Washington: Haiti TPS ruling from the Supreme Court allowed President Donald Trump’s administration to end deportation protections for hundreds of thousands of Haitians in the United States.
The June 25 decision also covers about 6,000 Syrians. The Associated Press reported that the ruling allows the Department of Homeland Security to move quickly to end Temporary Protected Status.
James Percival, general counsel at the Department of Homeland Security, told Fox News on June 26 that affected Haitians had been on notice for years.
“These people have been on notice for nine years that this day is coming,” Percival said. “You don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here.”
About 350,000 Haitians live in the United States under TPS. The status allowed them to live and work legally after natural disasters and political unrest in Haiti.
The United States first granted TPS to Haitians in January 2010 after a major earthquake devastated Haiti, whose capital is Port-au-Prince. The Biden administration later extended the protections.
Losing TPS means registered Haitians and Syrians will no longer have legal permission to live and work in the United States.
They could also face detention and deportation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The migrants who leave voluntarily may qualify for a $2,600 payment and a taxpayer-funded plane ticket through the CBP Home app.
Read: Trump Asks Supreme Court to Restore No-Bond Migrant Detention
People deported by ICE agents are not eligible for the incentive. Officials said the voluntary departure payment costs less than deportation, which the brief estimated at about $18,000 per person.
Migrant rights groups warned that the decision could split families. They said many TPS holders have U.S.-citizen children and long-established homes in states including Florida, Massachusetts and New York.
