US President Joe Biden’s administration announced on Friday (January 10) that it would extend Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for nearly 1 million immigrants from El Salvador, Sudan, Ukraine, and Venezuela for an additional 18 months. The extension covers 232,000 Salvadorans, 1,900 Sudanese, 600,000 Venezuelans, and 103,700 Ukrainians. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) made the announcement, which comes just days before President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration.
Background and purpose of TPS
Temporary Protected Status, first established by Congress in 1990, offers immigrants legal permission to stay in the US when their home countries face severe environmental or political crises. It does not provide a long-term path to citizenship but allows recipients to remain in the country and work legally during the duration of their status. TPS renewals are typically granted in increments of up to 18 months.
Rationale behind the extension
The extension is primarily based on ongoing humanitarian crises in the affected countries. For Venezuela, the TPS renewal comes amid the country’s severe political and economic crises under President Nicolás Maduro’s government. In El Salvador, environmental conditions such as heavy rains and storms in recent years are cited as preventing safe return for immigrants. The extension for Sudan is also based on ongoing instability in the country.
The impact of the extension
Approximately 600,000 Venezuelans and 230,000 Salvadorans living in the United States are directly impacted by this TPS extension, which ensures they can legally remain in the country until at least 2026. The announcement follows an expansion of TPS under Biden, which now includes around 1 million immigrants.
Potential future of TPS under the Trump administration
TPS, while benefiting nearly 1 million immigrants from 17 countries, faces an uncertain future under the incoming Trump administration. Former President Donald Trump attempted to scale back TPS during his first term and may revisit efforts to curtail its use in his second term. Critics have expressed concern that prolonged renewals of TPS create a de facto path to permanent residency, regardless of changing conditions in home countries.
Congress and the future of TPS
TPS was originally created to provide relief for individuals facing environmental disasters or civil unrest. However, conservative critics argue that its extensions have become automatic, even as conditions in some home countries may improve.
Countries benefiting from TPS
Currently, around 1 million immigrants from 17 countries benefit from TPS. These countries include Venezuela, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, Afghanistan, Sudan, Ukraine, and Lebanon. The extension for Venezuelans will run until October 2026, while Salvadorans’ status has been extended until September 2026. The TPS for Sudanese and Ukrainians also continues until the end of the extension period.
