Stay, go, stay, go, now what?
I feel the Roller Coaster too! Temporary Protected Status – stay, go, stay, go, now what?
by Jose Enrique Perez
Last month, I wrote about Temporary protected status or “TPS” informing that a federal appeals court decided that President Donald Trump can eliminate the protections for thousands of families that have been living and working legally in the U.S., many of them for decades with TPS. So, 
they had to go. This month I also have to write about it because a new court said something else. Now, they can stay.
As you may recall, TPS is a temporary immigration status in the United States, granted to eligible nationals of designated countries. The following countries are currently under TPS: Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Haiti (due to the 2011 earthquake), Somalia, Syria, Sudan and South Sudan.
TPS is an immigration status granted to immigrants in the United States who are temporarily unable to safely return to their home country because of ongoing armed conflict, an environmental disaster, or other extraordinary and temporary conditions.
A few days ago, a panel of 3 judge in the Eight Circuit Court of Appeals decided that the TPS beneficiaries that live in Arkansas, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri and Nebraska, if the beneficiary is married to a United States citizen o has children under 21 years of age, now can apply for green card.
The Circuit Court said that they agreed with the reasoning provided by the Sixth and Ninth Court of Appeals which accepted that the immigrants protected under TPS are now considered “inspected and admitted” in the United States under the Immigration Law.
Thus, once they are deemed “inspected”, those immigrants protected by the humanitarian program now can apply for Lawful Permanency Residence as long as they can show that they are married to a United States citizen or if they have United States citizen children over 21 years of age, they can now apply for the Green Card.
The law requires that the status of the TPS recipients must be renewed periodically by immigration, which can extend it for six- to 18-month intervals. People with TPS do not have pathways to legal residency, a precursor of citizenship, without leaving the country. However, if they can apply for residency, then they will not need to renew the TPS and in five years or three if married then can apply for citizenship.
You should remember that this article is not intended to provide you with legal advice; it is intended only to provide guidance about immigration policies. Furthermore, the article is not intended to explain or identify all potential issues that may arise in connection with representation in an immigration case. Each case is fact-specific and therefore similar cases may have different outcomes.
I represent individuals in immigration. If you have any questions or concerns about an immigration case or potential case, you can call me at (315) 422-5673, send me a fax at (315) 466-5673, or e-mail me at joseperez@joseperezyourlawyer.com. The Law Office of Jose Perez has now moved and is located at 659 West Onondaga Street, Upper Level, Syracuse, New York 13204. Now with offices in Buffalo and Rochester!!! Please look for my next article in the December edition and stay safe, healthy and away from the Coronavirus. In addition to our current practice of Personal Injuries, Work Accidents, Social Security and Immigration, we now also practice Criminal, Traffic, Family, DWI and Divorce.
