required to depart america or search aid by means of different authorized pathways.
Employment authorization based mostly solely on parole might be revoked because the packages wind down. These affected might be notified of the termination of their parole interval and of the revocation of their employment authorization.
This coverage is distressing notably for households hoping to reunite by means of expedited parole packages. This variation will extend separation for households ready in lengthy backlogs for immigrant visa consular processing.
Expanded Screening & Vetting for H-1B and H-4 Visa Candidates
On the identical time, the U.S. Division of State has rolled out an expanded vetting coverage for H-1B and H-4 nonimmigrant work visas.
Efficient December 15, 2025, the State Division will broaden the requirement for on-line presence evaluations to all H-1B visa candidates and their H-4 dependent relations, including them to the checklist of classes already topic to social media and digital screening (comparable to F, M, and J visas).
Beneath this new directive, consular officers are licensed to evaluation publicly accessible on-line content material from candidates’ social media and digital profiles as a part of the visa adjudication course of.
To facilitate this screening, candidates are instructed to set the privateness settings of all social media profiles to “public” throughout processing. The division frames this as a part of nationwide safety and public security vetting, stating that “each visa adjudication is a nationwide safety resolution.”
This coverage change displays the broader pattern in U.S. immigration coverage towards digital vetting, with the federal government utilizing accessible on-line info to evaluate the admissibility of international nationals.
Earlier than attending a visa interview, seek the advice of with an immigration legal professional to conduct an intensive evaluation of your social media presence and handle any probably derogatory info prematurely.
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