US Strips Benefits From Thousands of Criminal Aliens, Those on Terror Watchlist

The federal government is ending parole benefits for thousands of foreign nationals; Social Security is reclassifying them as ineligible to receive payments.

Illegal immigrants captured by U.S. Border Patrol agents go through a processing center near San Diego on May 31, 2023. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

The Trump administration has ended temporary immigration parole and revoked federal benefits for thousands of foreign nationals flagged as national security risks, part of a broader effort to roll back immigration programs implemented under the Biden administration.

According to White House officials, more than 6,300 individuals who were paroled into the United States during or after 2023 were identified as having criminal records or were listed in the FBI’s Terrorist Screening Database. Their parole was terminated as of April 8.

As part of the enforcement action, the Social Security Administration reclassified those individuals’ Social Security numbers into its Ineligible Master File, a restricted database that prevents improper payment of federal benefits. Formerly known as the Death Master File, the system is used to ensure that only lawfully eligible individuals can access programs such as Social Security, Medicaid, and other federally administered aid.

Immigration parole allows certain noncitizens to temporarily enter and remain in the United States and to receive work authorization and Social Security numbers if granted parole for more than one year.

White House assistant press secretary Liz Huston said the action fulfills President Donald Trump’s campaign pledge to enforce immigration laws more strictly.

“President Trump promised mass deportations, and by removing the monetary incentive for illegal aliens to come and stay, we will encourage them to self-deport,” Huston said in an emailed statement to The Epoch Times. “He is delivering on his promise he made to the American people.”

The policy change follows a March 25 notice in the federal register from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) formally ending the CHNV parole programs. Those programs, created in 2022 and 2023, allowed approximately half a million citizens of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, along with their immediate family members, to request authorization to enter the United States and apply for parole under specified criteria.

“DHS has determined that it is now appropriate and necessary to terminate the CHNV parole programs,” the notice reads. “These programs do not serve a significant public benefit, are not necessary to reduce levels of illegal immigration, did not sufficiently mitigate the domestic effects of illegal immigration, are not serving their intended purposes, and are inconsistent with the administration’s foreign policy goals.”

The DHS also noted that the parole period for individuals still present in the United States under CHNV authority will end on April 24, unless the secretary of Homeland Security makes an individual exception. Those without a lawful basis to remain after that date must depart voluntarily or face enforcement.

The changes are being implemented under Executive Order 14165, Securing Our Borders, signed by Trump on Jan. 20. The order directed the department to terminate parole programs deemed inconsistent with the administration’s immigration priorities.