In November, the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the extension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for immigrants from six countries. Protections that were set to expire at the beginning of 2020 have been extended an additional year.
According to a story published by MassLive, more than 12,000 immigrants in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts alone will benefit from the important, much-needed extension of TPS. Here, our Boston, MA immigration lawyer explains how TPS protections work and highlights the six extensions granted by DHS.
Temporary Protected Status (TPS): Explained
The Temporary Protected Status program grants the U.S. government the authority to determine that a specific country is too dangerous or too unstable to which to deport immigrants. TPS is granted for a wide range of different reasons—from natural disasters to military conflicts. As an example, the United States extended TPS protection to Haitian nationals after the devastating earthquake of 2010.
Through TPS, eligible immigrants are granted temporary authorization to live and work in the United States. Indeed, the Employment Authorization Document (EAD) issued to beneficiaries of TPS is valid documentation that can serve as proof of eligibility to work for the purposes of Form I-9.
While TPS provides critically important and formalized legal protection to hundreds of thousands of people in the United States, it does not put an immigrant on the path to permanent residency or American citizenship. Under the manner in which the program is designed, TPS protection always has a deadline. That being said, these deadlines can be extended if the conditions on the ground in a country remains dangerous or otherwise unstable.
Temporary Protected Status Extended for Six Countries Until January 2021
The extension of TPS is critically important: The deadline for five of the six countries was set to expire within the next two months. Beyond exposing people to potential documentation, the expiration could cause immediate problems in the workplace. Temporary Protected Status has been extended to January 4th, 2021 for the following six countries:
- El Salvador;
- Nicaragua;
- Honduras;
- Haiti;
- Sudan; and
- Nepal.
According to the most recent data provided by the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, there are at least 435,048 people who are covered by TPS. In Massachusetts alone, an estimated 12,326 people are covered by the program—with nearly half of all TPS recipients in the Commonwealth being from El Salvador and another one third from Haiti. Hundreds more come from Nicaragua and Honduras.
Get Immigration Law Advice in Boston, MA
At the Goldstein Immigration Lawyers, we are patient and knowledgeable advocates for immigrants and their family members. If you have any questions or concerns about Temporary Protected Status or any related matter, we are here to help. To get a fully confidential review of your immigration case, please call us right away at (617) 722-0005. We are proud to represent clients in Boston and throughout the surrounding communities in Eastern Massachusetts.
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