Sen. Charles Schumer says the U.S. should allow people from Nepal who are living in the U.S. to overstay their visas without the risk of deportation while their country recovers from its recent earthquake.
Schumer says Sunday that he's asked the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department to grant temporary protected status to Nepalese nationals now residing in the U.S.
Temporary protected status is used by the federal government to allow a group of foreign nationals to remain in the U.S. beyond the expiration of their visa. The status has been given to residents of Honduras, Nicaragua and Haiti following natural disasters in those countries.
Schumer says allowing those Nepalese currently in the U.S. to stay longer following the devastating 7.8-magnitude quake is the compassionate thing to do.
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