Cubans who want to travel to the United States have a new option: the multiple visitor visa (B-2) that Joe Biden’s administration recently approved. This visa allows them to enter and leave the US for five years, but they can only stay in the country for six months at a time.
If they remain for a long time, they will be in an irregular position. Some Cubans wonder if with this visa they can benefit from the Cuban Adjustment Law, which gives them the possibility of obtaining permanent residency or a green card if they meet certain requirements. Is this possible?
The Cuban Adjustment Act is a 1996 law that provides benefits to certain Cuban nationals who arrived in the United States and waited at least one year and one day to apply for residency. However, not everyone who enters with a B-2 visa can do so, as they must prove that their departure from Cuba was for political reasons, not economic or family reasons.
Tourist Visa for US and Cuban Adjustment Law
Angel Leal, a Miami immigration lawyer, explained the conditions in Marty Notices so that Cubans who travel to the United States with tourist visas can benefit from the Cuban Adjustment Law.
According to Leal, “in principle yes, because it’s an entry,” but he also warned that if a traveler “arrives with the intent to stay (in the US) with a tourist visa, he could be charged with immigration fraud by committing a misdemeanor.” Use a tourist visa with the intention of immigrating to this country.
Leal added that “in theory, if you didn’t come with the intention of staying, and for unforeseen reasons you end up staying, you can qualify for the Cuban Adjustment Act and get residency after one year and one day.”
However, he recalled that Cubans still have to apply for a tourist visa in a third country, because “in general, they don’t process non-immigrant visas in Havana,” except in exceptional cases.
Cubans can get a five-year multiple-visitor visa in the United States starting Aug. 25, 2023, but they must make an appointment and arrange for a visa at a U.S. embassy in another country, such as Guyana.
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