Temporary Protected Status (TPS) in 2026: Countries, Eligibility and Options

What Temporary Protected Status Is

Temporary Protected Status, created by the Immigration Act of 1990 and codified at section 244A of the Immigration and Nationality Act, is a form of humanitarian protection. The Secretary of Homeland Security may designate a foreign country for TPS when conditions there — an ongoing armed conflict, an environmental disaster, or other extraordinary and temporary conditions — make it unsafe for its nationals to return, or when the country cannot adequately handle their return. A designation runs for a set period, typically six, twelve, or eighteen months, and can be extended or terminated.

Two features drive almost every misunderstanding of the program. First, TPS protects you from removal and lets you apply for work authorization and travel authorization, but it is not a visa and it is not a green card. It does not, on its own, put you on a path to permanent residence. Second, the protection attaches to a designation, not to you. When the Secretary terminates a country's designation, the protection for everyone covered by that designation ends on the effective date, subject only to whatever a court has ordered in the meantime. That is why two people who filed identical applications can face completely different outcomes based on the month their country's designation was decided.

TPS is administered by USCIS. Initial applicants and re-registrants file Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status, and those who want a work permit file Form I-765 at the same time. Recipients must re-register during each re-registration window USCIS opens, and they may travel only with an approved TPS travel authorization requested on Form I-131. For the wider visa context around that travel document, see our US visa guide.

Which Countries Still Have TPS in 2026

As of March 2025 the latest federal data showed nearly 1.3 million people from seventeen countries holding TPS. The current administration has since ended or moved to end designations covering thirteen of those seventeen countries. The Supreme Court's June 25, 2026 decision in Mullin v. Doe held that courts generally lack authority to review the Secretary's termination decisions, which cleared the way for a wave of effective dates. The table below summarizes where things stood in early October 2026.

Read that table as a moving target rather than a final answer. USCIS maintains a separate page for each designated country where it posts the registration or re-registration window, the automatic extension of work permits, and the exact valid-through date. The agency has also warned employers and TPS holders that automatic extensions can be superseded by later guidance. Before you make any decision about your job, your EAD, or your travel plans, check the specific country page and any recent USCIS newsroom alert on the same day you act.

Who Qualifies for TPS

Eligibility is defined by statute and the individual Federal Register notice for your country, and the requirements are cumulative. USCIS will deny the application if any one of them is missing, so build the file around the checklist rather than around a single strong document.

• Nationality or habitual residence: you must be a national of a country currently designated for TPS, or a person without nationality who last habitually resided in that country. Dual nationals face special complications, because TPS does not extend to a national of a country whose other nationality is an equally safe alternative; speak to an attorney if you hold two passports.
• Continuous physical presence: you must have been physically present in the United States since the date specified in the designation notice. Short trips abroad can break this requirement, so gather travel records.
• Continuous residence: you must have maintained a residence in the United States since the residence date set in the Federal Register notice. Pay stubs, lease agreements, utility bills, school records, medical records, and letters from churches or community organizations are the standard proof.
• Admissibility: you must be admissible, or eligible for a waiver of the grounds of inadmissibility that apply to TPS. Certain criminal convictions and two or more misdemeanors will disqualify you, and some grounds cannot be waived at all.
• Timely registration: you must file within the initial registration period or a re-registration window, unless USCIS expressly permits late initial registration for someone in your situation.

Documentation, not narrative, wins TPS cases. USCIS lists the acceptable evidence for nationality, physical presence, and continuous residence on its TPS page, and the most common reason applications are denied is simply that the applicant sent too little proof. If you are re-registering, keep your prior approval notices and your prior EADs in the packet, because they help establish continuity.

Re-Registration and Fees

TPS is not renewed automatically. During each re-registration window USCIS opens, you must file Form I-821 again. There is no Form I-821 fee for re-registration; the fee applies to initial registrations. The larger cost for most people is the work permit, because employment authorization requires a separate Form I-765.

These figures come from USCIS fee alerts and the agency's Form G-1055 fee schedule. The October 16, 2026 increase applies to requests postmarked on or after that date, and USCIS rejects filings sent with the wrong amount. A biometric services fee may also apply if USCIS requires biometrics for your filing. Because the fees have changed twice in two years, always pull the current amount the week you file rather than reusing what you paid last time. If you cannot afford the fees, a fee waiver may be available for some categories; USCIS publishes the guidance on its fee waiver page.

EAD, Travel Authorization and Unlawful Presence

Employment authorization and travel authorization are separate benefits that sit on top of TPS. Your EAD is the plastic work permit that lets an employer complete Form I-9; your TPS approval notice alone is not a work permit. When you re-register on time, USCIS often automatically extends the EAD you already hold until a stated date while the new card is produced, and it publishes that automatic extension in the Federal Register notice or a country-specific alert. If you wait to request an EAD until after your TPS is approved, you will not receive the card for several more weeks. Keep the extension notice with your old card because employers may ask for it.

Travel is the sharper trap. An EAD is not a travel document, and leaving the United States without an approved travel authorization can cause you to lose your TPS. To travel and return, you request TPS travel authorization on Form I-131 and receive a Form I-512 advance parole document before departure. Historically, advance parole travel did not count as a departure for purposes of the three- and ten-year unlawful-presence bars, but that changed on August 13, 2026. In Matter of Delcarmen-Lara, the Board of Immigration Appeals overruled its 2012 Arrabally decision and held that departing under advance parole is a departure for the unlawful-presence bars. If you have accrued more than 180 days of unlawful presence, a single trip can now trigger a bar on return. Many TPS holders have long-pending asylum cases or prior status gaps, so the trip that looked routine a year ago can now be genuinely dangerous. Get individualized advice before any international travel.

Court Challenges and What They Mean

The termination story is not over, and the litigation is the reason the country table keeps shifting. In Mullin v. Doe, decided June 25, 2026, the Supreme Court held that a provision of the immigration statute bars judicial review of non-constitutional challenges to the Secretary's decision to terminate a TPS designation. Within weeks the government moved to give effect to terminations that lower courts had blocked, including Haiti and Syria, and a district court confirmed on August 5, 2026 that its earlier injunction against Haiti's termination was no longer in effect.

At the same time, a separate line of cases continues. On August 5, 2026 a federal court declined to enjoin the government's decision to end the validity of TPS employment authorization for certain groups. And on October 5, 2026, the Supreme Court granted review, vacated a Ninth Circuit ruling that had favored Venezuelan and Haitian beneficiaries, and remanded the case for reconsideration in light of Mullin. Because courts can still act on the factual and constitutional edges of these decisions, a designation that appears terminated today can move again while appeals proceed. The practical rule is never to assume that a headline from last month describes your situation now. Check whether a specific court order covers your country and your cohort, and let an attorney confirm it in writing.

If Your Country Was Terminated

If your designation has ended, your TPS and your work authorization end on the effective date unless a court order still protects you. Do not wait for a letter. Take these steps.

1. Get a legal screening immediately. A licensed immigration attorney can identify protections that a general guide cannot, such as a pending or approvable asylum claim, adjustment of status through a family member, a U or T visa based on crime victimization or trafficking, cancellation of removal, or another nonimmigrant status you may qualify for.
2. Verify whether any court order covers you. Some terminations were enjoined for months, and the scope of an injunction can depend on your country, your filing date, or your membership in a class. Confirm this with counsel rather than a social media post.
3. Protect your work authorization and employment. Tell your employer only what is accurate, keep evidence of any automatic extension, and understand that a terminated EAD means you cannot lawfully keep working after the stated date.
4. Make a safety plan. Organize your immigration and identity documents, arrange care for dependents, and know your rights in case of contact with enforcement. Community legal organizations publish emergency-plan checklists; see our refugee and asylum guide for the asylum side of the conversation.
5. Track the news lawfully, not hopefully. Follow USCIS alerts and the Federal Register, and re-check each month, because a new decision or a new effective date can change your options.

TPS is a temporary program by design, and 2026 has tested that reality harder than any year in memory. The people who fare best are the ones who build a documented, independent path to status now rather than counting on the protection to survive. For the wider context of enforcement and policy changes this year, see our US immigration changes 2026 overview, and use the visa eligibility checker to understand which categories might fit your history. Current processing estimates for the work-permit and application side are tracked on our EAD processing time and USCIS processing times pages.

Frequently Asked Questions