(Tribune News Service) — The Biden administration is restarting a humanitarian parole program that allows Cubans, Nicaraguans, Haitians and Venezuelans to come to the United States after it temporarily paused it because of fraud concerns.

The Department of Homeland Security announced Thursday that it would start approving travel documents again so people from the four countries could fly to the U.S. under the immigration scheme, which allows people from the four countries to live and work here for a period of two years if they pass health and background checks.

Homeland Security had announced a halt to the program earlier this month after the review of sponsorship applications had raised worries of fraud. As part of the temporary pause to review applications, it analyzed specific trends to determine whether there had actually been fraud. However, in most cases, the concerns were resolved without further issue, though some cases of fraud or unqualified sponsors were also identified. Only a very small number of people were referred to law enforcement for investigation because of suspected fraud or criminal activity.

The program will now have enhanced security measures such as additional scrutiny of sponsors’ financial records and criminal backgrounds.

“DHS is committed to holding accountable individuals who commit fraud or attempt to exploit others for gain. Any individuals found to have committed fraud or other abuse will be referred to law enforcement for potential prosecution,” said a spokesperson for the agency.

Over half a million people from Cuba, Nicaragua, Haiti and Venezuela have come to the U.S. through the parole process, which the Biden administration established in 2023 as part of its measures to curb irregular migration.

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