US bars Haitians from applying for low-skilled work visas


The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has removed Haiti from a list of countries whose citizens are permitted to apply for low-skilled work visas, less than a week after President Donald Trump reportedly called Haiti ‘a s***hole country.’

Reuters news agency reported the removal on Wednesday night.

In a regulatory filing, DHS cited “high levels of fraud and abuse” from Haitians who use the program as well as a “high rate of overstaying the terms” from the visa recipients.

According to the report visa overstays among Haitians in the 2016 fiscal year were around 40 percent, the DHS reported last year.

Haiti was among countries added to the list of countries whose residents are eligible to apply for low-skilled work visas after a 2010 earthquake devastated the country. However, according to Reuters, DHS data shows just a few dozen immigrants from Haiti use H-2A and H-2B visas each year.

H-2A and H-2B visas are given to seasonal workers in agriculture and other industries.

Reuters published an interview earlier on Wednesday in which Trump defended his relationship with Haiti and its people.

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

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27 Comments

  1. J.John Charles
    January 19, 2018

    Me-Aloe
    More blacks received food stamps under Obama. Is this improvement?.I don’t have to file taxes this yr or next year You and I will see when we received our check for February.
    You said so far I you understand is the big boys who will be benefiting I don’t blame you,the problem is you are listening to democrats and fake CNN ABS NBC CMBC CBS. start thinking for your self,I can sense you are intelligent.
    Now I have news for you,Trump is going to add you to the big boys list….If blacks in the U.S were doing well according to you under Obama they will do better under Trump.

  2. mine
    January 18, 2018

    Remember trumps wants prefer Norway native in the US so we all are included.

  3. J.John Charles
    January 18, 2018

    I am looking forward and still have hope that one day DNO or DBS will carry one news item that is favorable about Trump.There are good things happening in the U.S Because of him,but they are not news worthy. For example black unemployment is the lowest in history
    Under Obama blacks became poorer and white got richer.Under Trump’s tax policy over 80% of us will get a tax cut,but if you listen to the fake media, Trump gave tax cut to big business,but Obama was there for 8 yrs why didn’t he give the poor the tax cut?
    I feel sorry for my fellow blacks the are being used by democrats and they have no eyes to see.

    • Me-Aloe
      January 18, 2018

      @J.John Charles …. Black employment improved under the Obama’s administration. Let’s see how the tax cut goes on your side after you file your taxes this year or next year. So far as I understand is the big boys who will be benefitting and not you. Blacks in America are doing just fine. When Obama got into power, there are lots of people who thought they would just sit, don’t look for work and expect him to do so much for them just because he is black. The poor got more tax money than people like me who have to pay back. I work for the poor in this country….I pay so much in taxes every pay check and still at the end of the year I have to still pay because according to “them”…I make too much. Maybe you should open your eyes, you are not going to get better than where you are right now. Just wait and see.

  4. Sams
    January 18, 2018

    Dominica will pick them up cause we next on the list

  5. Dan the American
    January 18, 2018

    Why is Dominica News Online even carrying this story?

    Donald Trump is American. Get your own blowhard.

  6. Charity Begins at home
    January 18, 2018

    All you making it look as though Trump just hates Haitians. Dominicans are allowing Skerrit to do the things to Dominica today like those Haitians allowed their politicians do to their country. I mean look at the state of Dominica today and please don’t blame it on Maria or Erika. See the …. we letting Skerrit do to Dominica and some of us residing in the US have the guts to go home to vote for him. I mean how could a government close a hospital in a community, where the airport is located and still win an election? What do we say about the man destroying our banana industry and still stay in power? What do we say about destroying public works? All you not Seeing the condition of Dominica under Skerrit? Please take a drive from Roseau to Portsmouth and see what we drive on in the name of highway and all you keep voting him. These are the things Haitians allowed and today are referred to as “……..”country and whether or not we are called like we are sure seen as …

    • Me-Aloe
      January 18, 2018

      I will still blame it on Maria because I was in Dominica a few months before Maria hit and the place was in good condition. A hospital was closed because it did not meet the standards of running as a hospital, the farmers failed the banana industry because most people don’t want to farm anymore.

  7. January 18, 2018

    France is the main cause of Haiti’s poverty.After Haitians fought for their freedom in 1825, France lost ships, slaves and in return ordered Haiti to pay 150,000,000 francs for their loss. Fortunately for Haiti, the earthquake was the only misfortune which was left in order for France to cancel that debt. Every black slave master where slavery existed were compensated after slavery but the slaves obtained only a partial freedom, because of this up till this day, all these countries are relying on foreign help.American in 1779 Haitians fought for America’s independence and were part of “The Battle of Savannah” to fight and lose their lives for America.Now Haitians are not recognized by Trump. His families who were also foreigners who exploited Americans.Politics has become very divisive with growing hatred only for self-satisfaction.There were more self-centered political leaders than Trump they have all disappeared and will continue to disappear as we wish those that are closer…

    • DM
      January 18, 2018

      We can seat here and read the whole history of France and the US being the cause of Haiti’s position. And maybe they did play a part in it. But Haiti has gotten a lot of aid to the point that there should have been improvement by now. For those of you too young to know or remember Haiti was once a tourist destination in competition with Jamaica and that ended with the first coup with the “Papa Doc” regime in the 1980’s.

      I say this to say that the poor leadership past and present is also the cause of Haiti’s bad position. You have all kinds of corruption going on and nothing is being done to stop it.

  8. Charity Begins at home
    January 18, 2018

    Haitians need to blame their government for not looking for jobs for them just as Dominicans need to blame Skerrit for not creating one meaningful job for them after 18 years in office, where only he and close associates can become millionaires and to hell with others whether red, blue, green, yellow. The way Dominica going there, where Dominicans allowing such a blessed piece of land to become a ……..country, where only foreign criminals can come and hide while nothing is being done to help the people have a better future; let them keep Skerrit in power and then run to America, Guada, Antigua and expect those foreign governments to forget about their people and instead try to create jobs for them. Like the Haitians soon all you will be seen as a …… country and will be sent back to all you ….. Let Skerrit stay there and destroy Dominica and think foreign governments will have mercy on all you

  9. Bro
    January 18, 2018

    You all act like Dominica doesn’t have visa resrictions in Haitians, a fellow CARICOM member. Right here in the Caribbean we harsher on Haitians than Trump, that’s why no Caribbean leader can open their @$$ and talk.

    • ??
      January 18, 2018

      BTW, DA is more welcoming to the Haitians than any other island in the region so be more discrete with your aspersions.

      • Anonymous
        January 21, 2018

        They still have to pay a fee to enter here. Does that apply to other Caricom citizens? This proves we discriminate against Haitians.

      • Toto
        January 21, 2018

        So if a murderer kills one person instead of two he is a better man? Wrong is wrong.

  10. jihan
    January 18, 2018

    Trump is a pig and his day will come,pure white supremacist,but Haiti will rise.

    • Carpe Diem
      January 18, 2018

      But Jihan, a salted pigtail braff does go down sooooooooo good. So you’re saying Trump, the pig, is fabulous? Be honest… :twisted: :twisted: :twisted:

  11. Charity Begins at home
    January 18, 2018

    I am not in support of what Trump said about Haitians but to be fair to him, he is the president of the USA and not president of the world. America is loaded with Haitians and many of them are illegal and have fake qualifications just like the fake doctor all you have in DA that lied about his doctorate. As president of the USA Trump has to look for what is in America’s best interest and therefore I can’t fault him for realizing Haitians are not in their best interests because they are not too skilled and many of them don’t have a good education say like the Cubans. In fact Skerrit is doing worse than Trump and people quiet about it. Look, Skerrit is leaving Dominicans without a job and hire Bajans instead to build a bridge or houses because they feel Dominicans aren’t qualified. So why are we upset if Trump feels he needs to do the opposite of what Skerrit doing, and protect American jobs for Americans and look for qualified skilled workers outside the US to do it?

    • thethingswesay
      January 18, 2018

      Many haitains in NY are very prominent and very “well to do”. In Plano TX, their mayor is Haitian, In Miramar Florida the same. In Saratoga Springs, Utah, the former mayor was of Haitian parentage. Like Dominicans, Haitians have excelled, and like Dominicans, Some Haitians have not. Same goes for America.

    • Charity Begins at home
      January 18, 2018

      Based on what the president said it is clear that he didn’t say many Haitians are not prominent and smart. He was specifically referring to those that are unskilled and illegal. Like I said his priority as US president is to create employment for his citizens and that’s what he is doing. Haitians and Dominicans need to put pressure on their government to create jobs for them. They cannot allow corrupt governments to take their jobs from them and all they want to do is run to the US. Haitians are to be blamed for allowing Trump to call them ……. country just as Dominicans must be blamed for causing Skerrit to turn Dominica into a ……..country.

    • indira Ghandi
      January 18, 2018

      You are so right.
      They refuse to say anything to skerrit who has rui ed the country but want to tell trump what to do in a country they are not a part of.

  12. DM
    January 18, 2018

    You might see a lot more of them in Dominica.

  13. thethingswesay
    January 18, 2018

    Haitians need to get their hands on some of Donald Trump’s hair.

  14. G
    January 18, 2018

    Wat did the haition ever did to the USA

    • Weekenz
      January 18, 2018

      2G Build their country. Haitians and others built America while leaving theirs to rot. Soon the big talkers from DA in America will be sent here to show that they are worth their talk! I cant wait. All who come on DNO saying ” im an American citizen, I don’t care what happens in DA” I cant wait to laugh in their faces.

      • Carpe Diem
        January 18, 2018

        Weekenz, you must be a very bitter person to be wishing the trauma of involuntary deportation on your own countrymen/women. It takes a very miserable soul to find joy in another person’s misery. Be careful when you laugh at the misfortune of others. Karma has a way of finding your address with double the misery.

      • Toto
        January 21, 2018

        I know a lot of Dominicans in the U.S.A. that live just like Haitians, some of them are there illegal, some on public welfare. We are no different.

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