ORLANDO, Fla. – Immigration lawyer, Laura Quintero, with Quintero Fortich Legal, explained what a Temporary Protected Status is, also known as a T.P.S.
Quintero said the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services recently announced the extension of T.P.S. for Venezuelans who entered the U.S. before March of 2021.
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“If you entered the United States before March 8, 2021, and you were a national or born in Venezuela, you will be able to opt to apply for this T.P.S. Recently, they extended the protection 18 months,” she said.
Quintero’s firm partner, attorney Isabella Fortich, explained because of the political and economic crisis in Venezuela, there’s been an influx of Venezuelan immigrants in Central Florida.
“I feel like in Central Florida, we’ve gotten a lot of Venezuelans who first came here and have been telling their cousins, their families, their friends, like come on over, it’s great here. It’s not Miami. It’s not as crowded,” Fortich said.
Fortich and Quintero explained about 345,000 Venezuelans in the U.S. are eligible for T.P.S., but only a small percentage have applied for it.
“Many Venezuelans they don’t have a strong asylum case, even though the situation in Venezuela is bad, because you need to prove that you’re a member of a particular group or you have a political opinion and just being a person and you’re against the government, doesn’t go to the standard to get an asylum in the U.S.” Quintero said.
Venezuelans granted T.P.S. can remain in the states without threat of deportation, and it’s been renewed for another 18 months or until March 2024.
The deadline to register is Nov. 7.
“I think it’s really important to start raising more awareness for it because dates are coming and going and people aren’t sure and people are very confused to the different dates,” attorney Camyla Hernandez said.
For more information on how to apply click here.