The Department of Homeland Security on Thursday instituted a new $1,000 fee to deter illegal immigrants from abusing the nation’s parole system in the future.
The parole fee applies to all immigrants granted parole under a section in the Immigration and Nationality Act unless they fall under certain exceptions, such as humanitarian parole or migrants under 18. In this context, federal law allows Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to parole inadmissible immigrants into the United States temporarily on a case-by-case basis.
Immigration parole is typically granted to those in urgent need of entry for humanitarian reasons, but fraud and abuse of the system became prevalent under the prior administration.
“The Biden Administration abused America’s immigration system and turned parole into a de facto amnesty program, thereby allowing millions of unvetted illegal aliens into the U.S., no questions asked, to the detriment of all Americans,” DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.
Under former President Joe Biden, DHS ran one parole program reserved for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans wishing to enter the U.S. after fleeing their native country. This program was terminated by President Donald Trump’s DHS, an action upheld by the Supreme Court.
“Through the implementation of this new fee, President Trump and Secretary Noem are guaranteeing that foreign nationals, who wish to stay here, have skin in the game and do not exploit the system,” McLaughlin added. “This immigration parole fee notice is another tool to stop the degradation of our immigration system and restore law and order to our country.”
The fee is imposed when the parole request is granted, not when one is filed.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection, and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will collect the $1,000 fee, which is subject to change annually based on inflation.
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The Republican Party’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law by Trump on July 4, mandated the fee. DHS published a notice in the Federal Register to make the fee official.
USCIS stressed on Wednesday that the Trump administration will continue its immigration enforcement despite the government shutdown.
