Biden administration extends deportation protections for thousands of migrants

The Department of Homeland Security on Friday issued sweeping deportation protections for hundreds of thousands of migrants, by extending the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program for migrants from Sudan, Ukraine and Venezuela.

The program allows immigrants from designated countries to legally remain in the United States if conditions in their country temporarily prevent the country's nationals from returning home safely. The designation even grants the migrants work permits.

The extension now means that migrants from Ukraine, Sudan, and Venezuela, who are already in the United States under TPS, can re-register to remain in the U.S. until October of 2026, instead of this spring. 

The move also makes it difficult for President-elect Donald Trump to legally end the benefit for migrants in the designated countries when he takes office later this month. 

“These designations are rooted in careful review and interagency collaboration to ensure those affected by environmental disasters and instability are given the protections they need while continuing to contribute meaningfully to our communities,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement to the New York Times.

The department also moved to extend protections for migrants from El Salvador for 18 months, which would push the end date of their protections from March 10, 2025, to Sept. 9, 2026.

The extension is expected to benefit 600,000 Venezuelans, 232,000 El Salvadorans, 100,000 Ukrainians, and approximately 1,900 people from Sudan.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.