WE have been inundated with letters and emails, inquiring about the status of the Philippines’ call for the United States to designate Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which would give more visa relief to Filipinos in the wake of super typhoon Yolanda.
TPS would help about 1 million Filipinos in the United States with expiring or expired visas, by allowing them to temporarily stay and work in the country, so they can continue to support their families in the Philippines.
Fil-Am group Migrant Heritage Commission (MHC) wrote the letter to the Obama administration on November 11, 2013, calling for TPS designation for the Philippines.
In December of 2013, President Benigno Aquino III endorsed this advocacy.
Meantime, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) responded to the letter of MHC saying the Obama administration is reviewing the request and monitoring the situation in the Philippines.
MHC Executive Director Atty. Arnedo Valera has been reminding our kababayans that “Our demand for TPS is far from over. Hindi pa tapos ang laban. I am calling all Filipino-American national and local organizations, as well as their network organizations from different nationalities, to intensify our campaign for TPS for the Philippines.”
“TPS is part of our mission to help rebuild the lives of our kababayans in the Philippines,” Valera added.
This January, many Filipinos and their advocates came in full force, traveling from all over the country, weathering the cold in the nation’s capital. They were all united in their effort to convince the US government to approve the Philippines’ request to place Filipino nationals in America on a Temporary Protected Status (TPS) — until the Philippines recovers from Typhoon Yolanda.
As Correspondent Monette Rivera reported on Balitang America: For the first time, kababayans and their advocates were able to meet with representatives from the US Department of State in Washington DC.
“Our meeting with the State Department was very productive because they listened to our concerns. They listened to our legal arguments. They took the data that we provided them and they openly accepted it and I believe they are really considering our concerns on this issue,” New York-based immigration lawyer Rio Guerrero told Balitang America.
Jose Antonio Vargas, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and perhaps, the most popular undocumented immigrant in America, also attended the meeting.
Emphasizing the importance of a strong united voice from the Filipino community, Vargas said: “They’re gathering facts. They’re making recommendations. This is going to be a test for our community. Whatever the decision is, in some ways, it’s going to show how organized and united we are and how active we are as a people.”
Rivera further reported on a separate meeting that transpired between Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Cuisia, Jr. and the advocates, to update them on the status of the TPS request.
Cuisia said based on his latest discussion with US officials, they are still evaluating the Philippines’ TPS request, which was submitted on December 13. “They’re also trying to get more information. They’re meeting with the Dept. of Homeland Security and USCIS. Then, of course, they will make a recommendation.”
Cuisia said that for now, he does not know what that recommendation would be and whether there’s a timeline for the Obama administration to act on the request for TPS.
Cuisia, however, assured the Filipino community that the Philippine government is on top of the situation. He revealed that they are in touch with US officials involved and even plan to meet with the Bureau of Population and Refugees.
Leah Obias, coordinator of the Damayan Migrant Workers Association told Balitang America: “It’s important for us to have this dialogue (with US and Philippine officials) so they know what we’re up to and why we’re pushing for TPS to pass.”
Balitang America once again received an update from the DHS stating the same message, that pending the decision of the Obama Administration to the call for TPS for the Philippines, the DHS has already announced more visa relief for Filipinos to help in the recovery effort after Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda).
The USCIS websites says it understands that a natural disaster can affect an individual’s ability to establish or maintain lawful immigration status in the United States.
Therefore, Filipinos impacted by Typhoon Haiyan may be eligible to benefit from the following immigration relief measures:
– Change or extension of nonimmigrant status for an individual currently in the United States, even when the request is filed after the authorized period of admission has expired;
– Extension of certain grants of parole made by USCIS;
– Extension of certain grants of advance parole, and expedited processing of advance parole requests;
– Expedited adjudication and approval, where possible, of requests for off-campus employment authorization for F-1 students experiencing severe economic hardship;
– Expedited processing of immigrant petitions for immediate relatives of US citizens;
– Expedited adjudication of employment authorization applications, where appropriate; and
– Assistance to LPRs stranded overseas without immigration or travel documents, such as Permanent Resident Cards (Green Cards). USCIS and the Department of State will coordinate on these matters when the LPR is stranded in a place that has no local USCIS office.
Go to http://www.uscis.gov/news/alerts/uscis-reminds-filipino-nationals-impacted-typhoon-haiyan-available-immigration-relief-measures for more details.
For more information on USCIS humanitarian programs, visit www.uscis.gov or call the National Customer Service Center at 1(800)375-5283.
For information regarding disaster-related email scams, visit http://www.us-cert.gov “Alerts and Tips.”
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Gel Santos Relos is the anchor of TFC’s “Balitang America.” Views and opinions expressed by the author in this column are are solely those of the author and not of Asian Journal and ABS-CBN-TFC. For comments, go to www.TheFil-AmPerspective.com, https://www.facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos
