The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has granted a temporary reprieve from deportation to more than 100,000 individuals from Ukraine and Sudan. This decision provides a temporary safeguard for these populations, whose existing Temporary Protected Status (TPS) was set to expire on Monday.
DHS stated that an announcement regarding their status would be made "at the appropriate time." Until then, Ukrainians and Sudanese covered by these temporary measures will retain their protections. While DHS did not immediately clarify if work permits would be maintained, TPS generally allows individuals to work legally while their protections are in effect.
This move marks a continuation of a recent practice by the administration, which has allowed individuals with TPS to remain in the U.S. without providing long-term guidance. This follows a similar decision approximately one month ago to extend TPS for nearly 200,000 Salvadorans whose status was also set to expire.
Activists and bipartisan lawmakers had raised concerns about the approaching deadlines for Ukrainians, citing ongoing unsafe conditions in their home country due to the war with Russia. Ukraine was first granted TPS in April 2022, following Russia's full-scale invasion, with subsequent extensions authorized through October 2026.
The TPS program for Sudan, established in 1997, has been repeatedly extended by successive U.S. administrations due to persistent armed conflict and political instability.
The TPS program, created by Congress in 1990, allows individuals from designated countries facing unsafe conditions to remain and work in the U.S. for renewable periods. However, it does not offer a pathway to permanent residency. While supporters argue it protects vulnerable individuals from returning to dangerous situations, critics contend that protections have been extended for excessively long periods.
Organizations advocating for immigrants expressed gratitude for the temporary extension. "We're grateful for an extension, however temporary, for TPS holders from Ukraine and Sudan," said Myal Greene, president and CEO of World Relief. "We encourage the administration and Congress to consider longer term relief for women, men and children trying to carve out stability while their countries of origin remain in upheaval."
Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, president and CEO of Global Refuge, emphasized the continued dangers in Ukraine and Sudan, citing Russia's ongoing war and devastating infrastructure attacks in Ukraine, and a brutal civil war marked by famine and human rights abuses in Sudan. "It is not safe for these families to go home," Vignarajah stated.