Judge Jacqueline Becerra rejected the DHS motion to dismiss, confirming that the court has jurisdiction over the case.
14ymedio/EFE, Miami, September 10, 2026 – A federal judge in Miami ruled Thursday that she has jurisdiction over a lawsuit seeking to regularize the status of up to half a million Cubans in the U.S. who entered with I-220A permits. The attorneys in the case described the decision as an “important victory” and a key step toward reopening the doors of the Cuban Adjustment Act to them.
“The judge decided that she has jurisdiction to proceed with the case. That is the most important thing of all,” attorney Mark Prada, who is leading the lawsuit, said as he left the courthouse.
Judge Jacqueline Becerra, of the Southern District of Florida, rejected the motion to dismiss filed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), confirming that the court has jurisdiction over the case.
However, she gave DHS attorneys one week to modify their request.
The background to the case is a lawsuit brought by 992 Cubans who entered through the Mexican border and were left in legal limbo after receiving the order for conditional release represented by the I-220A form when they were released by immigration authorities. The plaintiffs are seeking recognition by the United States of their legal status and eligibility under the Cuban Adjustment Act, which for decades allowed Cuban nationals to obtain legal residency after living in the country for one year.
“We want to clarify that they meet the requirements to apply for Cuban Adjustment and that afterward each individual can pursue their application”
Following the judge’s preliminary decision, the court must determine whether to certify the lawsuit as a nationwide “class action,” which would protect all Cubans in similar situations, and define what legal remedy applies.
Prada explained to the media that they seek to include all Cubans who lack a document known as parole (humanitarian immigration relief) in order to “open the door to applying for Cuban Adjustment to as many people as possible.”
“We want to clarify that they meet the requirements to apply for Cuban Adjustment and that afterward each individual can pursue their application; that people who already have a deportation order can ask an immigration judge to reopen their case,” he continued.
The central issue will focus on demonstrating that immigration authorities processed and released these citizens with incorrect documentation at the border, when legally they were entitled to that historic form of immigration relief, enacted in 1966 by U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson, which provides a special and simplified procedure for Cuban citizens to obtain permanent residence in the United States.
Attorney Claudia Cañizares, for her part, emphasized the “impatience” of the Cuban community over a case of “great impact,” and noted that the judge herself urged that the process be expedited.
The case is unfolding amid the immigration crackdown by the Trump administration, which has multiplied migrant arrests and drastically reduced the granting of residency permits.
The majority of Cubans with I-220A are people who fled the Island following the massive antigovernment protests of 2021
The majority of Cubans with I-220A are people who fled the Island following the massive antigovernment protests of 2021, in what was one of the largest exoduses, along the “volcano route,” heading to Nicaragua.
After traveling through Central America, thousands of them crossed the border between Mexico and the U.S., the vast majority seeking to reach Florida. Many sold their properties on the Island, their homes and their vehicles, to finance the journey through several countries and pay the coyotes.
A little more than a year later, in the face of that unstoppable exodus, the Biden administration established humanitarian parole and, with it, the possibility of traveling to the U.S. legally and without the risks of the overland journey through Central America and Mexico. But those with I-220A did not receive this benefit.
In September 2023, the U.S. Board of Immigration Appeals rejected the possibility that migrants who entered that country with the I-220A form could make use of the Cuban Adjustment Act to apply for residency, forcing people to process their political asylum claims through the ordinary court system.
Translated by Regina Anavy
______________________
COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.