High Application Fees and Waiver Process Create Barriers for Penniless Asylum Seekers in Obtaining Work Permits

What to know

The price to be applied is as high as $545, an official said. However, the only reason immigrants are so in need of work permits is because they cannot afford the high price of submitting an application, creating an endless cycle of frustration for thousands of people who have arrived in New York City. York in last year. The existing process could create obstacles that would prevent eligible Venezuelans from accessing TPS and obtaining work authorizations quickly. This condition is problematic for immigrants, as they live in temporary shelters without permanent mailing addresses. Perhaps most importantly, it delays the process even further.

NEW YORK — Just days after the White House granted Temporary Protected Status to Venezuelans who arrived in the country before July 2023, the Adams administration tells NBC New York that high application fees of TPS and a cumbersome waiver process will block penniless asylum seekers from their work authorizations.

The price to be applied is as high as $545, an official said. However, the only reason immigrants are so in need of work permits is because they cannot afford the high price of submitting an application, creating an endless cycle of frustration for thousands of people who have arrived in New York City. York in the past year.

Bottom line: If unemployed immigrants could pay hundreds of dollars in fees, they probably wouldn’t need expedited work permits.

The existing process could create obstacles that would prevent eligible Venezuelans from accessing TPS and obtaining work authorizations quickly. And while there is a waiver program for people experiencing financial hardship (as is the case for many asylum seekers), that process is not available online.

Deputy Mayor Fabien Levy confirmed Friday afternoon that the Adams administration is asking the federal government to bring the fee waiver process online so as not to delay access to complete applications. As of Friday night, the city said anyone applying for a fee waiver (if they know one is available to them) would have to apply on paper through the US Postal Service.

“What we would like to do is do it online, to expedite and get work authorization for people as quickly as possible,” Levy told NBC 4.

Levy said City Hall is looking for philanthropic organizations (and, separately, businesses that need new employees) to donate to a fund that will help cover some of the fees.

This condition is problematic for immigrants, as they live in temporary shelters without permanent mailing addresses. Perhaps most importantly, it delays the process even further.

“Another thing we’re going to ask of our federal partners is that they can get work authorization while their TPS application is still pending, because we’ve actually heard stories from people who have had TPS applications pending since March 2021.”

NBC 4 reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment but did not receive a response Friday night.

2023-09-23 03:24:28
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