The US Supreme Court paved the way for the administration of President Donald Trump to end the humanitarian protection status enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of Haitian and Syrian immigrants, in a decision that is considered a new judicial victory for the administration’s tough approach to the immigration file.
The court annulled, by a majority of 6 votes to 3, decisions issued by federal judges in New York and Washington that had halted the administration’s actions aimed at ending the “temporary protected status” program for more than 350,000 people from Haiti and 6,100 people from Syria, according to what was reported by Reuters.
The court’s three liberal justices dissented, while conservative Justice Samuel Alito, for the majority, wrote that courts do not have the authority to review the administration’s decisions related to TPS, arguing that the law governing the program “clearly prohibits” such judicial review.
The “Temporary Protected Status” program allows immigrants coming from countries experiencing wars, natural disasters, or serious crises to reside and work in the United States, as long as it is still unsafe to return to their countries. This protection was granted to Haitians for the first time after the devastating earthquake in 2010, while it was granted to Syrians after the outbreak of war in their country in 2012.
The ruling comes even though the US State Department still warns against traveling to Haiti and Syria due to violence, crime, kidnappings, and security risks, which prompted organizations defending immigrant rights to warn of the repercussions of the decision on families who have built their lives in the United States legally.
In a second immigration-related decision, the Supreme Court upheld the Trump administration’s position on the government’s authority to reject asylum seekers when authorities deem that border crossings between the United States and Mexico are overwhelmed and cannot receive additional applications, a policy that the Joe Biden administration had previously rescinded.
These decisions constitute a new test of the president’s executive powers in the files of immigration, national security, and foreign policy, and come as part of a broader campaign implemented by the Trump administration to limit legal and illegal immigration since his return to the White House in January 2025.
The case has wide repercussions, as it may affect about 1.3 million immigrants from countries covered by the temporary protection program. The Trump administration believes that this protection was primarily designed to be temporary, while human rights organizations confirm that ending it could expose hundreds of thousands to the risk of returning to harsh and unstable conditions.
