DHS Nixes Honduran, Nicaraguan Immigrants’ Temporary Protections

The Department of Homeland Security will terminate Temporary Protected Status for Honduran and Nicaraguan immigrants in the US, the agency said.

Protections for TPS recipients from the countries will end effective Sept. 6, or 60 days after termination notices released Monday are published in the Federal Register.

The TPS program allows immigrants from designated countries to stay in the US for up to 18 months with legal employment authorization when conditions like armed conflict or natural disaster prevent a safe return.

Both countries first received a TPS designation in 1999. The Biden administration cited flooding, drought, and “staggering levels” of crime and violence in a 2023 Federal Register notice extending protections for Hondurans.

DHS estimates that there are about 72,000 TPS holders from that country and 4,000 from Nicaragua.

The Biden DHS identified environmental disasters and political instability in a 2023 Federal Register notice extending protections for Nicaraguans.

The Trump administration has targeted the TPS program for termination, arguing it’s not in the US national interest to keep protections for immigrants from several countries. It’s already canceled designations for Venezuela, Afghanistan, Cameroon, Nepal, and Haiti and is fighting multiple court challenges over terminations.