In general, the Secretary of Homeland Security may grant temporary protected status to people already present in the United States who are nationals of a country experiencing ongoing armed conflict, an environmental disaster, or any temporary or extraordinary conditions that would prevent the foreign national from returning safely and assimilating into their duty.
[1] Temporary protected status allows beneficiaries to live and, in some cases, work in the United States for a limited amount of time.
101–649, Congress established a procedure by which the Attorney General may provide temporary protected status to immigrants in the United States who are temporarily unable to safely return to their home country because of ongoing armed conflict, an environmental disaster, or other extraordinary and temporary conditions.
[5] As of October 2017, the authority to designate a country for temporary protected status rests with the United States Secretary of Homeland Security.
During the period for which a country has been designated for TPS, beneficiaries may remain in the United States and may obtain work authorization.
Alternatively, an applicant whose temporary protected status has been denied or withdrawn may follow the instructions provided in the Notice of Denial or Withdrawal for filing a Form I-290B (Notice of Appeal or Motion) or, if applicable, seeking de novo review of TPS eligibility before an Immigration Judge in deportation or exclusion proceedings.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS)'s previously announced decisions to terminate TPS for El Salvador, Nicaragua, Sudan, Haiti, Honduras, and Nepal as of certain dates are undergoing challenges in the court system.
As of September 2020, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals made the decision to temporarily prohibited DHS from terminating any beneficiaries that are from the countries listed above.
[20] In regards to Venezuela, Syria, and Burma (also known as Myanmar) being added as countries whose nationals are eligible to become beneficiaries of TPS, DHS has extended the initial registration period from 180 days to 18 months, as of August 2021.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)'s country-specific TPS webpages also states which prior EAD, approval notice, and I-94 end validity dates have been automatically extended without the need to re-file as long as beneficiaries remain eligible for TPS and the injunctions isn't removed or updated on behalf of the court.
[24] Registrants whose EADs, I-821 approval notices, and/or I-94s have been automatically extended do not receive any notification of or documentation concerning the extension of validity other than the FRN itself.
[25] Registrants who are poised to potentially lose TPS if it is terminated for their country and not continued based on an injunction have a number of options.
[27] However, those who do choose to stay in the United States illegally are expected to be much easier to deport than most undocumented immigrants because their home and workplace are known to the government through the application process for temporary protected status.
[28] The United States has made an agreement with El Salvador to limit the number of deportation flights to eight a week, each with a maximum capacity of 135 people.
[30][27] Concerns also exist that if TPS is terminated for large numbers of registrants who have now lived and worked in the United States for decades under the program, numerous United States citizen children who currently reside with and depend on their TPS registrant parents or guardians will be impacted.