NEW YORK, NY – A Department of Homeland Security (DHS) report has exposed the significant misuse of the Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) program under the Biden administration. The SIJ program, which was initially established to provide legal status to undocumented migrant children who experienced abuse or neglect, has been repeatedly exploited by adults with criminal records, including members of violent gangs and individuals with severe criminal histories.
The report, obtained by Fox News Digital, detailed that between fiscal years 2020 and 2024, a total of 198,414 SIJ petitions were approved. In 2024 alone, 52% of those who filed petitions were over the age of 18, which highlights the exploitation of a loophole that allows eligible applicants to be classified as juveniles up to age 21. This has allowed many individuals who are no longer considered children to benefit from the program, including those with prior criminal records.
The report also revealed a concerning number of gang members and individuals with serious criminal backgrounds. Over 600 members of the MS-13 gang applied for SIJ status, with more than 500 of those applications being approved. Furthermore, the report identified 853 known or suspected gang members whose petitions were approved, most of whom were found to have committed violent crimes or sex offenses, with many required to register as sex offenders. The report also mentioned the involvement of several other criminal gangs such as the 18th Street gang, Tren de Aragua, Sureño, and Norteño.
These gang members, primarily from the Northern Triangle countries of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, accounted for approximately 73.6% of all filings from 2014 to 2024. The widespread involvement of these gang members, coupled with the ease with which birth certificates in certain countries can be falsified, raises serious concerns about the integrity of the SIJ program, particularly in regions with weak documentation systems such as Bangladesh, Somalia, and Yemen.
Critics, including U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services spokesperson Matthew J. Tragesser, have condemned the misuse of the SIJ program, stating that it has been exploited by ‘criminal aliens’ who are infiltrating the U.S. through a system designed to aid vulnerable children. In June, the Citizenship and Immigration Services office halted the provision of deferred immigration enforcement for SIJ petitioners and is now evaluating new measures to preserve the program’s original purpose of protecting children.
The SIJ program was first introduced in 1990, offering unlawful immigrants who could not reunify with their parents due to abuse or neglect a path to lawful permanent residency and ultimately U.S. citizenship. However, the program has no criminal bars or good moral character requirements, making it susceptible to abuse, as highlighted by the recent DHS report.