The Supreme Court heard arguments Wednesday on whether the Trump administration can end temporary protected status for migrants from Haiti and Syria, marking the latest test of executive authority over immigration policy.
Stakes for 350,000 Migrants
A ruling in favor of the government could strip protections from up to 1.3 million people across 17 countries, exposing them to deportation. The court previously allowed TPS termination for Venezuelans to proceed while lawsuits continued.
Since January 2025, the Department of Homeland Security has ended protections for people from 13 countries. Some who lived and worked legally in the U.S. for over a decade lost jobs and housing within weeks.
“This really is life or death,” said Sejal Zota, co-founder and legal director of Just Futures Law. Four Haitian women deported in February were found beheaded and dumped in a river months later, according to court documents.
Legal Arguments
The Department of Justice argues the homeland security secretary holds sole authority to end TPS, and that federal judges cannot question those decisions. Solicitor General D. John Sauer called the determination “the sort that lies at the heartland of what has been traditionally entrusted to the political branches.”
Lawyers representing roughly 350,000 Haitian and 6,000 Syrian migrants say the government bypassed required procedures and that courts can review whether authorities followed statutory steps.
Roberts, Barrett Key Votes
Several conservative justices leaned toward the administration’s position. The outcome likely hinges on Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett.
Roberts questioned whether the government seeks a “significant expansion” of a 2018 ruling he authored that rejected bias claims based on Trump’s social media posts and upheld a travel ban on Muslim-majority countries.
Barrett, who adopted two children from Haiti, pressed both sides on whether judges can intervene in the process. “Why would Congress permit review of the procedural aspect when really what everybody cares about much more is the substance?” she asked.
Lawyer Ahilan Arulanantham replied: “Congress, and us, and the millions of people who live with TPS holders, have some faith in government.”
Personal Stories
Maryse Balthazar arrived in the U.S. on vacation when the 2010 earthquake destroyed her home in Haiti. Sixteen years later, she works as a nursing assistant and has two children. “I’d be homeless,” she said. “I’m scared … it’s a fear we are all living with.”
Syrians first received TPS in 2012 during a civil war lasting over a decade before Bashar Assad’s government fell in late 2024. Haitians joined after the 2010 earthquake and received multiple extensions amid ongoing gang violence that displaced over a million people.
The court is expected to rule by summer. The decision won’t be final but could have far-reaching effects as litigation continues. Other immigration cases before the court this year include birthright citizenship restrictions and asylum policy changes.