US federal judge allows Trump admin to terminate protected status for 350,000 Haitians

A federal judge in Washington D.C. on Wednesday allowed the Trump administration to terminate temporary protected status (TPS) for approximately 350,000 Haitians -- a decision that places them at risk of deportation to a Caribbean nation where hunger is considered alarming, reported Xinhua.

U.S. District Judge Ana C. Reyes from the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia previously blocked the administration from terminating TPS protections for Haitians, and a federal appellate court later upheld that block.

But the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June by a 6-3 vote that TPS determinations are not subject to judicial review under federal law, which could impact immigrants from Haiti, Syria and other countries that the U.S. State Department considers highly dangerous.

Reyes reversed her decision in light of the Supreme Court's ruling, saying in her new order on Wednesday that "the Supreme Court's judgment reversed the judgment of this Court in this Court's Order dated February 2, 2026," and therefore the court's order pausing the termination of Haiti's TPS status "is no longer in effect."

About 200,000 Haitians with TPS hold jobs, with large concentrations of workers in health care, food service, warehousing, retail and long-term caregiving, according to an analysis of government data by the immigration advocacy group FWD.us, as cited by The Washington Post.

The U.S. Department of State classifies Haiti as a Level 4 destination, its highest risk advisory level, citing the risk of crime, kidnapping, terrorism, unrest and limited health care.