If you have an I-220A form and are thinking about going on vacation, immigration attorney Liudmila Marcelo gives a clear warning: don't do it, not even within the continental territory of the United States.
Marcelo, who regularly advises the Cuban community in live broadcasts alongside journalist Tania Costa from CiberCuba, was straightforward in responding to a question about travel: “If you have I-220A, I don’t even recommend traveling within the country, let alone to Puerto Rico or Hawaii, which many clients have inquired about.”
The lawyer clarified that her stance does not equate to saying that everyone who travels will be detained, but rather that the risk is real and unpredictable.
"It's not that I'm saying you'll be detained if you travel, because you might travel and nothing will happen to you, but you'll never hear me say that it's all peaceful," she pointed out.
The central argument of Marcelo is uncertainty: no one can know which airport will have officers from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that day or whom they will decide to detain.
"You don't know who among all the travelers that day they will want to detain or at which airport they will be. Therefore, that advice won't be coming from me," he stated.
The lawyer distinguishes between leisure travel —which she strongly advises against— and trips with a justified cause. Those who live in one state but have their court appointment in another, or those who need to visit a sick family member, have valid reasons to travel. However, traveling solely for vacation, in her view, is an unnecessary risk.
The I-220A is an order of release on recognizance issued by ICE that allows the migrant to remain out of custody while their case progresses in immigration court.
It does not grant permanent immigration status, does not equate to parole, and does not authorize free travel. According to ICE itself, holders of this document must obtain written permission from their case officer before moving or traveling outside the approved area.
The detentions of migrants with I-220A have intensified since early 2025, especially in Texas, where Marcelo has noted that they occur "almost daily" in cities like San Antonio, Houston, and El Paso, even during routine reporting appointments with ICE.
Marcelo also issued a specific warning for permanent residents who wish to travel abroad: "Remember that you cannot travel outside if you have a pending case or even one that has already been resolved."
And he added a warning about criminal records: "Recently, a decision was made that even with a pending case, without proving whether you are guilty or not, they can then revoke your residence or initiate a process to remove your residency."
That decision is the ruling in the case of Blanche v. Lau, resolved by the U.S. Supreme Court on June 23 with a outcome of six votes to three in favor of the government.
The ruling states that border agents do not need clear and convincing evidence to treat a permanent resident returning from an international trip as if they were an admission seeker, if there is a pending criminal issue, even in the absence of a conviction.
For those with an I-220A who want to know what they need to do this summer to protect their immigration status, Marcelo recommends checking the EOIR portal several times a week, as immigration courts are moving hearing dates forward and some judges are already setting final dates for late 2026 or early 2027.
A class action lawsuit involving 992 Cubans with I-220A is ongoing in Miami, aiming to equate this document with parole to pave the way for the Cuban Adjustment Act, but as of now, it has no definitive resolution.
Si tienes el formulario I-220A u otras dudas sobre tu estatus migratorio, mantente informado con la cobertura actualizada de en CiberCuba.
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