The Biden administration has expanded the Temporary Protected Status or TPS program for the next 18 months for Venezuelans living and working in the United States.
The program allows people to remain in the U.S. without the threat of deportation.
That means an additional 472,000 Venezuelan nationals will be able to continue to live and work in the United States. 242,700 Venezuelans are already TPS beneficiaries.
According to the Pew Research Center, Florida has the largest community of Venezuelan born residents, with 47 percent of the total Venezuelan population of the U.S. living in the state.
The Florida Immigrant Coalition in a statement said, “This decision recognizes the dire and ongoing humanitarian, security, political, and environmental conditions that have afflicted Venezuela, making it unsafe for its nationals to return.”
The Coalition is calling on the administration to open up TPS to people from Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala who have faced similar humanitarian crises.
In the same statement they said, "It is crucial to highlight that this decision would not only be the right humanitarian gesture but also an acknowledgment of the valuable contributions that TPS holders make to this country."
"Many of these individuals have been living and working in the United States for years, contributing to their communities, and helping in the advancement of the U.S. economy. They are essential workers, nurturing their families here and thriving despite the challenging circumstances they have faced," said the Coalition.
A few weeks ago the Biden administration also expanded the TPS program for nationals from El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, Sudan and Ukraine.
The list of countries with active TPS status include: Afghanistan, Cameroon, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Haiti, Honduras, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Syria, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Ukraine, Venezuela and Yemen.
