DHS keeps protections in place for Ukrainian and Sudanese TPS holders without setting an end date

The Department of Homeland Security has told Ukrainians and Sudanese living in the U.S. under Temporary Protected Status that their shield from deportation remains in effect for the time being, according to several outlets. The status for both groups had been scheduled to lapse on Monday, Oct. 19.

The Tennessee Lookout, Utah News Dispatch and Nebraska Examiner said the decision covers upward of 100,000 Ukrainians and roughly 2,000 Sudanese. News4JAX, running an Associated Press story, gave narrower counts: about 101,000 Ukrainians and 1,800 Sudanese.

In a written statement, the department said a decision would be announced later and that affected people keep their protection in the meantime, News4JAX reported. It did not say when that announcement would come or how long the reprieve would last.

Reports diverged on employment. The three States Newsroom outlets said recipients keep their work authorization. News4JAX said DHS left a question on work permits unanswered, adding that people with TPS can normally hold jobs while their status is active.

About a month earlier, the administration handled Salvadoran TPS holders the same way as their Sept. 9 deadline neared. The Tennessee Lookout counted that group at over 200,000; News4JAX said close to 200,000. Combined, more than 300,000 people are unsure how long they can remain, the Lookout reported.

Federal law provides a six-month automatic extension when the homeland security secretary fails to decide on a country's status 60 or more days ahead of its end date, the outlets reported. According to the Tennessee Lookout, DHS has not said whether that provision now applies to any of the three groups, and Secretary Markwayne Mullin has not indicated whether he will renew them.

News4JAX reported that Ukraine first received the designation in 2022 following Russia's invasion and that the Biden administration later lengthened it to October 2026. Sudan has held the status since 1997, with repeated renewals tied to war and instability. Both nations carry the State Department's top-level travel warning, the Lookout noted.

Congress established the program in 1990, and the current administration has worked to phase it out. News4JAX said Venezuela, Haiti and Afghanistan are among 13 countries whose designations have been ended, affecting over 1 million people. The Lookout reported that the Supreme Court ruled this summer that courts cannot review executive decisions on TPS designations, and that once Monday passes, Lebanon will be the only other designated country, with an expiration of Nov. 27.

Advocacy groups welcomed the move while urging a firmer answer. "Keeping protections in place is the right call, but a promise to a reporter is not a policy," Krish O'Mara Vignarajah of Global Refuge said, according to the Tennessee Lookout.

Yuriy Boyechko, who leads Hope For Ukraine, told the AP, as carried by News4JAX: "It's time for U.S. to come up with some normal path to permanent residency for all these people."

News4JAX noted the announcement arrived two weeks ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections.

Compiled by True News from reporting by Tennessee Lookout, Utah News Dispatch, Nebraska Examiner and News4JAX. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/254