The Trump administration declined to renew their Temporary Protected Status.
On Wednesday, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) confirmed that President Donald Trump will not renew Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Salvadorans.
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U.S. Ends Temporary Protection for Over 300,000 Haitian Migrants
As a result, starting Sept. 9, more than 170,000 Salvadorans residing in the United States will fall into irregular immigration status and lose the protection created by Congress in 2001, when earthquakes struck the Central American country.
Neither the White House nor Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has responded to a wave of requests from “Tepesians,” pro-immigrant organizations and lawmakers asking that the protection be extended.
Starting today, Salvadorans who had been protected under the humanitarian program will lose their work permits and face the possibility of deportation.
El Salvador got Temporary Protected Status in 2001 after an earthquake. That was 25 YEARS ago.
The “T” in TPS stands for TEMPORARY.
Today, Bukele’s El Salvador is the safest country in the hemisphere. They literally put it in tourism ads.
A local NBC station is already… pic.twitter.com/4PIDadkPXg
— Andrew Kolvet (@AndrewKolvet) September 3, 2026
The Battle to Gain a Few More Months
In recent weeks, the campaign in favor of TPS beneficiaries sought to have U.S. authorities give immigrants a reasonable amount of time so they can “organize and face” their new reality, said Dulce Guzman, president of Alianza Americas, an organization that brings together more than 50 pro-immigrant organizations across the United States.
Pressure also focused on the U.S. Congress to advance legislation benefiting this group. Dozens of Tepesians traveled to Washington last week seeking help.
In response, Rep. Eugene Vindman introduced a bill that would extend the protection for 18 months. “Forcing families to return to dangerous and unstable conditions is cruel and shortsighted,” he stated.
Guzman appreciates his efforts but is aware that the bill, like others seeking a path to permanent residency for TPS people and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program for so-called “dreamers,” will not advance because of Trump’s opposition.
Activists rallied outside the White House Tuesday as the TPS extension deadline for thousands of Salvadorans looms. https://t.co/fhwFIf5Kh7
— NBC4 Washington (@nbcwashington) September 8, 2026
In the Sights of the MAGA President
America’s Voice Director Vanessa Cardenas is aware that Trump has targeted TPS since his first term (2017-2021). In January 2018, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ordered the cancellation of TPS for El Salvador and gave 180.000 beneficiaries 18 months to find another path to residency or leave the country.
The program remained in place because of a court order following a lawsuit filed by beneficiaries and their U.S.-born children, who argued that the Trump administration had based its decision on discriminatory and racist reasons.
Despite that defeat, Trump continued his campaign when he returned to the White House by eliminating the protection for several countries, and scored a victory when the Supreme Court ruled that he had the authority to revoke TPS.
Trump and his immigration adviser Stephen Miller “are determined to revoke the legal status of as many people as possible and sow chaos and fear throughout our country,” Cardenas said.
On Aug. 5, DHS ended TPS for 350,000 Haitians. In 2025, over 600,000 Venezuelans also lost the protection. In addition, Trump has withdrawn TPS from immigrants from Afghanistan, Honduras, Syria and Nicaragua. Cardenas considers the end of TPS for El Salvador “the last domino to fall” as part of the broader effort to revoke that legal status.
teleSUR/ JF
Source: EFE
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