U.S. Supreme Court Weighs End of Temporary Protected Status for Salvadoran Immigrants

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard arguments on whether the administration properly evaluated conditions in Haiti and Syria when it terminated Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for the 12 countries whose designations were up for renewal. The case directly affects Salvadoran TPS holders, a group that has grown to roughly 1.3 million beneficiaries since the program’s inception under President Donald Trump.

Congress created TPS in 1990 to shield nationals of countries experiencing natural disasters or civil strife from deportation. The Trump administration terminated TPS for about 1 million people from nations including Venezuela, Honduras, Nicaragua and Afghanistan. In early 2026, Secretary Kristi Noem, a former Trump appointee, ended TPS for all 12 countries pending renewal, citing that conditions no longer met statutory criteria. The Supreme Court’s review will focus on the adequacy of that analysis.

• José Urías, a 47-year-old Salvadoran who founded a Boston construction firm that has built more than 150 homes and employs three staff and dozens of contractors.

• Lorena Zepeda, 58, a CARECEN organizer in Los Angeles whose asylum was denied and who faces a pending deportation order.

• Nayib Bukele, President of El Salvador, a U.S. ally whose government has not publicly requested a TPS extension despite the program’s economic importance.

• José Palma, national coordinator of the National TPS Alliance, an advocacy group litigating TPS terminations.

• Rebecca Bill-Chavez, CEO of the Inter-American Dialogue think tank, commenting on the political calculus surrounding TPS.

• TPS covers roughly 1.3 million individuals, a number that more than doubled during the Biden presidency.

• Salvadorans in the United States sent $9.9 billion in remittances last year, representing 24 % of El Salvador’s gross domestic product.

• Urías’s firm has constructed over 150 homes in the Boston area, providing stable employment for multiple families.

The Department of Homeland Security, under Secretary Noem, concluded that the conditions in the designated countries no longer warranted TPS protection. The Supreme Court is assessing whether that determination adequately considered the humanitarian situation in Haiti and Syria. The State Department upgraded El Salvador’s travel advisory to its highest level in April 2025, citing a significant decline in violent crime.

The National TPS Alliance argues that the termination process may prejudice non-white immigrants and that “we cannot rely solely on friendly relations” with host governments. Zepeda, who lacks permanent residency, warns that ending TPS would leave her as the sole family member at risk of deportation, despite decades of financial support to relatives in El Salvador.

Sources differ on President Bukele’s stance: one report notes he has not publicly requested a TPS extension, while another cites a 2019 request to President Trump that was upheld by court rulings. Additionally, the administration’s methodology for assessing conditions in Haiti and Syria remains opaque.

• “It's not guaranteed, but it's not impossible either,” — José Urías, founder, Urías Construction

• “Our life is based here, I have lived more of my life here than in El Salvador,” — José Urías

• “We cannot rely solely on friendly relations,” — José Palma, National TPS Alliance

• “I don’t think that the fact that Bukele has really delivered on Trump’s priorities necessarily means that Trump will respond to TPS extension requests,” — Rebecca Bill-Chavez, Inter-American Dialogue

The TPS designations are set to expire on September 9, 2026. A Supreme Court ruling could either reinstate protections for Salvadoran TPS holders or confirm the termination, affecting millions of families and a substantial flow of remittances to El Salvador. Advocacy groups are preparing additional litigation, while policymakers monitor the potential economic fallout.