The news relating to Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Venezuelans continues to shift as court battles continue. As we wrote last week, the Ninth Circuit recently affirmed a March 2025 district court order pausing the revocation of the 2023 TPS designation by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Ninth Circuit's decision has no practical effect at the moment, however, because the U.S. Supreme Court stayed the March 2025 order and that stay remains in effect.
In a new twist, on September 5, 2025, the district court granted summary judgment in favor of the plaintiffs, holding that DHS' revocation of the 2023 Venezuela TPS designation, and a partial revocation of a TPS designation for Haiti, violated the Administrative Procedures Act (APA). Venezuelan and Haitian TPS beneficiaries cannot celebrate yet, however. DHS immediately moved for a stay pending appeal, which the district court has not decided. If the district court declines to issue a stay, DHS can try in the Ninth Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court. Although it does not appear to have done so yet, DHS may also argue that because the judgment does not grant injunctive relief, then it cannot be enforced for thirty days pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 62(a).
To put it simply, TPS remains in flux and there is no certainty yet where things will land. Of note as of September 9th, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has not updated its TPS webpage, but we believe that pursuant to the Federal Register notice, certain TPS Venezuela EADs have been automatically extended until November 7, 2025. Such EADs will have Category Codes A-12 or C-19 and an original expiration date of:
- September 9, 2022,
- March 10, 2024, or
- September 10, 2025.
We will continue to monitor and post updates as the situation evolves.
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