Temporary Protected Status (TPS) Both Extended
and Re-designated for Haitian Nationals

 

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently announced the extension and re-designation of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian nationals. While the 18-month extension of status had been expected, advocates had been pushing hard for the broader re-designation. This announcement allows Haitians who entered the country before January 12, 2011 (rather than the previous date of January 12, 2010) to obtain TPS. In other words, it allows those who entered after the earthquake to qualify. TPS for all Haitians will be effective until January 22, 2013. 

TPS comes with employment authorization, eligibility for in-state tuition, and other provisions that should ameliorate some hardships as Haitians struggle to recover from last year’s cataclysmic natural disaster. 

“While we celebrate this decision, there is still much work to be done,” said Carline Desire, Executive Director of the Association of Haitian Women in Boston. “DHS is still deporting scores of Haitians back to our devastated homeland, despite a massive cholera outbreak and near total lack of services. At the same time, thousands of people with approved family-based petitions must wait in Haiti for a visa to become available, some for up to eleven years.” 

Advocates call on the administration to quickly take steps to end these deportations and provide humanitarian parole for families in line for visas. 

-From “PRESS STATEMENT: Massachusetts Haitian Community Applauds TPS Decision”, MIRA Coalition, May 17, 2011.

 

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