Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is a form of humanitarian relief, but to be eligible, foreign nationals must meet all eligibility requirements and file Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status.
Many foreign nationals, immigrants, and U.S. citizens alike ask, “What is TPS status?” The question itself is repetitive because when a person asks, “What is TPS status,” they may not realize that TPS is short for Temporary Protected Status.
TPS was established by Congress as part of the Immigration Act of 1990 as a way to provide temporary immigration relief to foreign nationals from countries experiencing dangerous conditions due to disasters, armed conflicts, or other extraordinary conditions.
The Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is allowed to designate countries for TPS if their conditions make it unsafe for their foreign nationals to return to them safely.
For TPS eligibility, you must either be a citizen of a TPS designated country or have no nationality but lived in a country with TPS designation just before coming to the United States. In addition to the nationality requirement, to file Form I-821, you must also meet other requirements including:
TPS is a legal, documented status. It can be granted by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) at the Department of Justice (DOJ), an immigration judge, or U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). USCIS handles most TPS applications and grants TPS to migrants from eligible countries if they are already in the United States.
If you are a foreign national from a country with TPS status, you should know that:
TPS does not directly lead to a green card. It doesn’t prevent you from seeking a green card though either. Even though there is no direct path from TPS to green card, this status won’t stand in your way of becoming a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR) using a less direct path.
To go from TPS to green card holder, you would need to go through the normal channels of obtaining a green card from within the United States.
Since you are already in the United States, no matter how you start your green card process, it will be completed with the Adjustment of Status.
Two common TPS to green card pathways include:
One starting point for a green card is being named as the beneficiary on an immigrant visa petition. This begins with a U.S. sponsor.
The potential sponsors for your petition for an immigrant visa include:
Your immigration lawyer can examine your particular case and determine if you may have a TPS to green card pathway through an immigrant visa petition.
A common way to go from TPS to green card holder is through asylum status. Your TPS application does not prevent you from seeking asylum if you qualify, so if TPS designation in your home nation is based on extreme social conditions or volatile political upheaval, you may qualify for asylum.
You may qualify for asylum if you have a sincere fear of being persecuted if you were return to your nation of citizenship based on any of the following:
Asylees are eligible to apply for a green card through Adjustment of Status if they have lived in the United States on asylum status for at least one year. If you are granted asylum after TPS, your immigration attorney will help you file for an Adjustment of Status from using Form I-485.
If you are seeking TPS or are a TPS beneficiary and would like to find a more permanent solution to living safely in the United States, please contact Jorge Munoz Law Firm today.
