Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders are mothers, fathers, workers and contributing members of our community. The Trump Administration's illegal revokation of an 18-month extension of TPS for Venezuelans means that over 350,000 Venezuelans will lose TPS on April 7, 2025, and another 250,000 are expected to lose TPS in September 2025, instead of retaining protection through October 2026. This will not only rob over 600,000 Venezuelans living in the U.S. of legal status and work permits, but also place them in acute danger if they are forced to return to a country that is in the midst of an unprecedented economic and political crisis.
On February 19, 2025, the National TPS Alliance and eight Venezuelan TPS holders sued the Department of Homeland Security (DHS); represented by the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON), the ACLU Foundations of Northern California and Southern California, and the Center for Immigration Law and Policy (CILP) at UCLA School of Law.
The suit argues that DHS violated the Administrative Procedure Act. The law does not permit early terminations, and DHS failed to follow necessary rules by rushing to its decision without required review. Until now, no administration has ever moved to rescind TPS before the 18-month time period established by Congress in 1990.
The suit also challenges the termination as motivated by racial animus in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s Fifth Amendment guarantee of equal protection. During the campaign, and in announcing the new TPS decision, Secretary Noem and President Trump have consistently used racist tropes to dehumanize Venezuelans.
Case Developments
Plaintiffs file complaint against the Department of Homeland Security.
