What to do if TPS for your country is ending

We know how heavy this is. You built a home, a job and a family here, and now a date on a notice is telling you it may end. That date is real. But it is not the end of your choices. Many people find a path they did not know about. Let's start.

This page is general information, not legal advice. DNLH is not a law office, and we cannot represent you. Every case is different. Talk with an immigration attorney or a DOJ accredited representative about yours. Free help is below. For the full picture, see TPS and humanitarian parole: the complete guide.

What happens when TPS ends?

You lose TPS protection and the work permit that came with it. You go back to whatever other status you have, if any.

• No other status? You can be put in deportation proceedings in immigration court.
• Another status or a pending case? That status or case does not end just because TPS ends. Talk to your lawyer about what protects you.
• Your TPS work permit is no longer valid for work after the ending, even if the card shows a later date. For Haiti, USCIS told employers to reverify workers who had shown a Haiti TPS card (USCIS release via AILA).

The law says an ending must be published in the Federal Register and cannot take effect sooner than 60 days after that notice. DHS can choose a later date for an orderly transition. Read your country's notice for the exact date.

What should I do right now?

Use the time before your end date. Every week counts.

1. Find your exact end date. Read your country's Federal Register notice or USCIS page.
2. Get a legal screening. One visit can show a path you never knew about. Bring the papers on the screening sheet.
3. Gather your papers. Every work permit, every I-797 notice, your I-94, passport, birth certificate, marriage and birth certificates for your family, and proof of how long you have lived here.
4. Get your arrest and court records, even for dismissed cases. A lawyer needs them. See How to get a copy of your criminal record in California.
5. Update your address with USCIS within 10 days of any move.
6. Make a family plan. See Make a family preparedness plan.
7. Don't leave the country before talking to a lawyer.

What other ways to stay might I have?

A lawyer will look at each of these. None is automatic. Each has its own rules and risks.

The sections below explain the ones most TPS holders ask about. For crime and abuse options, see Immigration options if you survived violence, abuse or trafficking. For young people, see What is SIJS and can my child qualify?

Can I ask for asylum?

Yes, if you fear harm in your country. But the deadline is the trap.

Asylum generally must be filed within one year of your last arrival in the U.S. Most TPS holders arrived years ago. The rules give an exception: having TPS, another lawful status or parole counts as an "extraordinary circumstance" that can excuse a late filing, but only if you apply within a reasonable time after it ends (8 CFR 208.4(a)(5)(iv)). The rules do not set a fixed number of days. Do not wait.

You can apply for asylum while you still have TPS. You are allowed to apply for every form of protection you may qualify for. Ask a lawyer first, because filing has risks too.

If you still have TPS when USCIS decides your asylum case and USCIS does not grant it, the officer denies the case instead of sending it to immigration court (8 CFR 208.14(c)). If you no longer have status, a case USCIS does not grant goes to immigration court.

Withholding of removal and torture protection have no one year deadline, but they are harder to win and give less. Start at Who can apply for asylum and how do I start?

Can a family member help me get a green card?

Maybe. It depends on how you entered the U.S. TPS is never a green card by itself.

To get a green card from inside the U.S., a person generally must have been "inspected and admitted or paroled."

• You entered with a visa and later got TPS? You were admitted. The TPS law says your time on TPS counts as lawful nonimmigrant status for a green card. That can help.
• You entered on parole? That can meet the rule.
• You entered without inspection and later got TPS? The Supreme Court held in Sanchez v. Mayorkas (2021) that TPS does not count as an admission. TPS alone does not meet the rule. A lawyer may still find another way, which may mean applying from abroad.

A U.S. citizen can petition for a spouse, an unmarried child under 21, or a parent if the citizen is 21 or older. These "immediate relatives" are excused from some bars, like past unlawful status or work without permission. Other family members wait in line, sometimes for years.

More: Can TPS lead to a green card? and How a family member can help you get a green card.

What if I get a Notice to Appear?

Don't ignore it. A Notice to Appear starts a case in immigration court. If you miss your hearing, the judge can order you deported without you there.

• In court, you can ask the judge for asylum, withholding, torture protection, or cancellation of removal if you qualify.
• For cancellation of removal, time on TPS does not count toward the 10 years of physical presence unless the judge finds extreme hardship. But TPS time does not break your residence either.
• Tell the court about any move within 5 working days on Form EOIR-33.

Read What a Notice to Appear means and What happens at your first immigration court hearing.

What happens to my job?

Once TPS ends and you have no other work permit, your employer must stop employing you under federal rules. But you still have rights.

• Your employer must pay every dollar you earned, including your final paycheck on time. See Your final paycheck.
• Your employer cannot treat you worse because of where you are from.
• If you have another pending case with its own work permit, show that permit instead.
• If your employer threatens to call immigration, that can be illegal retaliation in California. See Your rights at work.

If you lose work, see Lost your job and cannot get unemployment? and Food help. Since April 1, 2026, people with TPS cannot get CalFresh, but your citizen children can still get it in their own name.

Should I leave the U.S. on my own?

Talk to a lawyer first. Leaving can trigger bars to coming back, and it can end options you did not know you had. Even a trip with permission now carries more risk. On August 13, 2026, the Board of Immigration Appeals held that leaving on advance parole is a "departure" under the unlawful presence bar law, overruling an older decision (Matter of Delcarmen-Lara, 29 I&N Dec. 830). USCIS now says that leaving with an advance parole document after more than 180 days of unlawful presence can trigger the 3 or 10 year bar (USCIS I-131 page). Whether this reaches TPS travel permission is a question for your lawyer. See Thinking about leaving the U.S. on your own?

Can the courts or Congress save TPS for my country?

Courts have much less power now. On June 25, 2026, the Supreme Court held in Mullin v. Doe (CRS summary) that the TPS law bars most court challenges to TPS decisions that are not based on the Constitution. Some cases continue, but you should not count on a court to stop your country's ending. Congress can still change the TPS law. Plan as if your end date is real.

Who can help?

These are nonprofit legal programs. Contact them to confirm hours, languages and openings. Being listed here is not a referral or a promise of service.

• Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto (CLSEPA): 650-326-6440. Immigration help and deportation defense for people with low income in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. Walk in at 1861 Bay Road, East Palo Alto, Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Catholic Charities San Francisco, immigration legal services (serves San Mateo County): (650) 285-6451. Lists TPS, family petitions, asylum and court cases.
• Immigration Institute of the Bay Area, Redwood City: (650) 587-1558, by appointment. Free first consultation.
• Asian Law Alliance, San Jose: (408) 287-9710.
• Amigos de Guadalupe, San Jose: (408) 341-6080. Walk in consultations Wednesday at 1 p.m. and Friday at 10 a.m.
• SIREN, San Jose: (408) 453-3003. Free phone consultations and deportation defense.

Check anyone before you pay. See Free or low cost immigration legal help in the Bay Area and How to find a lawyer you can trust.

This kind of waiting wears on people. See Mental health care without fear. If you are in crisis or thinking about suicide, call or text 988 (988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, free, confidential, 24/7). If someone is in danger, call 911.

Questions people ask

My TPS ended. Will ICE come for me right away? We can't say. Without TPS or another status, you can be put in deportation proceedings. Most people get a Notice to Appear and a court date. Some people can be removed faster. See Can I be deported without seeing a judge?

I had TPS for 20 years. Doesn't that count for something? It can. TPS time can help some people with a green card through family if they were admitted, and it does not break your residence for cancellation of removal. A lawyer can tell you exactly how.

Can I apply for asylum and keep TPS at the same time? Yes, you can apply for both. Talk to a lawyer first about the risks of filing.

My children are U.S. citizens. Can they help me? A citizen child must be 21 or older to petition for a parent. Your citizen children can also be part of a hardship case in immigration court. Ask a lawyer.

What happens to my children's benefits? Citizen children can keep benefits like CalFresh and Medi-Cal in their own name. See Which benefits can I get in California.

Is there a sheet I can bring to a lawyer?

You are more than an end date. Your work, your family and your community here are real, and so are the steps you can still take. Take one this week.