Temporary Protected Status (TPS)
Which countries are still designated, what happens when TPS ends, and what to do now.
Important: These Dates Change Frequently — Verify Yours
TPS country designations are changing faster than any website can reliably track. Dates have shifted by weeks at a time as courts issue and lift orders. Treat the country list on this page as a snapshot, not as current legal authority — verify your own country and your own expiration dates at uscis.gov/tps, and speak with an immigration attorney about your situation.
Temporary Protected Status lets people from designated countries live and work legally in the United States when conditions back home — armed conflict, a natural disaster, or other extraordinary circumstances — make it unsafe to return. It is granted by country, for a set period, and must be renewed. Since 2025 most TPS designations have been terminated. Hundreds of thousands of people who held TPS for years have lost or are losing both their protection from deportation and their work authorization. If you have TPS, this page explains where things stand and what to do now.
On This Page
- What TPS is and what it does and does not give you
- Which countries are terminated, paused by courts, or still active
- What happens when your country's designation ends
- Steps to take right now if your TPS is ending
- Other options that may be available to former TPS holders
🛡️ What TPS Is — and What It Is Not
TPS is temporary by design. Understanding its limits matters more than ever now that designations are ending.
- →TPS gives protection from deportation and eligibility for a work permit while your country's designation is active. It is granted country by country, not case by case.
- →TPS is not a green card and it is not a path to one. Years spent in TPS do not accumulate toward permanent residence on their own.
- →TPS does not erase or fix an underlying lack of status. When a designation ends, most people return to whatever status they had before — which for many is none.
- →You must register during the designated period and re-register for each extension. Missing a re-registration window can cost you your status even while your country is still designated.
- →Having had TPS does not by itself protect you from removal once the designation ends.
🌍 Country Status — Snapshot as of July 2026
This is where things stood in July 2026. Verify your country at uscis.gov/tps before relying on any of it — these dates move.
- →TERMINATED: Afghanistan, Cameroon, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Yemen. Roughly 320,000 people were affected by terminations that had taken effect by early 2026.
- →TERMINATIONS CLEARED BY THE SUPREME COURT: On June 25, 2026 the Supreme Court ruled 6–3 in Mullin v. Doe, allowing terminations for Haiti and Syria to proceed.
- →PAUSED BY COURTS (for now): terminations for several countries including Burma (Myanmar), Ethiopia, Somalia, and South Sudan had been temporarily blocked by court orders. These pauses became considerably more fragile after the June 2026 Supreme Court ruling, and work authorization end dates for several of them fell in late July 2026.
- →STILL ACTIVE: as of July 2026, El Salvador, Lebanon, Sudan, and Ukraine still had active designations. El Salvador's was set to expire September 9, 2026.
- →Because court orders have repeatedly changed these dates on short notice, do not assume a pause will hold. Check your own documents for your actual expiration date, and check uscis.gov/tps for your country.
⏳ What Happens When Your Designation Ends
A termination does not deport you automatically, but it does remove the protection you have been relying on.
- →Your work authorization ends when your TPS-based EAD expires or is terminated. Continuing to work after that can create serious problems for future immigration applications.
- →You return to whatever immigration status you held before TPS. For many people that means no lawful status, which makes them subject to removal.
- →Unlawful presence generally begins to accumulate again once your protection ends. Accruing more than 180 days or one year can trigger bars of 3 or 10 years on returning if you later leave the country — this is one of the most important reasons to get advice before making plans.
- →Tell your employer only what is accurate about your work authorization, and never present an expired or altered document.
- →Do not wait for a notice in the mail before acting. Notices are sometimes late, and the deadline runs regardless.
📌 What to Do Right Now
If your TPS has ended or is ending, these are the practical steps, in order.
- →Find your actual expiration dates. Check your EAD card, your last approval notice, and your USCIS online account — do not rely on memory or on what others with the same nationality are saying.
- →See an immigration attorney or DOJ-accredited representative immediately, not eventually. Options narrow fast, and some of them have hard deadlines.
- →If your country is still designated, re-register on time during every registration window. Missing one can end your status even while the designation lasts.
- →Make an emergency plan for your family — who picks up the children, who has access to documents and money, who to call. Our Emergency Plan page walks through this.
- →Gather and safeguard your documents now: passports, birth certificates, all immigration paperwork, proof of continuous residence, tax returns, and medical and school records.
- →Be extremely careful about international travel. Leaving the United States after your protection ends can trigger reentry bars that last years.
🔍 Other Options Worth Exploring
Many long-time TPS holders qualify for something else and never find out because no one reviewed their case. A consultation is worth it even if you think the answer is no.
- →Asylum — if you fear persecution in your home country. There is normally a one-year filing deadline from arrival, but exceptions exist, including for changed or extraordinary circumstances. Ask a lawyer whether one applies to you.
- →Family-based petitions — through a U.S. citizen or green card holder spouse, parent, or adult child.
- →U visa (victims of certain crimes) or T visa (victims of trafficking), if you were harmed and helpful to law enforcement.
- →VAWA self-petition, if you experienced abuse from a U.S. citizen or permanent resident spouse, parent, or child. This is confidential and does not require the abuser's involvement or knowledge.
- →Cancellation of removal, for some people with long residence and qualifying relatives — but this is generally only available in immigration court proceedings.
- →Employment-based options, if you have an employer willing to sponsor you.
- →Beware of anyone guaranteeing a result or offering a 'special program' for former TPS holders. There is no such program, and that promise is a common scam.
Official Links & Resources
USCIS — Temporary Protected Status
Official country designations, registration periods, and deadlines.
USCIS — Check Your Case Status
Look up a pending TPS or work permit application by receipt number.
ASAP — TPS and DED Updates
Plain-language updates for TPS holders from a member organization.
American Immigration Council — TPS Overview
Background on how TPS works and who holds it.
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