Court prevents Trump from revoke immigration protection that protects thousands of Afghans
An appeals court temporarily blocked the revocation of deportation protections and work permits for thousands of Afghans.
An appeals court temporarily blocked the Trump administration from revoking deportation protections and work permits for thousands of people from Afghanistan.
Thus, the Court of Appeals for the U.S. Fourth District blocked until July 21 the administration's decision to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for people from Afghanistan, announced last May.
The administration had planned to cancel Temporary Protected Status for Afghanistan as part of a broader effort to scale back a program that grants migrants reprieve from deportation if their home country is deemed unsafe.
The administration argues that these protections are not permanent and that the security situation in Afghanistan has improved, although opponents say the country remains unsafe and that revoking them would force people to leave their homes.
Even in a statement released this month, the Department of Homeland Security formalized the end of the program, explaining that, according to the Trump administration, the situation in Afghanistan has "improved" and migrants who fled after the withdrawal of U.S. troops can return to their country.
However, in a ruling issued late at night As of Monday, the Court of Appeals blocked the administration from implementing the withdrawal of temporary protected status for one week.
The court’s administrative stay did not rule on the merits of the case, but instead gave the administration and CASA, a group that sued the government over its policy, time to file arguments.
CASA national communications director Jossie Flor Sapunar told CBS News that while the ruling is temporary, “every moment counts when it comes to families deciding their future.”
Afghan Evac, a nonprofit that has helped resettle Afghans, told CBS News that the ruling “offers a brief but critical window of reprieve.”
About 11,700 Afghans are registered for Temporary Protected Status (TPS), according to federal estimates.
The program was extended to Afghanistan in 2023 during the Biden administration, which cited a “deepening humanitarian crisis” and “economic collapse” in Afghanistan since the 2021 U.S. military withdrawal led to the Taliban retaking the country.