Temporary Protected Status (TPS): Eligibility, Filing, and Renewal

Temporary Protected Status is a federal immigration designation that lets nationals of certain countries live and work in the United States when conditions back home — armed conflict, disaster, or other extraordinary circumstances — make return unsafe. To qualify, you must be a national of a country the Secretary of Homeland Security has designated, have been continuously present and residing in the U.S. since the dates set in that designation, and clear specific criminal and security bars. The core benefits of Temporary Protected Status are protection from deportation and eligibility for work authorization; the eligibility and benefits of TPS do not include a direct path to a green card, and they do not extend automatically to your family.

Who Qualifies for TPS

Four things have to line up before USCIS will approve a TPS application.

You must be a national of a currently designated country (or a stateless person who last habitually resided in one). Designations change often, so the country list matters as of the day you file. As of the time of writing, USCIS lists 15 countries with an active designation: Burma (Myanmar), El Salvador, Ethiopia, Haiti, Honduras, Lebanon, Nepal, Nicaragua, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, Venezuela, and Yemen.¹ Several of those are already scheduled to terminate: Burma’s benefits ended January 26, 2026; Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua ended in 2025; South Sudan was set to terminate January 5, 2026; Haiti February 3, 2026; Ethiopia February 13, 2026; and Somalia March 17, 2026. Venezuela runs on multiple designation waves with different timelines. Always confirm the current status on the USCIS TPS page before you file.

You must have been continuously physically present in the U.S. since the date named in your country’s most recent designation.

You must have continuously resided in the U.S. since a separate, earlier date, also set by the designation. Both dates are published in the Federal Register notice for each country and differ from country to country.

You must clear the criminal and security bars. A conviction for any felony, or for two or more misdemeanors committed in the United States, disqualifies you outright. So do the security- and persecution-related grounds that apply to asylum applicants: participating in the persecution of others, conviction of a particularly serious crime, or posing a danger to U.S. security.² Standard admissibility requirements under immigration law also apply.

No Derivative Status for Family

TPS has no derivative benefit. Your spouse, children, and parents cannot receive TPS through your approval. Every family member has to file a separate Form I-821 and meet every eligibility requirement on their own.³ USCIS may in limited circumstances accept a late initial application from someone who had a qualifying family relationship to a TPS holder during the original registration period, but the applicant still has to individually satisfy every TPS criterion.

What TPS Gives You

The central benefit is protection from removal. While your country’s designation is active and you remain eligible, the government cannot deport you to that country. This protection lasts only as long as the designation itself; it is not permanent, and it can be withdrawn if you commit a disqualifying crime or the designation ends.

You are also eligible for an Employment Authorization Document (EAD), which lets you work legally for any U.S. employer. You apply for it by filing Form I-765 alongside your TPS application. Once you receive the EAD, employers must accept it as valid proof of work authorization.⁴ With an EAD you can also obtain a Social Security number, either by requesting one directly on Form I-765 or by visiting a Social Security office afterward.⁵

If you need to leave the country, you can request travel authorization by filing Form I-131. If USCIS approves it, you receive Form I-512T, which serves as evidence that DHS consented to your travel. Return carefully: USCIS decides at inspection whether to readmit you into TPS, and you must not be inadmissible on criminal or security grounds.⁶ Traveling without prior authorization can end your status.

What TPS Does Not Give You

TPS is not a green card and does not create its own path to one. A TPS holder who independently qualifies for permanent residence through a family petition, employer sponsorship, or another basis can apply for adjustment of status, but only if they meet the general requirements — including the rule under INA 245(a) that the applicant must have been “inspected and admitted” or “inspected and paroled.”⁷ In 2021, the Supreme Court held that a TPS grant alone does not count as an “admission” for someone who originally entered without inspection. As a result, TPS holders who crossed the border without going through a port of entry generally cannot adjust status inside the U.S. based on TPS alone.

There is one important workaround. Since July 2022, USCIS has recognized that a TPS beneficiary who travels abroad with authorization and is inspected and admitted back into TPS on return has satisfied the “inspected and admitted” requirement for adjustment, even if they originally entered without inspection.⁸ For a TPS holder with an approved immigrant petition, authorized travel and return can unlock green card eligibility. Talk to an immigration attorney before you travel; the stakes are high.

TPS also does not open the door to most federal public benefits. Under the 1996 welfare reform law (PRWORA), TPS holders are not classified as “qualified” immigrants, which is the category that controls access to programs like SNAP, Medicaid, and CHIP. Emergency medical treatment is an exception, and some states run their own programs with broader eligibility, but federal benefits are largely out of reach.⁹

How to Apply

The primary form is Form I-821. Most applicants also file Form I-765 at the same time to request work authorization, and Form I-131 separately if they need travel authorization. Form I-821 can be filed online through a USCIS account or by mail to the lockbox address listed on the country-specific TPS page.⁴

You need to prove two things: your identity and nationality, and your continuous presence and residence in the U.S. A valid passport is the strongest evidence of identity and nationality. A birth certificate with photo ID, or a national identity document, also works, and USCIS will consider secondary evidence like baptismal or school records if primary documents aren’t available. Presence and residence usually require a paper trail assembled over time: leases, utility bills, rent receipts, employment records, tax returns, pay stubs, medical records, and school enrollment records for you or your children. The more documents covering more periods, the stronger the file. Thin documentation is where applications stall.

Filing Fees for 2026

Filing costs went up sharply in 2026 under recent legislation (Pub. L. 119-21). For applications postmarked on or after January 1, 2026, USCIS will reject filings that don’t include the correct updated amount.¹⁰

Form I-821 (TPS application): $510.
Form I-765 for initial work authorization: $520 paper or $470 online, plus a $560 additional fee, for a total of $1,080 on paper or $1,030 online.¹¹
Form I-765 for EAD renewal: $520 paper or $470 online, plus a $280 additional fee, totaling $800 on paper or $750 online.
Biometrics: $30 for TPS applicants.

A first-time applicant filing both I-821 and I-765 online will pay around $1,570 before biometrics. If you cannot afford the fees, Form I-912 lets you request a fee waiver based on inability to pay.¹² Fees are adjusted annually, so confirm the current amounts on the USCIS fee schedule before filing.

After You File

USCIS sends a receipt notice with a case number, then schedules you for a biometrics appointment at a local Application Support Center for fingerprints and photographs. If USCIS wants more information, they issue a Request for Evidence; respond quickly, because delays or incomplete responses can lead to denial. Processing times vary by country and workload and can run many months. Your receipt notice may function as temporary proof of status or work authorization during processing, depending on what USCIS has specified in the relevant Federal Register notice.

Keeping TPS: Re-Registration

Getting approved once is not enough. Each time your country’s designation is extended, you must re-register during the window announced in the Federal Register notice by filing a new Form I-821 (and Form I-765 if you want continued work authorization).⁴

Missing that window is one of the most consequential mistakes a TPS holder can make. Federal law requires USCIS to withdraw TPS from anyone who fails to re-register without good cause, and the fallout is losing your status, your work authorization, and your protection from removal.¹³ Even accepted late filings can leave gaps in your work authorization. Set calendar reminders well before the window opens and file early.

You also have to keep meeting eligibility requirements the entire time you hold TPS. A felony conviction, or a second misdemeanor conviction, at any point will end your status, not just at the initial application stage.²

When a Designation Ends

When a country’s TPS designation is terminated, affected individuals lose removal protection and work authorization as of the termination date. TPS does not convert into any other status. You revert to whatever immigration status, or lack of status, you had before. For many people, that means becoming undocumented and subject to removal proceedings.

This is why the “temporary” in TPS matters. If you have any other basis for immigration relief — family, employment, asylum, another category — pursuing it while your TPS is still active is far better than waiting until the designation ends. An immigration attorney can help you figure out whether any alternative path is realistic in your case.

1
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Temporary Protected Status
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1254a – Temporary Protected Status
3
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Instructions for Application for Temporary Protected Status
4
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status
5
Social Security Administration. Social Security Numbers for Noncitizens
6
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-131, Application for Travel Documents, Parole Documents, and Arrival/Departure Records
7
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Chapter 2 – Eligibility Requirements
8
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Policy Alert – TPS and Adjustment of Status
9
Congress.gov. PRWORAs Restrictions on Noncitizen Eligibility for Federal Public Benefits
10
Federal Register. Inflation Adjustment to HR-1 Immigration Fees
11
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. G-1055 Fee Schedule
12
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-912, Request for Fee Waiver
13
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Guidance for TPS Beneficiaries Filing Late Re-Registration Applications