Federal judge blocks Trump administration’s early termination of temporary protected status for Haitian migrants

A federal judge in Brooklyn has blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to end temporary protected status for Haitian migrants ahead of schedule, ruling that the Department of Homeland Security violated the law in its rush to strip deportation protections and work permits from over half a million people.

A federal judge in Brooklyn has blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to end temporary protected status for Haitian migrants ahead of schedule, ruling that the Department of Homeland Security violated the law in its rush to strip deportation protections and work permits from over half a million people. The ruling comes after DHS, under Secretary Kristi Noem, rescinded former President Joe Biden’s 18-month extension of Haiti’s TPS designation earlier this year. Originally extended through February 3, 2026, the Trump administration sought to cut the designation short, first setting a new end date of August 3, then pushing its effective date to September 2 last week. In a decision issued Tuesday, US District Judge Brian Cogan said Noem failed to follow the timeline and procedures mandated by Congress, including a review of current conditions in Haiti before ending TPS. “Secretary Noem does not have statutory or inherent authority to partially vacate a country’s TPS designation,” Cogan wrote, “her partial vacatur must be set aside as unlawful under the (Administrative Procedure Act.)” He added that “plaintiffs’ injuries are actual and imminent. They cannot be remedied by an award of money damages. If the partial vacatur remains in effect until the final resolution of this case, plaintiffs will lose their right to live and work in the United States based on what the Court has already found was an unlawful action.” DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement that the “ruling delays justice and seeks to kneecap the president’s constitutionally vested powers under Article II. Haiti’s TPS was granted following an earthquake that took place over 15 years ago, it was never intended to be a de facto asylum program, yet that’s how previous administrations have used it for decades.”