Permanent residency approvals for Cubans in the United States have plummeted by a staggering 99.8% between October 2024 and January 2026, according to an analysis by the Cato Institute based on data from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and ICE.
The figures reveal an unprecedented drop: In February 2025, the last full month of the Biden administration, USCIS approved 10,984 green cards for Cubans. By January 2026, despite over 7,000 applications received, only 15 were granted and four denied, leaving thousands in indefinite limbo.
Strategic Suspension of Immigration Applications
The Cato Institute indicates that the collapse is intentional. In February 2025, USCIS halted all immigration applications from those entering under the parole program for Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, effectively revoking their immigration status to facilitate ICE arrests.
"Cubans were hit the hardest since, under the Cuban Adjustment Act, they all qualified for permanent residency and green cards," the Cato Institute report highlights.
Legal Hurdles and Blockades
Although the law can only be repealed by Congress, the administration effectively blocked its practical application by freezing the processes.
In December, the government paused all immigration applications from citizens of 19 countries restricted from traveling to the United States, including Cubans. This move halted the processing of green cards and citizenship applications.
Immigration attorney Rosaly Chaviano confirmed to Telemundo 51 that thousands of cases are now in indefinite waiting.
"Due to the government's announced pause, we are not seeing residency approvals," she explained, adding that Cuban nationality alone has become a suspension criterion: "They stated that being Cuban nationals is enough to be part of this group of countries that must be put on hold."
ICE's Escalated Detention Efforts
The legal entrapment has direct consequences with ICE. "Unfortunately, ICE officers’ stance is that if a person has pending residency, it's not sufficient," Chaviano warned.
The spike in Cuban detentions is alarming: at the end of 2024, ICE conducted fewer than 200 monthly detentions of Cubans; by the end of 2025, this number surpassed 1,000 arrests each month.
Overall, arrests of migrants from the Island soared by 463% over the same period from October 2024 to the past January.
A month later, ICE and USCIS signed a joint memorandum authorizing arrests of individuals with pending applications, revoking a previous internal policy that prohibited such actions.
The Miami ICE office spearheads raids nationwide, averaging 120 daily detentions. Since January 2025, over 530 Cubans have been deported on at least four direct flights, with the Department of Homeland Security reporting 42,084 Cubans with final deportation orders.
Legal Action and Recommendations
In March, attorneys filed a federal class-action lawsuit against USCIS for delays affecting more than 100,000 Cuban residency cases. In light of this situation, Chaviano advises always carrying documentation proving pending immigration status: "If you have pending residency, carry the residency receipt. If you have a work permit, keep the card, any proof that you have ongoing processes."
David J. Bier, director of immigration studies at the Cato Institute, summarized the mechanism: "The Trump administration has drastically cut legal immigration and suspended applications so ICE can arrest those who might secure safe status."
Understanding the Cuban Residency Approval Crisis
Why have Cuban residency approvals in the U.S. decreased so drastically?
The drastic decline is attributed to the suspension of immigration applications for those entering under specific parole programs, as part of a strategic move to facilitate increased ICE arrests.
What legal actions are being taken against the USCIS?
A federal class-action lawsuit has been filed against USCIS for delays in processing over 100,000 Cuban residency applications.
How has the Cuban Adjustment Act been affected by these changes?
While the Act itself remains in place, its practical application has been blocked by administrative actions, freezing the processing of Cuban residency applications.