Ukrainians and Sudanese keep protected status — for now — as DHS stays silent on extension
Editorial illustrationImmigrants from Ukraine and Sudan can keep their temporary protected status in the United States for now, the Department of Homeland Security said Monday, the very day their protections had been set to expire — but the department has still announced no formal extension or termination.
In a statement, a DHS spokesperson said announcements on Ukrainian and Sudanese TPS holders would “be made at the appropriate time” and that their immigration protections would remain in place. Temporary protected status allows people already in the U.S. to stay and work legally when their home countries face armed conflict, natural disaster or other extraordinary conditions.
Some 240,000 Ukrainians who fled the war have registered for TPS, Reuters reported, along with an estimated 6,800 Sudanese nationals, as Sudan's war between the army and a rival paramilitary force has created one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.
The limbo follows a missed deadline: under the immigration statute, DHS was required to decide the fate of the designations by August 20, and when that deadline passes without a decision, the law provides for an automatic six-month extension — which immigration attorneys argue would run to April 19, 2027. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services alert now tells beneficiaries they “retain protection including work authorization” until a further announcement, but employers say the lack of a formal notice leaves documentation questions unresolved.
The reprieve is the second in as many months for TPS holders: in September, the administration allowed Salvadoran TPS holders to retain their protections after earlier moving to revoke the status for Haitians, Venezuelans, Somalis, Yemenis, Syrians and others.
Sources: Reuters (Oct 19, 2026); NPR (Oct 24, 2026).
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