On July 8, 2025, the Trump administration ended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Honduras and Nicaragua. The notice was the latest in a series of actions aimed at reducing the number of countries designated for TPS status as part of the administration’s broader immigration agenda aimed at narrowing humanitarian protection programs and resolving a perceived misuse of such programs. As part of their review process, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has found that conditions in several countries have sufficiently improved to eliminate the need for TPS designation and protections. As of Sept. 30, 2024, there were 1.1 million people living in the United States covered by TPS.
The revocation of TPS for hundreds of thousands of migrants will likely affect workforce availability across several sectors. Based on labor force participation and sectoral employment trends for TPS holders, hospitality and food service, construction, health care support, agriculture and maintenance services will be at highest risk of experiencing labor shocks and increased costs. Industries based in states that feature high concentrations of TPS holders, such as Florida, are particularly vulnerable to these policy changes. To address these concerns, businesses may be forced to seek alternate labor options.
Background
Congress created Temporary Protected Status (TPS) in the Immigration Act of 1990. It provides foreign nationals from designated countries with a temporary immigration status for a set period. The secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) determines which countries merit a TPS designation based on active armed conflicts, environmental disasters or extraordinary conditions that prevent a country’s nationals from safely returning. A TPS designation typically spans 6, 12 or 18 months, providing individuals with a work permit and protection from deportation. Eligible individuals must apply to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to enter the program.
Under the Immigration Act, the DHS secretary must conduct a review of a country’s TPS designation 60 days before its expiration date. The secretary must then publish their determination of extension or termination in the Federal Register. Termination of a country’s TPS designation may not take effect earlier than 60 days after notice publication in the Federal Register. Once an individual’s TPS designation is revoked, they return to the immigration status they held before TPS protections, unless that status has expired or the individual successfully acquired a new immigration status. If they revert to undocumented status, they are at risk of deportation.
TPS designations are granted on a case-by-case basis, meaning there are groups of foreign nationals from the same country with different designations and expiration dates. For example, two separate groups of Venezuelan nationals currently have their TPS designation under review, with one designation having expired in April 2025 and the other expiring in September 2025. TPS designations are different than humanitarian parole programs. The parole program for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans (CHNV) was terminated by the Trump administration, and on May 30, the Supreme Court allowed the government to end CHNV parole, as well as employment authorization provided under CHNV. The ruling ended humanitarian parole protections for 530,000 Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans.
Trump Administration Actions
The Trump administration has issued TPS terminations for several countries since taking office:
* Asterisks denote ongoing litigation
- Venezuela: On Feb. 3, DHS canceled the Biden-era 18-month extension for 350,000 Venezuelans protected by a 2023 TPS designation. This reverted their TPS expiration date from October 2026 to April 2, 2025. This cancellation is subject to ongoing litigation. DHS has not yet published a determination regarding the 2021 TPS designation for Venezuela, which covers around 250,000 Venezuelans and is set to expire on Sept. 10.
- Haiti: On Feb. 24, DHS canceled the Biden-era 18-month extension and redesignation for 521,000 Haitians protected by a July 2024 TPS designation. This reverted their TPS expiration date from February 2026 to August 2025. On July 1, DHS announced its intention to terminate Haiti’s TPS in September 2025, which is subject to ongoing litigation.
- Afghanistan: On May 13, DHS announced its intention to terminate TPS for around 11,700 Afghans. Those unable to secure alternate legal status will be at risk of deportation starting July 14. Secretary Noem noted improved security and economic conditions, in addition to a lack of significant armed conflict or extraordinary circumstances, in Afghanistan.
- Cameroon: On June 4, DHS announced its intention to terminate TPS for around 5,200 Cameroonians. Those unable to secure an alternate legal status will be at risk of deportation starting Aug. 4. Secretary Noem noted the decreasing severity and localized nature of conflict in Cameroon.
- Nepal: On June 6, DHS announced its intention to terminate TPS for around 12,700 Nepalese. Those unable to secure an alternate legal status will be at risk of deportation starting Aug. 5. Secretary Noem noted improvements in environmental disaster preparedness, response capacity and earthquake reconstruction.
- Honduras and Nicaragua: On July 8, DHS announced its intention to terminate TPS for 72,000 Hondurans and 4,000 Nicaraguans. Those unable to secure alternate legal status will face deportation following its expiration in two months. Secretary Noem emphasized that environmental disaster conditions that prompted both countries’ designation in 1999 have since subsided and improved.
Active Legal Challenges
Each TPS termination decision has been challenged by various immigration advocacy and legal organizations in lower courts. Arguments revolve around the legitimacy of the TPS review process for each country conducted by DHS, with opponents arguing that the conclusions prompting TPS termination are baseless and unrealistic. An improper review by DHS would violate the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) by relying on a predetermined political decision rather than country conditions as justification for TPS termination.
On May 7, legal advocacy group CASA filed a suit in the U.S. District Court of Maryland against the Trump administration’s decision to terminate TPS for Cameroon and Afghanistan. On July 7, the National TPS Alliance sued the Trump administration over its decision to terminate TPS for Nepal, Honduras and Nicaragua. Both suits allege a violation of the APA, in addition to being motivated by racial animus.
On May 19, the Supreme Court lifted a lower court’s ruling blocking the Trump administration’s Venezuela TPS termination, meaning Venezuelans covered by the 2023 TPS designation may face immediate deportation. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments against the termination of TPS for Venezuelans protected by the 2023 designation following the Supreme Court ruling. Oral arguments began on July 16 in Pasadena, California, in the case of National TPS Alliance vs. Noem. A panel of Ninth Circuit judges expressed skepticism of the Trump administration’s attempts to cancel the 2023 designation. The judges questioned whether Secretary Noem was capable of executing a full review of Venezuela’s country conditions just two weeks after her confirmation. The panel did not provide a timeline for their decision, as litigation remains ongoing.
On July 1, U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan issued a ruling that blocked the Trump administration from both terminating Haiti’s TPS and mandating DHS respect the February 2026 expiration date, rather than an altered September 2025 deadline. The White House will challenge the July ruling by Judge Cogan against their termination of Haiti’s TPS, a case that will likely end up in the Supreme Court. The White House has expressed confidence that its challenge of the ruling will be successful and must present grounds for termination in compliance with statutory requirements.
The Supreme Court ruling in May did not address the merits of the TPS recission, nor offer commentary on active or future challenges to such recissions. The one-page ruling merely reversed the district court’s block of DHS attempts to repeal the 2023 Venezuela TPS designation. The ruling expressly states that any invalidation by the recission of immigration documents already issued remains subject to legal challenge and left further litigation in the hands of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Both the Trump administration and legal advocates of TPS holders retain several legal mechanisms to extend, resist or delay unfavorable court rulings.
Next Steps
Four countries’ TPS designations are set to expire later in 2025. This includes Syria designated through Sept. 30, South Sudan designated through Nov. 3, Burma (Myanmar) designated through Nov. 25, and Ethiopia designated through Dec. 12. South Sudan received an automatic six-month extension on May 4, after DHS did not publish a determination regarding its status by March 4. DHS must publish a determination regarding Syria’s TPS based on a review of the country’s conditions by July 31, 60 days before the TPS designation expiration date, or Syria’s TPS will automatically extend by six months. Based on recent actions taken by the Trump administration, including lifting sanctions and revoking the Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) designation of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), DHS may determine Syria TPS unnecessary based on more favorable country conditions and terminate the program.
Businesses will have to carefully navigate the status and results of ongoing litigation against the Trump administration to ensure employment law compliance. TPS extends valid work permits to hundreds of thousands of workers, and businesses must be prepared to respond to short-notice changes in their ability to legally work and remain in the United States. Brownstein continues to monitor the changing immigration policies and advises of potential impacts to businesses, organizations and interested parties.
