Cuban Adjustment Act
The 1966 Cuban Adjustment Act created a pathway to permanent residency status for Cubans who fled communist Cuba.
Following Fidel Castro’s communist takeover of Cuba in 1959, the US eased immigration restrictions for Cuban citizens as part of its Cold War strategy. From 1960 to 1970, the Cuban population in the US increased from 79,000 to 439,000. Passed in 1966, the Cuban Adjustment Act gives permanent residency status to any native or citizen of Cuba who entered the US after January 1, 1959 and who has resided in the country for more than one year. No other immigrant group enjoys this privileged path, according to Susan Eckstein, a Boston University professor and expert on Cuban immigration. In 2017, the Cuban-born population in the US was 1.2 million, about 78% of which lives in Florida.
