TL;DR
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that federal courts cannot review most TPS terminations, leaving about a million people facing loss of status and possibly deportation without clear legal recourse.
In 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Mullin v. Doe that courts cannot review most decisions to terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS). This means people from 13 countries—about a million individuals—may lose protection from deportation and work authorization, with few options to stay legally.
TPS, created in 1990, was meant as short-term shelter for those fleeing war or disaster. But many from countries like El Salvador, Haiti, and Syria have lived in the U.S. for over two decades.
What the ruling does
The Supreme Court's decision lets the government end TPS without judicial review of whether the cancellation is justified. DHS general counsel James Percival celebrated, saying TPS was always meant to be temporary. But as Justice Elena Kagan wrote in dissent, ending it can bring 'devastating, and indeed life-threatening, injury' to some.
What happens when TPS ends
Most TPS holders have no other status available: they don't qualify for family or employment visas, and asylum requires proving targeted persecution. Even if they apply, past overstay or other violations can bar them.
Some may get a hearing before removal, where they could request asylum, but time is short. This year, about 300,000 people from El Salvador, Sudan, Ukraine, and Lebanon lose status—including those from active war zones like Ukraine and Lebanon, exactly what TPS was meant to prevent.
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