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By Adeola Adeosun and Gabe Whisnant
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A federal judge on Monday blocked the Trump administration from ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) that allows roughly 350,000 Haitians to live and work in the United States.
Department of Homeland (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Newsweek on Monday that the White House plans to appeal, saying "this is lawless activism that we will be vindicated on."
The judge's two-page order declares the termination "null, void, and of no legal effect" during the stay, meaning Haitian TPS holders retain their work authorization and protection from detention and deportation.
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Why It Matters
This ruling represents a significant legal setback for the broader immigration enforcement agenda and mass deportation efforts of President Donald Trump's administration.
The decision temporarily protects hundreds of thousands of Haitians from deportation to a country experiencing severe gang violence and humanitarian crisis. The case has drawn particular attention following the emergence of Springfield, Ohio, as an immigration flashpoint during the 2024 election campaign, when debunked claims about Haitian migrants eating pets circulated after being repeated by Trump during a presidential debate with then Vice President Kamala Harris.
The controversy led to multiple bomb threats against schools and health care facilities in Springfield, even as city officials highlighted how 10,000-12,000 Haitian immigrants had contributed to the city's 25 percent population growth over three years.
What Is Temporary Protected Status?
Congress authorized TPS as part of the Immigration Act of 1990. It clears the DHS secretary to grant legal immigration status to people fleeing countries experiencing civil strife, environmental disasters or other "extraordinary and temporary conditions" that prevent a safe return to their home country.
In ending the protections, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said that conditions in both Haiti and Venezuela had improved, and that it was not in the national interest to allow migrants from the two countries to stay for a temporary program.
What To Know
U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes in Washington, D.C., on Monday granted the request to pause termination, just a day before the protections were set to expire.
In her ruling, Reyes said that plaintiffs were likely to prevail in their lawsuit and found it "substantially likely" that Noem's decision was motivated by "hostility to nonwhite immigrants."
Haiti's TPS designation was initially activated in 2010 following a catastrophic earthquake and has since been extended multiple times. The country faces widespread gang violence that has displaced hundreds of thousands of people. Armed gangs now control approximately 80 percent of the capital, Port-au-Prince, carrying out kidnappings, extortion and deadly clashes with security forces.
The 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse deepened the country's turmoil, leaving a power vacuum that remains unfilled amid food shortages, a collapsing health care system and worsening humanitarian conditions.
The Trump administration has aggressively sought to remove TPS as part of its wider mass deportation effort, making more people eligible for deportation. In addition to Haitians, Noem has terminated protections for approximately 600,000 Venezuelans, 60,000 people from Honduras, Nicaragua and Nepal, more than 160,000 Ukrainians and thousands from Afghanistan and Cameroon. Several of these terminations face pending lawsuits in federal courts.
Plaintiffs argue the decision to end Haiti's status was motivated by racial animus and that Noem failed to consider whether ongoing armed conflict posed a serious threat to personal safety, as required by law.
DHS contends that conditions in Haiti have improved, pointing to a new multinational force authorized to combat gangs. A November government notice announcing the termination said that Noem determined allowing Haitians to remain in the United States went against national interest.
What People Are Saying
Reyes, in her ruling: "During the stay, the Termination shall be null, void, and of no legal effect."
McLaughlin, in a statement to Newsweek: “Supreme Court, here we come. This is lawless activism that we will be vindicated on.
“Haiti’s TPS was granted following an earthquake that took place over 15 years ago, it was never intended to be a de facto amnesty program, yet that’s how previous administrations have used it for decades. Temporary means temporary and the final word will not be from an activist judge legislating from the bench.”
FWD.us President Todd Schulte, in a statement Monday in part: "Ending TPS protections places Haitian communities and their families in an impossible position—forced either to return to a homeland beset by ongoing instability and violence or to remain in the U.S. without legal status and vulnerable to detention, deportation, and family separation. We are clear-eyed about this administration’s past comments and actions in similar situations, and with that in mind, we strongly urge the administration to pull back these efforts and not appeal this decision.”
Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP, a law firm representing TPS clients, to Newsweek on Monday: "The court’s decision to stay the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians is a significant victory for our clients and for the thousands of Haitian TPS holders who seek nothing more than the same opportunity pursued by generations of immigrants before them: the chance to live safely, support their families, and build a better life in the United States.
"As the government’s own evidence demonstrated, Haiti remains an extraordinarily dangerous place, marked by widespread gang violence, rampant disease, lack of access to clean drinking water, severe housing instability, and the absence of a functioning government. This ruling recognizes the grave risks Haitian TPS holders would face if forced to return, and it ensures that they can remain here in the United States - as legislated by Congress - to continue their lives, contributing to their communities, and supporting their families. Should the government choose to appeal, we are fully prepared to continue defending the rights and protections of our clients, and we will fight tirelessly to ensure their safety and freedom.
"We are grateful for Judge Reyes for following the law and ruling in favor of our clients and their rights evident under the Constitution."
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What Happens Next
The lawsuit challenging TPS termination will continue proceeding through federal court, with Reyes' accompanying 83-page opinion and preliminary assessment suggesting plaintiffs have a strong case on the merits.
Reporting from the Associated Press contributed to this article.
Update 2/2/26, 9:08 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
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