"Horrible the situation for legally entering the United States from Cuba at this time." This is how Willy Allen, an immigration expert and lawyer from Florida, summarizes the regulatory framework that Cuban families seeking to reunite in American territory through legal entry pathways must face.
"The only way a Cuban can sponsor their family at this moment is if they are an American citizen, and they can only sponsor immediate family, which is the fastest route: spouses, minor children, and parents. However, there are issues. An adult child who is single faces a 7-9 year wait; a married adult child faces a 10-12 year wait. These are harsh realities for an immigrant in Cuba," the lawyer remarked.
In Allen's view, "this Government has sought to eliminate what they call chain immigration, which is when an American citizen sponsors their married child, and that child comes with their spouse and children," the lawyer noted in response to CiberCuba's question about which pathways are currently functioning for the reunification of Cuban families in the United States.
Basically, Willy Allen is convinced that the Trump Administration wants to eliminate the pull effect that accompanies the family reunification process. "This government wants to get rid of it. But let's only talk about Cuba, because Cuba had a privileged position from 1997 until February 2025."
However, since Donald Trump assumed the presidency of the United States, "there is currently no family reunification for Cuba through recent petitions, and only the entries for petitions from American citizens for their spouses, their minor children, their adult children, and their parents are available," he said on the weekly program that the lawyer has on CiberCuba every Monday at 11:00 AM Miami time (5:00 PM in Europe).
"The request of an American citizen for a parent typically takes 10 to 14 months. In Cuba, it can take longer through the American embassy in Havana, but with the new obstacle that if the parent worked for the Cuban government as a teacher or as an engineer in any profession and was never a member of the Communist Party, they are being denied the resident visa," added the lawyer.
Therefore, the legal avenues for family reunification available to Cuban families take time. "The applications for spouses and minor children also take 14 to 20 months, and most of these visas are being approved. An adult son, single, takes 7 to 9 years. A married son takes 10 to 12 years," he said.
In Allen's opinion, these are the realities that currently exist for Cubans who wish to emigrate legally under U.S. laws. Other visas, such as the H1 work visa, are canceled in Havana.
Filed under:
