What is Temporary Protective Status (TPS)

Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is a temporary immigration status provided to nationals of certain countries experiencing problems that make it difficult or unsafe for their nationals to be deported there. TPS has been a lifeline to hundreds of thousands of individuals already in the United States when problems in a home country make their departure or deportation untenable. This fact sheet provides an overview of how TPS designations are determined, what benefits TPS confers, and how TPS beneficiaries apply for and regularly renew their status.

Why is TPS important?

Congress created Temporary Protected Status (TPS) in the Immigration Act of 1990. It is a temporary immigration status provided to nationals of specifically designated countries that are confronting an ongoing armed conflict, environmental disaster, or extraordinary and temporary conditions. It provides a work permit and protection from deportation to foreign nationals from those countries who are in the United States at the time the U.S. government makes the designation. As of February 16, 2022, there were at least an estimated 354,625 people with TPS living in the United States. In addition, approximately 269,820 people may be eligible for TPS under five new designations announced by the Biden since that date.

For what reasons can a country be designated for TPS?

A country may be designated for TPS for one or more of the following reasons:

• An ongoing armed conflict, such as a civil war, that poses a serious threat to the personal safety of returning nationals;

• An environmental disaster, such as an earthquake, hurricane, or epidemic, that results in a substantial but temporary disruption of living conditions, and because of which the foreign state is temporarily unable to adequately handle the return of its nationals; or

• Extraordinary and temporary conditions in the foreign state that prevent its nationals from returning to the state in safety (unless the U.S. government finds that permitting these nationals to remain temporarily in the United States is contrary to the U.S. national interest).

Who qualifies for TPS?

In order to qualify for TPS, an individual must:

• Be a national of the foreign country with a TPS designation (or if stateless, have last habitually resided in a country with a TPS designation);

• Be continuously physically present in the United States since the effective date of designation;

• Have continuously resided in the United States since a date specified by the Secretary of Homeland Security; and

• Not be inadmissible to the United States or be barred from asylum for certain criminal or national security-related reasons, such as individuals who have been convicted of any felony or two or more misdemeanors.

• Nationals of a designated country do not automatically receive TPS, but instead must register during a specific registration period and pay significant fees. In addition, an individual’s immigration status at the time of application for TPS has no effect on one’s eligibility, nor does the previous issuance of an order of removal.

Is there a new offering of TPS or just re-registration?

There is no new offering of TPS, the only TPS designation are the ones that have been around for several years. The re-registration periods vary based on country of designation. With very limited exceptions, no one is eligible for an initial TPS application. As of 2023, the following 16 countries were designated for TPS and the designation had not expired:

• Afghanistan (Valid through November 20, 2023)

• Burma (Valid through May 25, 2024)

• Cameroon (Valid through December 7, 2023)

• El Salvador (Extended until March 9, 2025)

• Ethiopia (Valid through June 12, 2024)

• Haiti (Extended through August 3, 2024)

• Honduras (Extended until July 5, 2025)

• Nepal (Extended until June 24, 2025)

• Nicaragua (Extended until July 5, 2025)

• Somalia (Extended until September 17, 2024)

• South Sudan (Extended until November 3, 2023)

• Sudan (Extended until October 19, 2023)

• Syria (Extended until March 31, 2024)

• Ukraine (Valid through October 19, 2023)

• Venezuela (Extended until March 10, 2024)

• Yemen (Extended until September 3, 2024)

When is the registration period this time?

The current TPS designations are up for re-registration as follows: On June 21, 2023, DHS published Federal Register notices (FRNs) announcing the rescission of the 2017 and 2018 terminations of the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designations of El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua effective June 9, 2023. DHS will extend the designations of:

• El Salvador for 18 months, from Sept. 10, 2023, through March 9, 2025 (60-day re-registration period from July 12, 2023, through Sept. 10, 2023);

• Honduras for 18 months, from Jan. 6, 2024, through July 5, 2025 (60-day re-registration period from Nov. 6, 2023, through Jan. 5, 2024);

• Nepal for 18 months, from Dec. 25, 2023, through June 24, 2025 (60-day re-registration period from Oct. 24, 2023, through Dec. 23, 2023); and

• Nicaragua for 18 months, from Jan. 6, 2024, through July 5, 2025 (60-day re-registration period from Nov. 6, 2023, through Jan. 5, 2024).

What can you do with TPS?

Congress created Temporary Protected Status (TPS) in the Immigration Act of 1990. It is a temporary immigration status provided to nationals of specifically designated countries that are confronting an ongoing armed conflict, environmental disaster, or extraordinary and temporary conditions. It provides a work permit and protection from deportation to foreign nationals from those countries who are in the United States at the time the U.S. government makes the designation. As of February 16, 2022, there were at least an estimated 354,625 people with TPS living in the United States. In addition, approximately 269,820 people may be eligible for TPS under five new designations announced by the Biden since that date.

For what reasons can a country be designated for TPS?

A country may be designated for TPS for one or more of the following reasons:

• An ongoing armed conflict, such as a civil war, that poses a serious threat to the personal safety of returning nationals;

• An environmental disaster, such as an earthquake, hurricane, or epidemic, that results in a substantial but temporary disruption of living conditions, and because of which the foreign state is temporarily unable to adequately handle the return of its nationals; or

• Extraordinary and temporary conditions in the foreign state that prevent its nationals from returning to the state in safety (unless the U.S. government finds that permitting these nationals to remain temporarily in the United States is contrary to the U.S. national interest).

Does TPS lead to LPR or US Citizenship?

TPS does not provide beneficiaries with a separate path to lawful permanent residence (a green card) or citizenship. However, a TPS recipient who otherwise is eligible for permanent residence may apply for that status. Generally, a person who entered the United States without inspection is not eligible to apply for permanent residence. Six federal appellate circuits previously ruled on this issue. Three federal appellate circuits (the Sixth, Eighth, and Ninth Circuits) ruled that a person with valid TPS status could adjust status to lawful permanent residence if otherwise eligible through a family-based or employment-based petition, even if he or she entered the United States without inspection. Three other federal appellate courts (the Third, Fifth, and Eleventh Circuits) ruled that a TPS recipient who entered without inspection is not eligible to adjust to permanent residence. In June 2021, the Supreme Court subsequently ruled that a TPS recipient who entered the United States without inspection is not eligible to adjust to permanent residence from within the United States, overturning the prior decisions by the Sixth, Eighth, and Ninth Circuits. In order to gain permanent resident status, a TPS recipient who initially entered the United States without inspection must depart the country to have a visa processed at a consular post. For many TPS holders, a departure to have a visa interview would trigger bars to re-entry for up to 10 years. Alternatively, some TPS recipients may be eligible to adjust status if they were granted advance permission from USCIS (referred to as advance parole), traveled abroad, and were paroled back into the United States. After July 2022, when USCIS discontinued the use of advance parole for TPS recipients, some TPS recipients may become eligible to adjust status after being granted authorization to travel through a TPS-specific travel document, and then being inspected and admitted upon their return.

What happens to a TPS beneficiary when a TPS designation ends?

TPS beneficiaries return to the immigration status that the person held prior to receiving TPS, unless that status has expired or the person has successfully acquired a new immigration status. TPS beneficiaries who entered the United States without inspection and who are not eligible for other immigration benefits, for example, would return to being undocumented at the end of a TPS designation and become subject to removal.

How are “Deferred Enforced Departure” and “Extended Voluntary Departure” related to TPS?

Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) is very similar to TPS but derives from the President’s foreign policy authority rather than from a specific law. As of June 2023, the only groups designated for DED were Liberian nationals, effective until June 30, 2024, and certain residents of Hong Kong, effective until February 5, 2025. There are no explicit criteria for making DED decisions or for determining who would be eligible for DED once a designation is determined. Just like TPS holders, DED beneficiaries receive a work permit and stay of deportation; however, they are not permitted to travel abroad. Employment authorization for Liberians under DED will expire on June 30, 2024. Liberians covered by DED may be eligible for permanent resident status under Section 7611 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020, Liberian Refugee Immigration Fairness (LRIF). Under the LRIF as enacted on December 20, 2019, certain Liberian nationals were given a one-year window to pursue permanent residency in the U.S. This window was subsequently extended for an additional year, through December 20, 2021. Extended Voluntary Departure (EVD) was the predecessor to TPS prior to the Immigration Act of 1990. It was a discretionary authority used by the Attorney General (at a time when the Immigration and Naturalization Service was housed in DOJ) to give nationals of certain countries experiencing turbulent country conditions temporary permission to remain in the United States. Congress eliminated EVD with the creation of TPS.