Haiti, Belize, Samoa Citizens Barred From Applying For Low-Skilled Work Visas

Haitians are no longer eligible to apply for temporary agricultural and seasonal visas, the Trump administration ruled Wednesday. Such visas were part of an effort to employ Haitians in the United States after a 2010 earthquake devastated the Caribbean country.

The Department of Homeland Security announced the changes will be published in the Federal Register on Thursday. Other than Haiti, Samoa and Belize were also removed from the list of countries eligible to apply for H-2A and H-2B visas, which are provided to seasonal workers in agriculture and other industries.

The announcement read: “The Secretary of Homeland Security has determined … with the concurrence of the Secretary of State, that the following countries should no longer be designated as eligible countries because they are not meeting the standards set out in the regulation: Belize, Haiti, and Samoa.”

It cited Belize was listed as “Tier 3” in the Department of State’s 2017 Trafficking in Persons Report and the country did “not fully meet the Trafficking Victims Protection Act’s minimum standards and is not making significant efforts to do so,” while Haitians displayed “high levels of fraud and abuse,” and “a high rate of overstaying the terms” of their visas.

“Samoa is currently listed as ‘At Risk of Non-Compliance’ according to ICE’s year-end assessment of foreign countries’ cooperation in accepting back their nationals that have been ordered to be removed from the United States. … there has not been sufficient progress on removals to Samoa,” the announcement read.

People from almost 80 countries are eligible to apply for temporary worker program visas in the U.S. and the list is published every year. But, it is extremely rare for U.S. to remove countries from the list.

The decision comes days after President Donald Trump, in a meeting with senators, questioned them why the country would take in immigrants from Haiti, El Salvador and African nations, referring to them as “shithole countries.” It also comes in the wake of the Trump administration’s decision to end Temporary Protection Status (TPS) for about 50,000 Haitians in July 2019. TPS was offered to those who were displaced from their nations due to natural disasters — such as in the case of Haitians — internal conflicts or such dangerous conditions.

But, in an interview with Reuters on Wednesday, Trump praised Haitians.

“I love the people. There’s a tremendous warmth,” he said. “And they’re very hard-working people.”

The DHS reported 65 Haitians entered the U.S. on H-2A visas in 2016, while 54 Haitians were granted H-2A visas by the department between March and November 2017. DHS added Haitians who entered on H-2B visas were too low to record.

A research titled “Shared Harvest: Temporary Work Visas as US-Haiti Development Cooperation” conducted by the Center for Global Development recorded when people from countries such as Haiti come to work in the U.S., the benefits were shared by both the nations.

For example, one worker-month of Haitian labor expands the U.S. economy from $3,270-$4,140. The study also added the farm productivity by Haitian seasonal workers would create at least two jobs for U.S. workers.

The author of the study, Michael Clemens, said, "The administration has made it clear that it sees no benefit from Haitian immigrants in the US, and that's incorrect. There has been a tremendous benefit from Haitian migrants to the US, including on this particular visa. … No doubt that it's a pile-on," CNN reported.