President Obama announced today, in an effort to discourage thousands of unaccompanied children from trying to enter the U.S. illegally, an instruction to immigration officials and the U.S. Department of State, to allows nationals of Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador to apply for refugee status in their home nation for the first time ever.
The current method of applying for refugee status in the U.S. for nationals of other countries and previously for Central America, is to apply at the U.S./Mexico or U.S./Canada border in person.
Read more about U.S. refugee status on our website.
The memo from the White House also capped the total number of refugees that the Obama Administration will admit from all Latin American countries and the Caribbean at 4,000 for Fiscal Year 2015, down from 5,000 in the last year.
Under this new plan, the Department of State will begin accepting applications for refugee status at U.S. Embassies and Consulates in Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador by the end of December. Officials at the State Department and Homeland Security are still currently deciding exactly who would qualify for the refugee program. Our Los Angeles immigration attorneys are hoping to see coverage for at least victims of gang violence or sexual abuse.
If you or a loved one has questions about immigration, we encourage you to contact our expert immigration attorneys in Los Angeles now for a FREE consultation.
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