The Trump administration has received judicial approval to terminate the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for South Sudanese nationals residing in the United States. This decision, made by US District Judge Patti Saris of the district of Massachusetts, follows a contentious legal battle and a significant Supreme Court ruling in June.
The Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision in June allowed the administration to strip TPS from over 350,000 Haitians and approximately 6,100 Syrians. This program, which has been a lifeline for many, permits individuals from designated countries facing crises such as civil war or environmental disasters to live and work legally in the US.
Legal Arguments and Judicial Ruling
In her 15-page ruling, Judge Saris dismissed the arguments presented by immigrant rights organizations, stating that “as a logical matter, plaintiffs’ arguments rest upon a self-contradictory, self-defeating foundation.” She explained that if the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) lacked the authority to terminate South Sudan’s TPS designation, it also would have lacked the authority to issue the designation initially.
James Percival, a DHS general counsel, celebrated the ruling on X, stating, “Every other TPS judge must do the same! Every day these ‘administrative stays’ are in effect is a day the American people are denied what they voted for.”
Humanitarian Concerns and Economic Impact
The immigrant advocacy organization Global Refuge condemned the ruling, highlighting the dire situation in South Sudan. Krish O’Mara Vignarajah, the CEO, emphasized that South Sudan is on the brink of a return to all-out civil war, with roughly two-thirds of the population relying on humanitarian aid to survive.
Since 2001, TPS holders have contributed significantly to the US economy, paying $7.8 billion annually in taxes and adding $262 billion to the economy. Many TPS holders work in critical industries such as construction, hospitality, and healthcare, which are already facing worker shortages.
Impact on South Sudanese Nationals
The DHS moved to terminate TPS for South Sudan in, arguing that the country no longer met the conditions for the designation. This decision would affect more than 232 South Sudanese nationals and at least 73 with pending applications. An earlier order by Saris had temporarily blocked this termination.
After the Supreme Court’s ruling, lawyers for a group of South Sudanese nationals and the non-profit African Communities Together urged Saris to block the end of TPS on new grounds. They argued that the DHS lacked authority to terminate TPS because the statute that created the program in 1990 referred only to the attorney general as the official with authority to extend and terminate the deportation protections.
Judge Saris, who was appointed by Bill Clinton, concluded that Congress had transferred authority over TPS to the DHS when it was established in 2002, following the September 11 attacks.
Future Implications
Losing TPS can leave immigrants without legal status vulnerable to arrest, detention, and deportation, even with pending asylum or green card applications. Some may face immigration court proceedings with limited options to stay in the US. People ordered removed could be deported and barred from returning for years.
The Trump administration’s effort to strip TPS protections from hundreds of thousands of immigrants comes despite the US government’s own highest-level travel warnings for Americans to several countries affected, including South Sudan, Haiti, and Syria.
