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US orders pause to programs allowing temporary immigrant settlement, NYT reports

President Donald Trump, on his first day in office on Monday, issued a series of executive orders intended to deter illegal immigration and position the US to deport millions of immigrants without legal status.

Migrants line up to board boats to continue their journey north hoping to reach the United States after walking across the Darien Gap from Colombia in Bajo Chiquito, Panama, Nov. 9, 2024. (AP)

US Department of Homeland Security officials have ordered what amounts to a pause in several programs that allow immigrants to settle temporarily in the United States, the New York Times reported on Friday.

The directive demands an immediate end to “final decisions” on certain visa applications pending a review by the Trump administration about whether to cancel the programs permanently, the Times reported, citing an email sent by the top official at US Citizenship and Immigration Services.

The programs offer possible entry for a large number of immigrants from an array of countries, including war-torn Ukraine and others dealing with political upheaval or extreme poverty.

Tensions at the border are running high, with many migrants and humanitarian groups fearing for their safety. Trump’s national emergency declaration has only added to the sense of unease, with many worried about the impact it will have on the already fragile situation. (AP)

President Donald Trump, on his first day in office on Monday, issued a series of executive orders intended to deter illegal immigration and position the US to deport millions of immigrants without legal status.

The Trump administration is pushing ahead with efforts to ramp up immigration enforcement, opening up the possibility of targeting migrants who entered through Biden-era programs and invoking an obscure immigration statute to make it easier to deputize state and local law enforcement to arrest and detain immigrants in the US illegally.

One terminated program had allowed migrants waiting in Mexico to schedule an appointment to request asylum at a legal border crossing. Another allowed Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans outside the US to enter by air if they had US sponsors and undergone vetting.