US Supreme Court rules against residency for immigrants from South Sudan, Sudan
June 7, 2021 (WASHINGTON) – The United States Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Monday that people who entered the US unlawfully, but have Temporary Protected Status (TPS) due to humanitarian crisis in countries such as South Sudan, Sudan and Somalia, among others will not be eligible to apply for permanent residency.
The TPS program provides temporary residence to people from designated nations who entered the US unlawfully but cannot return to their country because it is dealing with the effects of an ongoing conflict, natural disaster or other extraordinary humanitarian conditions.
There are currently 400,000 people from 12 countries with TPS. Three African countries, South Sudan, Sudan and Somalia, are currently designated for TPS.
Justice Elena Kagan on Monday wrote that federal immigration law prohibits people who entered the country illegally and now have TPS from seeking green cards to permanently remain in the country.
“The TPS program gives foreign nationals non-immigrant status, but it does not admit them. So the conferral of TPS does not make an unlawful entrant eligible”, she stated.
The House of Representatives has already passed legislation that would make it possible for TPS recipients to become permanent residents, Kagan stated.
Similarly protected are people hailing from countries such as Haiti, Honduras, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen.
(ST)