June 9, 2023

Evacuate Our Allies Welcomes Opening of Re-parole for Afghans

WASHINGTON D.C. – The Evacuate Our Allies (EOA) coalition welcomed the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) opening of a new efficient and accessible re-parole process that will enable certain Afghan nationals who arrived through Operation Allies Welcome (OAW) to remain in the United States.

While the new process is urgently needed to extend Afghan evacuees’ temporary permission to live and work in the United States, the EOA coalition urges Congress to immediately re-introduce and pass the Afghan Adjustment Act, a bipartisan bill that provides a pathway for evacuated Afghans to become lawful permanent residents and find lasting protection in the United States.

“For months, LIRS and coalition partners have urged the Biden administration to create a new, streamlined, and efficient process for Afghan evacuees,” said Jill Marie Bussey, Director for Public Policy at Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service. “While we are encouraged to see the effort and innovation that the Biden administration has put into establishing this new re-parole process, the need for an extension of temporary protection in itself underscores the urgency for Congress to deliver lasting protections for Afghan evacuees who should not fear losing the foothold of safety and stability they currently have in the U.S. We need Congress to immediately re-introduce and pass the Afghan Adjustment Act.”

“Human Rights First and our partners in the Evacuate Our Allies coalition welcome the announcement of a re-parole process for Afghan evacuees, and will continue to advocate for their long-term protection in the United States,” said Seelai Karzai, Afghanistan Advocacy Campaign Manager at Human Rights First. “Temporary extensions of parole do not absolve the administration and Congress of their responsibility to honor the U.S. government’s promises to Afghans. Congress’ failure necessitated this action, and in order to ensure lasting protections, it must quickly re-introduce and pass the Afghan Adjustment Act.”

“The establishment of a new re-parole process for resettled Afghans is a welcome initiative, one that the Afghan-American Foundation and the Evacuate our Allies together with have been advocating continuously for several months,” said Mustafa Babak, Executive Director of the Afghan-American Foundation. “Mechanisms like parole are temporary solutions and do not fix the need for lasting stability and peace of mind that as a country we have promised to our Afghan allies. Congress must act swiftly to reintroduce and pass the Afghan Adjustment Act – the most comprehensive legislative mechanism that will fulfill our promise. The new Afghan members of our American family deserve better.”

“We welcome the announcement of a re-parole process, a vital and necessary step to ensure some level of stability and security for relocated Afghans. But this announcement does not mean the work is done – the administration must work diligently to create a process that is accessible and supports continuity of services, benefits, and protections for those with pending applications,” said Danilo Zak, Acting Director of Policy and Advocacy at Church World Service. “The fact that these temporary parole protections continue to be so necessary highlights the urgent need for Congress to pass an Afghan Adjustment Act and provide a clear path to a permanent status. We must continue to call for permanency and stability for our Afghan neighbors.”

“Offering an improved re-parole process is the right thing to do, when thousands of Afghans are still without a path to more permanent status and at risk of losing their protections here in the United States,” said Adam Bates, Supervisory Policy Counsel at the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP). “However, this can only be a stop-gap measure, and Congress must act soon to reintroduce and pass the Afghan Adjustment Act.”

“We are relieved that after many months of advocacy, Afghan parolees will be able to apply for re-parole as they go through the procedural hurdles of attaining long-term lawful status. We continue to urge Congress to pass the Afghan Adjustment Act so our Afghan communities can finally receive permanent legal protections,” said Homayra Yusufi, Interim Executive Director for the Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans.

“As a result of months of collective advocacy, evacuated Afghans finally have access to renewed temporary protections. This will ease the burden of accessing pathways to permanent safety, but we are still waiting for Congress and the administration to act in creating accessible pathways to permanent status, family reunification, and refuge,” said Laila Ayub, Immigration Attorney and Co-Director of Project ANAR.

Through OAW, 77,400 Afghan evacuees arrived in the United States on temporary 2-year parole and received corresponding work authorizations, both of which are set to expire as early as next month. The more than 25,000 Afghan nationals who have either applied for asylum or adjustment of status under the Special Immigrant Visa program will be eligible for a case-by-case review and extension of parole and work authorization.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will administer the new re-parole process. USCIS guidance indicates that Afghan evacuees who have filed for Temporary Protected Status (TPS), or who have not filed for asylum or adjustment of status since applying for their initial parole-based employment authorization document, will be required to apply for an additional two years of parole and work authorization.

The re-parole application process has been streamlined by eliminating government filing fees and financial support requirements and consolidating forms so that only one Form I-131 will need to be submitted for both re-parole and work authorization. The re-parole application may be filed online, for applicants who have established a MyUSCIS account, or by mail.

USCIS has also released new resources for the community to advise them on how to avoid immigration services scams (also available in Dari and Pashto). Additionally, USCIS has organized a series of Afghan Support Centers at locations throughout the United States which provide access to services and resources in order to better facilitate their resettlement.

The Coalition encourages Afghan nationals requiring re-parole and screening for other long-term immigration options to ensure that they seek qualified legal services providers to assist them in their immigration process.