The Supreme Court of the United States has just ruled in a 6-3 decision that the Trump administration has the authority to strip Temporary Protected Status (TPS) from hundreds of thousands of Haitian and Syrian migrants living in the United States. The TPS Ruling As reported by BBC, this ruling overturns lower court orders that had previously blocked the termination of TPS status. The decision affects about 350,000 people from Haiti and 6,100 from Syria. Temporary Protected Status (TPS) lets people from designated countries live and work in the US legally. It applies when a person’s home country cannot safely take them back, often because of war or natural disaster. Recipients are protected for up to 18 months at a time, and the designation can be extended. While protected, they cannot be detained or removed based on their immigration status. The US first granted TPS to Haitians after the 2010 earthquake. Syrians received it in 2012, after civil war broke out. Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the law governing TPS bars courts from reviewing these decisions and that the Haitian plaintiffs were unlikely to prove the terminations were racially discriminatory or that they violated equal protection under the Fifth Amendment. The three liberal justices dissented. Justice Elena Kagan wrote that the move to strip these protections was racially motivated, stating “The statements fairly shout, in their racial undertones and overtones alike, that race entered into the President’s resolve to remove Haitians from this country.”
The Asylum Ruling
In a second 6-3 decision, SCOTUS ruled that migrants must set foot on US soil before they can apply for asylum. People stopped on the Mexican side of the border are not covered. The case turned on one question: what it means to “arrive” in the United States. The Trump administration argued that a person still on Mexico soil has not “arrived”. The Supreme Court agreed. The ruling revives a policy known as “metering.” It was first used in 2016 under the Obama administration to cap how many asylum seekers could request protection each day. The Biden administration ended it in 2021. Now it returns.
What These Rulings Mean
These rulings are not isolated. They are the latest step in a surge of TPS rollbacks as a revival of restrictive immigration policy grips the nation. Temporary Protected Status is in danger. The current administration has moved to end protections for 13 of the 17 countries that held TPS designations when Trump’s term began. That could affect close to one million people. Some terminations have already taken effect, including Afghanistan, Cameroon, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, South Sudan, Yemen, and part of the Venezuelan population. Others are still blocked. For people who hold TPS now, there is now precedent set for you to lose TPS designations in the future. Losing status can end work authorization. It can also expose someone to detention and deportation. If you or a family member currently holds TPS, just lost TPS, or is considering an asylum claim, this is the time to review your options and connect with an experienced immigration attorney.
Talk To An Immigration Appeals Lawyer Today
For the past 40 years, Reeves Immigration Law Group has helped individuals with their asylum applications and achieved their desired results in some of the most complicated cases. We understand that this is a confusing, scary, and difficult time with consistent changes in legislation. If you or your family members are currently applying for asylum, in fear of losing Temporary Protected Status, or dealing with the ramifications of losing either, contact one of our asylum attorneys today, and our experienced and skilled immigration team will help craft a personalized approach for your specific needs.
