Congress opens green-card path for Venezuelan nationals already in U.S.
H.R. 1348 — Venezuelan Adjustment Act · Filed by Darren Soto (D-FL) · 23 cosponsors · Introduced Feb 13, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill allows Venezuelan nationals who entered the U.S. before December 31, 2021, and have lived here continuously for at least one year to apply for permanent residency (green card status) within three years of the law's enactment. Their spouses and children are also eligible. Applicants with serious criminal convictions or persecution records are barred; those with pending deportation orders can apply without first reopening their cases, and work authorization is granted while applications are pending.
Why we flagged it
The bill's core function is a targeted immigration relief measure—a one-time adjustment of status for a specific national group meeting defined criteria. It is not a broad amnesty, a regulatory change, or a structural reform; it is a discrete legislative grant of eligibility.
What the text implies
- The 3-year application window creates a hard deadline; applicants who miss it lose eligibility permanently, even if they remain in the U.S.
- Work authorization is mandatory after 180 days of pending application, which may accelerate labor-market integration but also creates administrative burden on DHS to process applications within that window.
The full analysis lists 4 implications of this text.
Who it affects
The bill creates a lawful pathway to permanent residency for a defined population of Venezuelan nationals already present in the U.S., reducing legal precarity, enabling work authorization, and providing removal protection during adjudication. Safeguards (criminal bars, persecution exclusions) protect public safety and integrity of the immigration system.