Beautiful Virgin Islands

Saturday, Oct 25, 2025

U.S. grants some Venezuelans speedy entry under new program, sponsors say

U.S. grants some Venezuelans speedy entry under new program, sponsors say

U.S. sponsors applying to bring Venezuelans into the United States under a new program are receiving approvals in hours or days, a lightning-fast pace that could soon fill up available spaces in the program, according to U.S. sponsors and advocates.

Some sponsors are U.S.-based relatives of Venezuelans eager to flee political and economic turmoil back home. But others, like South Florida business consultant Maria Antonietta Diaz, are willing to help strangers. Diaz, a Venezuelan-American advocate who has lived in the United States for the past 25 years, got in touch with Venezuelans seeking sponsors via social media.

Since the humanitarian program officially launched on Oct. 18, Diaz has already been approved to sponsor nine Venezuelans - six in her hometown of Maracaibo, Venezuela, and another three in Mexico en route to the United States.

The program does not have explicit income requirements but Diaz and her husband earn $150,000 annually, far above the roughly $23,000 that would typically be required to sponsor someone for a U.S. green card.

Around 7,000 Venezuelans have been approved for the new program since the Oct. 18 launch, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. The source did not say how many had applied.

"It is clear that this orderly and limited way to live and work in the United States is providing incentives to Venezuelans to not put their lives in the hands of smugglers," the person said, requesting anonymity to share internal figures.

Diaz's request to sponsor a Venezuelan man in Cuernavaca was approved in just an hour, she said. She submitted another for two women in Mexico City at midnight and woke at 7 a.m. to see it was approved. Other organizations tracking the program also said applications have been approved quickly.

"It's incredible," Diaz said, calling it "huge progress" compared with the normal pace of U.S. immigration processing, which can take years in some cases.

U.S. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, launched a two-pronged approach to deter illegal border crossings last month. Venezuelans caught crossing illegally are now expelled back to Mexico under a pandemic-era order known as Title 42, while up to 24,000 Venezuelans will be allowed to enter legally through the program if they apply while they are abroad.

Biden, a Democrat, has struggled with record numbers of migrant crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border during his presidency - including 187,000 Venezuelans just in fiscal year 2022 - and Republicans have ramped up criticism as they aim to take control of the U.S. Congress in Nov. 8 midterm elections.

On Monday, Reuters video showed Border Patrol shot projectiles at Venezuelan and Central American migrants who crossed the Rio Grande during a protest that started on the Mexican side of the border.


A SAFER OPTION


For 23-year-old Victoriana Loaiza, who was expelled from the United States to Mexico after trekking for more than a month through South and Central America to get to the border, Diaz was a lifeline.

Venezuelan migrant Victoriana Loaiza, 23, who was expelled from the U.S. to Mexico under Title 42 and later got a humanitarian parole to travel back to U.S., poses for a portrait in Mexico City, Mexico October 28, 2022.


Loaiza managed a luxury accessory store in Maracaibo, but she said her $180 monthly income was not enough to support her 5-year-old son, as the price of a monthly basket of goods for a family has risen to around $375, according to the Venezuelan Finance Observatory.

After being sent back to Mexico, she quickly found Diaz through a friend, contacted her on Oct. 18, applied for the program and was approved by Oct. 27. She flew to Orlando on Monday, where she met her boyfriend, who arrived last year but could not act as her sponsor as he himself is applying for U.S. asylum and lacks legal status. She hopes to bring over her son once she is settled.

Venezuelans approved through the program - which is modeled on a similar effort launched earlier this year for Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion - receive permission to reside in the United States for up to two years and can apply for a work permits.

U.S. sponsors do not need to be related to Venezuelans to support their applications, but they must have permission to reside in the United States. Both sponsors and Venezuelan applicants have to pass background checks.

A week after the new program was announced and the Mexico return policy was enacted, U.S. authorities saw an 80% decrease in Venezuelan border encounters.

Loaiza said the program provides a safer alternative to Venezuelans than venturing through the Darien Gap, a jungle separating Colombia and Panama that she traveled through on foot.

"It prevents a lot of people from risking their lives," she said.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
China and Russia Deploy Seductive Espionage Networks to Infiltrate U.S. Tech Sector
Apple’s ‘iPhone Air’ Collapses After One Month — Another Major Misstep for the Tech Giant
Graham Potter Begins New Chapter as Sweden Head Coach on Short-Term Deal
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Alleges Poison Plot via Chocolate and Jam
Lakestar to Halt External Fundraising as Investor in Revolut and Spotify
U.S. Innovation Ranking Under Scrutiny as China Leads Output Outputs but Ranks 10th
Three Men Arrested in London on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
×