Cuban Medical Professional Parole Program

January 26, 2009

On August 11, 2006, the Department of Homeland Security announced, in conjunction with the Department of State, that it would allow Cuban medical personnel conscripted to study or work in a third country under the direction of the Cuban government to enter the United States. This program is known as the Cuban Medical Professional Parole (CMPP) Program.

• What is the statutory authority that allows the Department of Homeland Security to parole Cubans into the United States? Within the Department of Homeland Security, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may exercise its discretionary parole authority to permit eligible Cuban nationals to come to the United States. See INA section 212(d)(5)(A), 8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5)(A) (permits parole of an alien into the United States for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit); see also 8 CFR 212.5(c) & (d) (discretionary authority for granting parole)
• How does a Cuban Medical Professional qualify for consideration of parole? Cuban Medical Professionals must meet the following criteria:(1)must be a Cuban national or citizen, (2) must be a medical professional currently conscripted to study or work in a third country under the direction of the Government of Cuba, and (3) must not have any ineligibilities that would prevent admission into the United States.
• Who are Cuban Medical Professionals? Cuban Medical Professionals are those health-care providers who are sent by the Castro regime to work or study in third countries. Under Cuban Resolution 54, these same Medical Professionals are often denied exit permission by the Cuban Government to come to the United States when they qualify under other established legal channels to migrate from Cuba. Doctors, nurses, paramedics, physical therapists, lab technicians and sports trainers are examples of groups that may qualify for the CMPP program.
• Are family members eligible to enter the United States under the CMPP? The spouse and/or unmarried children accompanying the primary applicant in the third country may also be considered for parole at the same time the CMPP application is being made. An approved CMPP applicant in the United States may file an application with USCIS to permit his or her spouse and/or unmarried children to enter the United States.
• What should interested persons be required to submit? Interested persons will be required to submit Department of State Forms DS-156, DS-157, DS-158 and a USCIS questionnaire. In addition, applicants will be required to submit to a consular officer at an Embassy or Consulate overseas proof of nationality, proof of their profession and evidence of their conscription. If there is a USCIS office in the third country, the applicant must submit the documentation to that office. Adjudication of the parole request by USCIS may take up to four to six weeks. In some cases, adjudication of the CMPP application may take longer depending on completion of security checks. If approved, travel costs and arrangements (including obtaining exit visas from any third country) are the responsibility of the CMPP applicant.