Temporary Protected Status (TPS): Countries, Expiration Dates & Immigration Warnings
TPS has let hundreds of thousands of people work legally, raise families, and build lives in the United States. But TPS was never permanent status — and for many beneficiaries, that distinction has suddenly become urgent.
TPS has already been terminated for Haiti, Venezuela, Afghanistan, Cameroon, Honduras, Nicaragua, Nepal, Somalia, South Sudan, Burma/Myanmar, Ethiopia, Syria, and Yemen. Lebanon's prior period ran through May 27, 2026.
During 2025 and 2026, the Department of Homeland Security terminated TPS designations for a long list of countries. Other designations are approaching expiration. Court challenges have delayed or altered some termination dates, adding another layer of uncertainty for people who have relied on TPS for years.
If you currently hold TPS, the most useful question may no longer be "When does my TPS expire?" It's closer to: what immigration status will I have the day after TPS ends? That's worth working out before protection disappears, not after.
The end of TPS does not automatically mean deportation for every TPS holder. But TPS itself does not create permanent immigration status. A person whose TPS ends, and who has no other lawful status or protection, may become subject to removal proceedings or may return to whatever status they held before TPS, if that status is still valid. Waiting until the final weeks eliminates valuable time to look into other options.
TPS lets eligible beneficiaries remain in the U.S. and protects them from removal while it's valid, but it does not by itself lead to a green card or another status. When a country's designation ends, a person ordinarily returns to whatever status or category they held before TPS — if it's still valid — or to another status lawfully obtained while they had TPS.
TPS Countries and Current Status
The table below reflects government announcements and federal notices as of September 2, 2026. TPS rules and court orders can change quickly, so confirm the latest USCIS or Federal Register notice before relying on any date here.
| Country | Current TPS Situation | What This Means |
|---|---|---|
| El Salvador | Extremely urgent — scheduled through Sept. 9, 2026 | Review alternatives immediately |
| Ukraine | Currently through Oct. 19, 2026 | Begin reviewing future status now |
| Sudan | Currently through Oct. 19, 2026 | Do not assume another extension |
| Haiti | Terminated | Immediate immigration review recommended |
| Afghanistan | Terminated | TPS can no longer be relied upon |
| Cameroon | Terminated | Other relief should be evaluated |
| Honduras | Terminated; litigation has occurred | Case-specific review is important |
| Nepal | Terminated | Long-term residents should examine alternatives |
| Nicaragua | Terminated | Other immigration options should be reviewed |
| Venezuela | Designations terminated | Litigation has complicated the situation |
| Somalia | Terminated March 17, 2026 | TPS removal protection has ended |
| South Sudan | Terminated | Alternative protection may be important |
| Burma / Myanmar | Terminated | Asylum and other protection may require review |
| Ethiopia | Terminated in 2026 | Recent termination — review immediately |
| Syria | Termination announced and litigated | Do not rely on old expiration information |
| Yemen | Terminated in 2026 | Other humanitarian protection should be considered |
| Lebanon | Prior period ran through May 27, 2026 | Confirm individual current status |
This table is a starting point, not a substitute for reviewing your own immigration history. The applicable designation, re-registration history, EAD category, and any court order may all matter to your specific case.
El Salvador TPS: September 9, 2026 Is Now an Emergency Date
The prior 18-month extension covered eligible Salvadoran TPS beneficiaries from March 10, 2025 through September 9, 2026. On August 12, 2026, USCIS confirmed by E-Verify update that El Salvador's TPS designation and related benefits are set to terminate on that date, and extended certain pending TPS-based EADs through the same deadline.
A procedural wrinkle remains: DHS had not yet issued the expected final Federal Register termination notice as of this writing. Salvadoran TPS holders shouldn't assume TPS will certainly disappear, and shouldn't assume another extension will inevitably arrive either. Someone who has lived here under TPS for 10, 15, or 20 years may have possibilities today that didn't exist when TPS was first granted — worth investigating before September 9, not after.
Ukraine TPS: Protection Currently Runs Through October 19, 2026
TPS for Ukraine was extended from April 20, 2025 through October 19, 2026. Eligible beneficiaries who timely re-registered may receive TPS and EADs through that date.
That's not a reason to wait until October. One person may have TPS only; another may also have humanitarian parole, a pending asylum case, or an immediate-relative petition — distinctions that can completely change what happens when TPS ends. Ukrainians who fear returning because of war, persecution, political activity, military issues, or another individualized threat may need asylum or another humanitarian protection examined separately from TPS.
Sudan TPS: Currently Through October 19, 2026
DHS extended Sudan's TPS designation from April 20, 2025 through October 19, 2026. Sudanese TPS holders should avoid treating that date as a guarantee that another extension follows. Anyone who might qualify for asylum, withholding of removal, family-based immigration, or another form of status should consider those possibilities while TPS protection remains available.
Haiti TPS Has Ended
Haiti illustrates exactly why TPS holders shouldn't wait until the last moment. Some Haitian TPS holders may have had possible asylum claims but never pursued them because TPS already provided protection and work authorization. Others may now have U.S. citizen spouses, adult U.S. citizen children, approved immigrant petitions, employment histories, or other circumstances that didn't exist when they first entered.
An old asylum claim isn't automatically lost, but a late filing raises real issues — including the one-year filing deadline and whether an exception applies. Withholding of removal or Convention Against Torture protection may also need to be considered in some cases.
Afghanistan and Cameroon TPS Have Been Terminated
DHS terminated TPS for Afghanistan in 2025. Afghan nationals may still have different legal options depending on how they entered, including asylum, Special Immigrant Visa eligibility, family immigration, or adjustment of status — TPS termination doesn't decide eligibility for those independent protections.
Cameroon's TPS designation was also formally terminated. Cameroonian nationals who fear persecution because of political opinion, ethnicity, separatist activity, government targeting, or another protected ground shouldn't assume the end of TPS means no humanitarian protection remains. TPS and asylum are different remedies.
Honduras, Nicaragua and Nepal TPS Terminations
DHS terminated TPS for Honduras and Nicaragua in 2025, and Nepal was affected by the same broader wave of termination actions. Litigation temporarily delayed some of these terminations, but an appellate court allowed the decisions to proceed while litigation continued. For people who lived under these programs for decades, a complete immigration-history review matters more than ever.
Venezuela TPS: Multiple Designations Created Additional Confusion
Venezuelan TPS became especially complicated because there were separate 2021 and 2023 designations. DHS terminated both, while court litigation repeatedly affected the program along the way. Venezuelan nationals shouldn't rely on a social-media post, an old USCIS notice, or the expiration date printed on an EAD as proof of current status — the designation, registration history, EAD category, and any controlling court order may all matter.
Somalia and South Sudan TPS
DHS terminated Somalia's TPS designation effective March 17, 2026. The end of TPS doesn't prevent an individual Somali national from seeking another protection they independently qualify for.
South Sudan received TPS beginning in 2011 and was repeatedly extended and redesignated before DHS ultimately announced termination, after an automatic extension had carried TPS through November 3, 2025. Individualized concerns about persecution, violence, or return may require a separate asylum, withholding, or CAT analysis.
Burma/Myanmar and Ethiopia TPS Have Been Terminated
Burma was initially designated for TPS in 2021 and later redesignated before DHS ended the designation. Political dissidents, journalists, ethnic minorities, and others with individualized fears of return may have protection claims that exist independent of TPS.
Ethiopia's designation ended after DHS determined that conditions supporting TPS no longer satisfied statutory requirements. Beneficiaries who relied exclusively on TPS should determine exactly what immigration position they're in now.
Yemen, Syria and Lebanon TPS
Yemen's designation was terminated in 2026. Continuing dangerous country conditions don't by themselves extend TPS once DHS terminates a designation — individual humanitarian claims still have to be evaluated under the standards governing those specific forms of relief.
DHS announced a decision to terminate Syria's TPS designation after the prior period that ran through September 30, 2025; litigation makes Syria another country where beneficiaries should confirm current legal status rather than rely on an old TPS webpage or EAD expiration date.
Lebanon was designated for TPS for an 18-month period ending May 27, 2026. Lebanese nationals who previously relied on TPS should verify their current position rather than assume the original protection continues — DED and TPS are separate protections with different legal bases and eligibility rules.
What Happens When TPS Ends?
TPS generally provides protection from removal, authorization to remain in the United States during the designation, and eligibility for employment authorization. It doesn't automatically turn into a green card. Someone who held another valid status may return to or continue in it; someone who obtained another valid status while holding TPS may remain under that status. But a person whose only protection was TPS can face a much more serious situation once TPS disappears.
Do Not Assume a Pending Petition Protects You From Removal
A pending immigration petition isn't always the same thing as lawful status. Someone may have an approved or pending I-130, I-360, employment petition, asylum application, U visa case, adjustment application, or another proceeding — each carries different consequences. Simply having a family or humanitarian petition pending doesn't necessarily provide the same protection TPS provided.
Could a TPS Holder Apply for Asylum?
Possibly. TPS and asylum are entirely different protections. TPS is based principally on conditions affecting a designated country; asylum normally requires an individualized showing of persecution, or a well-founded fear of persecution, because of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.
There's generally a one-year filing deadline, but immigration law recognizes changed-circumstances and extraordinary-circumstances exceptions. TPS holders shouldn't conclude either that they automatically qualify, or that it's automatically too late.
Withholding of Removal and Convention Against Torture
Even when asylum presents a filing-deadline problem, that doesn't necessarily end the analysis. Some individuals may be able to seek withholding of removal or protection under the Convention Against Torture — remedies with different requirements that provide different forms of protection.
Could Marriage or a U.S. Citizen Relative Help?
Sometimes. A TPS holder may now have circumstances that didn't exist when TPS was first granted — marriage to a U.S. citizen, a U.S. citizen child who's turned 21, employment sponsorship, or an approved family petition.
Eligibility for adjustment can depend on how the person entered, inspection or parole, unlawful presence, immigration violations, removal orders, criminal history, TPS-authorized travel, and the immigrant category. There's no universal rule that every TPS beneficiary can — or can't — get a green card.
A TPS Holder With an Old Deportation Order Faces a Different Risk
Some beneficiaries already had removal cases or orders before receiving TPS. TPS may have prevented removal while protection remained valid, but its end can be especially serious for someone with immigration-court history — DHS may not have to start an entirely new case from scratch.
Your Employment Authorization May End With TPS
Many TPS beneficiaries receive EADs in categories A12 or C19. When TPS terminates, related work authorization can terminate along with it unless another independent basis exists. Employers and beneficiaries should watch USCIS announcements about automatic extensions — the date printed on an EAD doesn't always tell the whole story, but an old EAD shouldn't be assumed valid just because an earlier notice once extended it.
Long-Term TPS Holders Should Review Their Entire Immigration History
Many TPS holders originally applied at a completely different stage of life. Since then, they may have:
- Married or divorced
- Had U.S. citizen children, or had children turn 21
- Become victims of crimes or domestic abuse
- Received employment sponsorship
- Developed new fears of returning home
- Filed family petitions
- Traveled with government authorization
- Had immigration proceedings reopened or closed
- Become eligible for benefits that didn't previously exist
A legal review performed today can produce a very different answer than a review performed 10 or 20 years ago.
Don't wait for the last day of TPS. One of the biggest mistakes a TPS holder can make is assuming another extension will arrive just because extensions happened before. Recent terminations show that continuation can't be assumed, and some immigration remedies take real time: evidence may need to be gathered, family records obtained overseas, old immigration files and court records requested, prior entries and exits reconstructed, and a potential asylum claim built out with extensive supporting evidence. Waiting until TPS has already ended can make an already difficult situation considerably harder.
TPS Immigration Review: What to Examine
- How and when you entered the United States
- Every immigration status you have held
- Whether you have ever been in Immigration Court or have a removal order
- Family relationships to U.S. citizens or permanent residents
- Pending or approved immigration petitions
- Possible asylum, withholding, or CAT claims
- Crime-victim or domestic-violence protections
- Employment-based possibilities
- Prior travel outside the United States
- Arrests or criminal cases
- Whether another basis exists for remaining and working legally
The goal isn't just figuring out when TPS expires. It's answering the more important question: what comes after TPS, for you specifically?
USCIS — Temporary Protected Status
Federal Register
USCIS E-Verify Announcements
Not sure what happens after your TPS ends?
We'll review your complete immigration history and identify every option that may still be available to you.