Beautiful Virgin Islands

Sunday, Jul 27, 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
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
×