NEW YORK (PIX11) – The Biden administration announced Wednesday night it will grant temporary legal status to hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan migrants in the U.S.
Many Venezuelans will be able to work legally as a result. Project Rousseau, an organization that provides legal and social services to migrants, will be helping migrants fill out work authorization paperwork to start the process.
The redesignation of temporary protected status will apply to Venezuelans who have been living in the U.S. since on or before July 31. Venezuelan migrants can now work 30 days after their application has been approved compared to waiting 180 days like other asylum seekers.
The move comes as New York City has welcomed more than 110,000 asylum seekers over the past year and a half. The city and state have been pushing for more federal support to deal with the migrants, including expedited work permits.
“Work authorization is the way out of the migrant crisis. Individuals who achieve legal work status will be able to exit the shelter system, find work opportunities and get their shot at the American Dream,” said Gov. Kathy Hochul in a statement.
Mayor Eric Adams, who has been pleading for federal help, also released a statement thanking President Joe Biden.
“I am hopeful that we can continue to partner with President Biden to extend Temporary Protected Status to the tens of thousands of other migrants in our care from other countries,” he said.
Hochul said the state Department of Labor is connecting migrants with employers.
Adams warned the cost of the migrant crisis would destroy the city earlier this month.
