Immigration Protection Granted to Nepalese

Temporary Protected Status and work authorization now available

Nepali nationals inside the United States may now apply for protection from deportation and work authorization, according to an announcement by Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson, Nepali nationals have until December to file applications with United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.

With TPS, Nepali nationals will be eligible for benefits including work authorization, driver’s licenses, Social Security numbers, and advance parole.

“This protection is a first for Nepal, but immigration lawyers have expected this program ever since the deadly earthquake in April,” said Jamie Gorton, an immigration attorney in Malden, Massachusetts. “Now, Nepali nationals in the United States will have legal permission to stay while the conditions in Nepal recover, and they can work legally to support their families.”

Greater Boston is home to one of the largest communities of Nepali in the United States, including many Nepali-owned businesses in Somerville and Malden. Members of the Nepali community in America have been very active in raising thousands of dollars of charitable relief for the survivors of the earthquake and subsequent avalanche. Over 8,700 people died, including an avalanche on Mount Everest that killed 19. The scope of the devastation rallied public support for expanding TPS. Dozens of Nepali-American organizations and immigration activists pressed for TPS with online petitions.

“The government was under pressure from every angle to approve TPS,” said Gorton. “This program was last activated for Haitians in America after the terrible 2010 earthquake.”

As the name suggests, TPS is temporary protection only, and does not give a person permission to stay in the United States forever. However, Nepali nationals should pay close attention to the benefits that come with TPS, which includes permission to travel outside the United States through a benefit called “advance parole.”

“Advance parole is very exciting, and not very well understood,” added Gorton. “Hundreds of Nepali nationals who otherwise couldn’t travel outside the United States can use advance parole to travel safely, and that will allow Nepali nationals to both help their country and heal themselves, too.”

More importantly, advance parole can be used to help some people in the United States obtain a green card when they have a US Citizen relative, even if they did not come into the United States with a visa.

The Law Offices of Jamie Gorton is a law office focusing on immigration law located in Malden, Massachusetts. A member of the American Immigration Lawyer’s Association, the Office represents businesses, families, U.S. Citizens, and foreign nationals from around the world. Gorton Law LLC can be contacted at (617) 902-0100, or via mail at 40 Eastern Avenue, PO Box 469, Malden MA 02148.